PROVIDENCE – Students, faculty and staff at the University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy were recognized on March 7 by Gov. Lincoln D. Chafee for their efforts to help raise awareness among consumers about the health consequences of not taking medication as directed.

The ceremony took place at the annual Face of Pharmacy event, co-hosted by the Rhode Island Pharmacists Association and the Rhode Island Society of Health Systems Pharmacists.

As part of a national effort, URI students attended or created more than 75 events at which they conducted informational seminars, health screenings and health fairs. Activities included hosting a health fair at the Warwick Mall, addressing consumers at senior centers across the state, and developing materials to pass out to their peers on campus. “Nonadherence to medication is a major public-health concern,” said Erin Arcand, local field organizer for the National Consumers League’s Script Your Future campaign.

“Nearly three out of four Americans report that they do not take medications as prescribed. More than one-third of medicine-related hospitalizations and almost 125,000 deaths in the United States each year are due to people not taking their medicine as directed. •