A. Determining the main idea.

   Choose the best answer. Do not refer to the text.

The main idea of the article is that ______________. ( B )

(a) pharmacy transactions are getting popular and have been benefiting people a lot

(b) pharmacy errors are very common nowadays and people need to protect themselves from these errors

(c) pharmacy errors can't be prevented even if people are clear about the cause and effect

(d) the causes of pharmacy errors are complex

B. Comprehending the text.

   Choose the best answer.

1. Gabrielle Hundley got a brain damage because ___________. ( C )

(a) the doctor didn't prescribe properly

(b) she overtook the medicine prescribed by the doctor

(c) she had a high dose of the wrong medicine dispensed by the pharmacy

(d) she didn't take the medicine according to the prescription

2. Rite Aid is _______________. ( D )

(a) one of the Big Four chains of hospital

(b) a small-sized pharmacy

(c) a company producing drugs

(d) a major pharmacy

3. What can be said about pharmacy errors? ( C )

(a) Facts show that pharmacy errors are not so common as people think.

(b) The rate of pharmacy errors is not much higher than years ago.

(c) The pharmacy industry fails to realize how much worried the public are about pharmacy error rates.

(d) High rate of pharmacy errors are expected by many people although pharmacists are ranked high in social status.

4. What is the situation of new drugs? ( A )

(a) New drugs appear on the market in great amount at high speed.

(b) The FDA's drug-approval time was prolonged in 1992.

(c) Pharmacists get enough training to dispense new drugs properly.

(d) With so many new drugs appearing on the market, it is safe to depend completely on your doctor.

5. A pharmacist should complete ___________ year(s) of formal training. ( B )

(a) one

(b) five or six

(c) two

(d) fifteen

6. Which of the following statements about pharmacy technicians is NOT true ? ( D )

(a) Their professional level isn't as high as registered pharmacists.

(b) They are not required to complete formal academic training.

(c) The pay they get is much lower than registered pharmacists.

(d) Their work needn't be supervised by the registered pharmacists.

7. It is not implied in the article that _______________. ( D )

(a) the workload is one major reason of pharmacy errors

(b) the heavier workloads are, the higher the pharmacy error rate is.

(c) it's usual for a pharmacist to fill more than 24 prescriptions an hour

(d) the correlation between workloads and error rates is not outstanding

8. Concerning the safe net, it is safe to say_____________. ( A )

(a) computers are not used by the pharmacies to their utmost in warning the public against drug interactions

(b) the public are provided with updated information about risks for existing or new drugs

(c) pharmacies warn the public against adverse interactions on the Internet in time

(d) pharmacists issue warnings against drug interaction on their booklets

9. The following statements about error-reporting programs are true except that ___________. ( D )

(a) error-reporting programs are not obligatory on the national level

(b) error-reporting programs are often run by drug chains for internal management

(c) error-reporting programs are gaining more importance in drug chains

(d) error-reporting programs are run by most state boards

C. Understanding vocabulary.

   Choose the correct definition according to the context.

1. How often would they go awry? ( B )

(a) twisted

(b) wrong

(c) straight

(d) right

2. The pharmacy industry insists that worries over error rates are overblown. ( A )

(a) exaggerated

(b) overcharged

(c) unusual

(d) reasonable

3. These third-party payers are imposing ever-lower reimbursement rates on pharmacies, which must churn out a high volume of prescriptions to keep profit margins up. ( D )

(a) bring about

(b) move about violently

(c) carry out

(d) produce in large amounts

4. And there's no dearth of homework. ( A )

(a) shortage

(b) increase

(c) much

(d) decrease

5. Nevada's board of pharmacy reprimanded Paxton's pharmacist, saying he should have warned her of the potential for allergic reaction. ( A )

(a) reproached

(b) argued with

(c) represented

(d) requested

6. Some dispensing errors can be attributed to unreasonable workloads. ( C )

(a) be corrected by

(b) be worsened by

(c) be due to

(d) be diverted to

7. Since 1992 the FDA and the drug manufacturers have issued warnings that mixing the two drugs could be fatal. ( B )

(a) effective

(b) deadly

(c) disastrous

(d) useless

8. They usually aren't prepared by pharmacists or physicians—but by commercial vendors. ( A )

(a) sellers

(b) consumers

(c) agents

(d) advertisers

9. And national error-reporting programs such as one run by U.S. Pharmacopeia are voluntary.( A )

(a) unforced

(b) popular

(c) obligatory

(d) enforced

10. Her attorney presented 233 incident reports that had been submitted to Harco management. ( C )

(a) returned

(b) written

(c) sent

(d) reconsidered

11. But Carmen Catizone, executive director of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, which represents state licensing boards across the country, argues for greater oversight. ( A )

(a) supervision

(b) neglect

(c) overlook

(d) punishment

12. In most states, pharmacists are required by law to counsel customers about new prescriptions. ( B )

(a) consult

(b) advise

(c) contact

(d) inquire

D. Discussing the following topics.

1. What has resulted in pharmacy errors? What are the consequences of pharmacy errors?

2. How can you protect yourself from pharmacy errors? And do you agree with the conclusion, "the ultimate responsibility of protecting himself rests with the consumer"? Why?