Awards & Scholarships

Mortar & Pestle Professionalism Winning Essay
2009 Recipient

Jason Lovero, PharmD University of Houston

Leaving a Legacy: Inspiring and mentoring the next generation of pharmacists

As a pharmacist, I am asked many different questions about a variety of subjects.  Depending on what question I am asked, I may or may not have the answer; but I usually have a good idea about where to find it.  Over the years, I have amassed quite a library, ranging from pharmacotherapy textbooks to pocket references.  Eventually, I became confident in my ability to use both my knowledge and my resources to care for the patients I served.  But one day, I was asked a question I will never forget: “where do you want to go?”  None of the references in my library would have been able to provide the answer to that question.  As I thought about my response, a fond story of my childhood involving Alice and a Cheshire Cat came to mind:

“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat.

The concept of mentorship is not a new one.  The relationship between a teacher and a pupil is even documented in Greek mythology.  Before Odysseus set out for the Trojan War in The Odyssey, he entrusted the care and education of his son to his close friend, Mentor.  But just as the profession of pharmacy has evolved over time, the role of the mentor has also transformed.  The mentors of today are not only charged with bestowing knowledge; they are also expected to guide and inspire.

Mentors serve in multiple capacities, one of which is to teach.  However, the focus of a good mentor is not as much on bestowing knowledge as it is on developing skills.  It was not too long ago that schools and colleges of pharmacy began to offer entry-level Doctor of Pharmacy degrees.  Student pharmacists are trained to be medication experts upon graduation.  There is no question that pharmacy education is filled with didactic lectures and experiential training.  Therefore, if your mentee is unsure about a question you ask, spend less time providing answers and more time teaching the art of lifelong learning.  Help your mentee identify strengths and improve upon weaknesses to build self-esteem.  Encourage your mentee to participate in experiences that will foster professional growth, whether that means making medication therapy recommendations on rounds or leading a journal club discussion.  These skills are not easily learned in the classroom but are essential to the next generation of pharmacists.

What differentiates a mentor from an instructor or professor?  All of them teach, but mentors guide.  As demands for quality improvement and pay for performance increase, the role of the pharmacist will continue to evolve.  The profession has moved from a product-centered to a patient-centered focus, and with the recent development of an action plan to achieve the Future Vision of Pharmacy Practice by the Joint Commission of Pharmacy Practitioners (JCPP), the transformation is not complete.  Mentors are uniquely positioned to teach future pharmacists how to make a difference in the profession.  Show mentees what practices are currently accepted in the world of pharmacy.  But do not stop there.  Challenge mentees by exposing them to the current problems facing healthcare.  Help them understand the connection between involvement in professional organizations and the advancement of patient care.  Educate your mentee about how organizations like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the Joint Commission affect the practice of pharmacy.  By raising awareness on the external forces that can influence the delivery of patient care, you are empowering the next generation of pharmacists to take an active role in advancing the profession.

If you were to ask every student pharmacist to name a mentor, do you think each one would provide an answer?  Throughout my life, I have had many teachers.  Each of them taught me something valuable, and for that I am grateful.  However, there are only a handful of special people in my life whom I can call “mentors.”  These are the individuals who not only taught me the mechanism of action of warfarin, but also allowed me to counsel patients on its appropriate use.  These are the individuals who explained the current state of the profession of pharmacy and then supported my efforts to challenge the status quo when I attended professional meetings.  And these are the individuals who not only asked me about pharmacy, but also asked me about my friends and my family.  This is the key to successful mentorship, because the personal relationship between a mentor and a mentee serves as a motivational force for both individuals.  As a mentor, you are rewarded when your mentee succeeds as a result of your guidance.  As a mentee, your success inspires you to honor those who have helped you by serving as a mentor to future pharmacists.  I challenge every pharmacist to do two things: find a mentor and serve as a mentor.  In doing so, you are leaving a legacy, because if you succeed, every mentee you guide in the right direction will subsequently guide future pharmacists toward the same common goal of improving medication use and advancing patient care.

Thinking back on Lewis Carroll’s story about Alice and the Cheshire Cat, I am reminded of the question I will never forget: “where do you want to go?”  To this day, I still do not have a definitive answer.  Luckily for me, I have some great mentors to guide me along the way.