At the beginning of the pandemic, the world was desperate to find therapies that could improve outcomes in patients with COVID-19. The urgency brought repurposed drugs into the spotlight, but studies were poorly designed with many limitations and biases.

Clarissa Chan, PharmD

During residency at the University of Washington in Seattle, Traci White, PharmD, spent a lot of time on rotations in the ICU as part of the team providing intensive care to critically ill patients. What struck her about this work, she said, was “You’re looking at paper, numbers, data, and graphs. You’re talking a lot about the patient— you’re discussing everything about that patient. But you have no idea who that patient really is.”

Sonya Collins

According to CDC’s COVID-19 data tracker, as of press time, approximately 52% of the U.S. adult population was fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and 62.8% of U.S. adults have received at least one dose.¹  Vaccine uptake has continued to increase since the initial authorization in December 2020, but more recent data suggest that demand for the COVID-19 vaccine may be reaching a plateau.²

Maria G. Tanzi, PharmD

More than 150 million Americans have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Pharmacists have played a critical role in the effort it took to get this far. The crucial work of administering the vaccines, which pharmacists have done tirelessly, is just one piece of it. Pharmacists have also spent the last 7 months educating their patients, neighbors, and others about COVID-19 vaccines.

Sonya Collins

Pharmacy technicians like Sara Dreyer have taken on more responsibility since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and now that vaccines are available in communities across the United States, the role of the pharmacy technician is even more pronounced.

Loren Bonner