Book excerpt: In an era of skyrocketing drug costs, changing reimbursement, pharmacist and technician shortages, and a seemingly permanent "do-more-for-less" era of hospital and health-system management, every management decision that a pharmacy manager makes has financial implications. Success as a manager means understanding - and then mastering - the basics of finance and accounting as practiced in institutional health care. Financial Management for Heath-System Pharmacists provides pharmacy managers with a set of fundamental financial management tools as they relate not only to pharmacy department management, but to the management of the hospital and health care system. Chapters include information on: * Financial accounting principles * Hospital financial management * Budgeting principles * Forecasting pharmaceutical expenditures * Cost management basics * Controlling operating results