Review the conference schedule. Iron and lint roll my blazer. Is my school badge visible? Wait patiently to talk with presenter. When is the appropriate moment to enter the conversation? I should mentally review my elevator speech. Remember that, when I get the chance, my handshake should be firm but not too firm. I should provide the presenter with my contact information. Why did I not buy business cards this year? They are free. Smile, take a deep breath, extend hand: “Hi, my name is …”

The Sexual Health Committee within Temple University School of Pharmacy’s APhA–ASP Chapter is unique in that it is one of the few to exist amongst APhA as a whole. In addition, sexual health is a prevalent public health concern in Philadelphia, giving us an opportunity to make a substantial impact in our community. 

We have educated our community on sexual health topics such as safe sex practices, prevention of the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, birth control, and HIV education/prevention. As the demographic surrounding Temple University is largely college-aged students and an underprivileged population,  this sexual health education reaches a community that can directly use the information that we provide. 

At East Tennessee State University (ETSU) Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy, it is the ongoing goal of the APhA–ASP Chapter’s Generation Rx initiative to adapt events to the needs that are prevalent in the Appalachian region. This goal allows committee members to connect with the people they are striving to help. Often, the medication-related issues that residents of our community face are similar to those that student pharmacists have seen in their own hometowns.

Prescription opioids are still the most common drugs associated with overdose deaths in Tennessee. The region of northeast Tennessee, where ETSU is located, has the highest concentration in the state for opioid-related overdose deaths. As a result, student leaders sought to expand previous outreach efforts that focused on Identification of at-risk individuals for an opioid overdose and provide them with naloxone and education.