APhA Member News
A minute with…
Angela Dansereau, 2021 PharmD candidate
University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy, Kingston
Pharmacy intern, CVS Pharmacy, North Smithfield, RI
Member since 2015
“Being a member of APhA Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA–ASP) has given me the most amazing platform to meet other student pharmacists and cultivate relationships within the profession. Membership in APhA has also helped me grow as a leader and as an advocate for the profession of pharmacy.”
How has APhA helped you establish meaningful connections?
APhA has given me opportunities to travel across the country from Buffalo to Washington, DC, to Seattle. With each new place I have gone, the number of meaningful connections has only grown. First as a chapter leader and then as a Regional Officer, APhA has given me the platform to establish an extensive network of peers from all over the country.
How has APhA helped prepare you for your career as a pharmacist?
Through involvement in APhA–ASP patient care projects, I have been able to apply skills learned in the classroom out in the community to benefit real patients. Patient education and health screenings are important ways that I as a student pharmacist can improve my approach to patient care while working to improve the wellness of patients in my community. Additionally, attendance at the APhA–ASP Summer Leadership Institute gave me the opportunity to meet with my state legislators from Rhode Island and advocate for provider status for pharmacists. There, I learned the importance of policy as the vehicle to advance the profession and better patient care by granting pharmacists provider status.
What excites you about the profession of pharmacy?
The profession of pharmacy is always moving forward. Pharmacists are highly trained health professionals that can bring many diverse skills to an interprofessional team. I see that the health care system is increasingly recognizing what pharmacists bring to the table and is finally utilizing their unique skillset. I am excited to see how pharmacists operating at the top of the license will benefit the health care system.
Can you share a meaningful story about a time you interacted with a patient?
Having worked in the community setting for the past 4 years, there are many instances where I felt I was able to make a difference for patients. I often hear from patients that they “do not want to bother their doctor,” with an issue or question they have about their own health. It is nice to be able to take the time with a patient to make sure they understand what they are taking and why.
I had an encounter with one patient who was newly diagnosed with heart failure and atrial fibrillation and needed counseling on his new medications. Taking the new medications was less of a concern for this patient than the lifestyle recommendations we were also suggesting, specifically the dietary changes he would have to make regarding salt restriction. He explained that he had diabetes as well and adding one more consideration to his diet may be too much to manage. The patient was older, living alone, and therefore relied heavily on frozen meals, canned soups, and deli cuts, all of which I was telling him would need to be essentially eliminated. Realizing his concern, another pharmacist and I spent over an hour with this patient to not only explain why restricting salt was essential for his condition, but also help him brainstorm some manageable ways to incorporate our suggestions into his lifestyle. Upon leaving the patient, I felt he was not only well educated about his medications and new disease diagnosis, but also confident in his own ability to independently manage his health.
Did you know?
Check out the new Pharmacists’ Guide to Coronavirus Resource Center
We redesigned the COVID-19 section of pharmacist.com to provide quick access to trending topics and the latest information and resources from APhA, including new pages for all archived episodes of our 15 on COVID-19 Series and recordings and slides of our Open Forum Webinar Series.
You can now easily access content organized by trending topic areas, such as Testing in Pharmacies, Medications Being Studied, Immunizations, Managing Your Pharmacy, and Telehealth. You can also easily browse through APhA advocacy content, practice resources, public resources, and online community topics.
Visit the resource center at www.pharmacist.com/coronavirus.
Get involved in APhA
Care of Underserved Patients SIG
The Care of Underserved Patients SIG aims to provide a professional community of pharmacists and stakeholders who are currently practicing within or plan to be involved in caring for underserved patient populations. This may include clinical practice sites or volunteer work with federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), free and charitable health clinics, 340B pharmacies, or other community-based pharmacy settings such as community pharmacies.
The purpose of this community is to assist pharmacists in identifying and sharing resources for underserved patients; helping pharmacists develop new sustainable services in these practice settings; teaching pharmacists, students, and/or residents about caring for underserved populations; investigating reimbursement opportunities; and performing research in these practice settings. Learn more at www.pharmacist.com/care-underserved-patients-sig-0.
Members in motion
PQA CEO Laura Cranston announces planned leadership transition
After 15 years of leading Pharmacy Quality Alliance (PQA) from a start-up organization to an organization solely dedicated to optimizing health by advancing the quality of medication use, Laura Cranston, RPh, will step down as CEO by the end of the year. This is a planned transition that will ensure that PQA’s work to optimize the safe and appropriate use of medications through the development and implementation of meaningful measures, research, and cutting-edge educational initiatives continues its strong momentum.
“As an organization that CMS envisioned 15 years ago as a public–private partnership, it has been my privilege to serve as the founding CEO of PQA, an organization that has grown to 250 members,” said Cranston in a statement.
“I continue to be inspired every day by PQA’s mission, and am grateful for the steadfast commitment and engagement of the PQA team, the board of directors and the strong volunteerism of the membership that helps to shape the work we are doing in helping to develop measures through a consensus-driven process that will enhance patient outcomes through appropriate medication management.”
“I have been humbled by the opportunity to lead PQA, and I am proud of the organization we have built,” Cranston continued. “Together, we have defined medication quality and positively impacted how health care is experienced and evaluated. PQA is in a great place today, and I am ready for the next chapter in my career.”
Read the full story at www.pqaalliance.org.