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.

At the University of New Mexico (UMN) College of Pharmacy, we take pride in being part of a state rich in culture and diversity. In order for us to expand the impact and connections we create through outreach, it is a priority to integrate culture within our initiatives so we have the ability to establish a lasting foundation for present and future generation’s usage and understanding of prescription medications. 

Using 2016–17 APhA–ASP President Kelsea Gallegos’ presidential theme as our mantra, the goal that year for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Pharmacy APhA–ASP Chapter was to protect individuals from the dangers of prescription medication abuse. “Together” we accomplished this by conducting Generation Rx activities for elementary, middle school, high school, and college students, as well as teachers, parents, and seniors. By raising awareness and encouraging sobriety and/or recovery, we established that “We Can” improve the health of our communities and better enable our patients. 

During our third professional year, my classmates and I had the exciting opportunity to peruse the rotation catalog that outlined preceptors, practice sites, and of course, specialty areas. T’was an exciting time indeed as we ranked our top 20 choices per requirement fields, such as faculty-acute care or community practice. I was unsure of which career path I wanted to pursue, so I aimed to tailor my rotations to offer me further insights into various practices. 

I set a goal to choose rotations that were specialized in ambulatory care and clinical practice sites, so that I could learn more about how to apply my clinical knowledge to directly have an impact on patients. There was a 2-month period during which the computer system matched us to rotation sites, and the anticipation was daunting. Alas, I was disappointed to learn that I only received three clinically strong rotations out of nine, leaving me in a limbo as I now await  to learn which site has availability to host me. 

Harriet Beecher Stowe lived to be 85, an unusual feat for a woman born in 1811, when life expectancy was about 40. It is fair to assume she wasn’t talking specifically about women’s sexual health or reproductive health, but her words still ring true. Health is 
everything.

Yes, men and women experience similar health issues—heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, for example. But there are health challenges that negatively impact only, or predominately, women. Certainly, in reproductive and sexual health, women have unique risks. In addition to obvious areas, such as those inherent in pregnancy and childbirth, women are more likely to suffer long-term complications from untreated sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Understanding women’s distinct health needs is essential to providing care.