BALTIMORE (Map, News) - After asking the state for more than a decade, the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy in Baltimore finally learned this month that it received $62 million for an addition to ease the shortage of pharmacists in the state. Maryland sees 200 to 300 pharmacist vacancies every year. Natalie Eddington, dean of the pharmacy school, talked with The Examiner about the importance of the annex, which will break ground in August and be completed in 2010. The new classrooms and laboratory space will add 40 seats, from 160 to 200. Salaries for pharmacists start at about $90,000.

Why do you need a new pharmacy building?

We are meeting the work force shortage of pharmacists in the state of Maryland. Like nursing, which has received a lot of interest, we also have a shortage of pharmacists.

How has pharmacy training changed in recent years?

We are really interested in our students being more involved in direct patient care. Most people think it’s just the person behind the counter at a local pharmacy who looks at prescriptions, pulls out the right tablets, types up directions and gives them to patients. We want to give pharmacists the skills for chronic disease management. Diabetes is a big problem in Maryland. Pharmacists can ask patients if they are following a rigorous diet and getting exercise. Similar programs elsewhere have shown that can reduce health care costs, because it’s preventative, and fewer patients are going to the ER or missing days of work.

What are some of the challenges pharmacists face?

Many of the patients take more than four or five prescriptions. And by 2020, there will be a 70 percent increase in the number of seniors.