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Transitions Magazine

Transitions is published bi-monthly for members of the APhA New Practitioner Network. The online newsletter contains information focused on life inside and outside pharmacy practice, providing guidance on various areas of professional, personal, and practice development. Each issue includes in-depth articles on such topics as personal financial management, innovative practice sites, career profiles, career development tools, residency and postgraduate programs, and more.

A new view
Jamila Negatu
/ Categories: Student Magazine

A new view

The first contingent of University of South Florida College of Pharmacy student pharmacists to attend the APhA Institute (from left): Matthew Noble, Casey Perticone, and Jaimie Myers.

“A life-changing experience.” That is the first thing you will hear anyone who has attended the APhA Institute on Alcoholism and Drug Dependencies say about the experience. I heard it countless times before I decided to attend this past June, and doing so was one of the best decisions I have made during my pharmacy school career.
 
When I first learned about the APhA Institute, I immediately had an interest but didn’t anticipate the levels it would affect me. I wanted to learn how to address this as a future practicing clinician who had a different experience than most of my colleagues. Addiction has been an interest in my life with growing impact over the past few years because of having to confront addiction in my own family. Clinicians and other the health care providers frequently witness addiction in their roles, especially in Florida. However, it is very different when you have had to deal with addiction in your own family and then become the clinician who is addressing this with their patients. I know how devastating the disease state can be not because of some class where I learned how to be empathetic, but because I live it with my family.
 

Thought-provoking discussions

One of my favorite presentations was Bridging the Gap: The Role of Family Dynamics in Addiction Recovery, by Lisa Molbert. With a family member in recovery, Molbert’s presentation really put the role I have played in addiction recovery into perspective for me.
 
One thing that some individuals fail to appreciate about addicts in recovery is that just the slightest chemical shift in the brain can change things in an instant. It can be a conversation that the addict has or overhears, a memory that flashes before them, or even just seeing the drug. The disease can turn their lives upside down and without the proper coping mechanisms to help, they struggle to maintain control. 
 
Molbert explained the concept of co-dependency and provided a handout to test attendees for co-dependency. As I suspected, I scored as probably being a co-dependent, which made me think a little bit more about how I can change to better help in an addict’s recovery process and how to apply this when I  care for patients. 
 
This disease doesn’t just affect the addict—like a lot of other disease states, it affects the family as well. The Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, and Al-Anon meetings at the Institute were extremely helpful because it is difficult to see who the disease affects due to the negative stigma that it typically holds. It was a relief to hear that you have common ground with other people who have gone through this, too. When a person is in recovery, or has a family member in recovery, it is imperative that he or she have someone who can support and encourage them.
 

Symbolic hike

APhA Institute attendees have the opportunity to take a group hike up the Red Butte Mountains, just behind the University of Utah. As a native Floridian, where we barely have hills, climbing the mountain was a phenomenal experience. It was encouraging to see all of the students helping and motivating each other to push through to get to the top. It was symbolic of how this disease state should be approached for treatment. Patients who are struggling with addiction may come to pharmacists for help and motivation so that they can get to the top of the mountain to see how beautiful life is.
 
Pharmacists also need to ensure that when treating pain, they help to prevent and identify any concerns or risks that could put a patient in the path of addiction, dependence, diversion, or misuse early. Fighting the negative stigma of this public health issue is critical, and I believe pharmacists have a unique opportunity to step up and fill this need.
 

Take advantage

Attending is an opportunity of a lifetime and I would highly recommend it. I attended as one of the recipients of the 2017 APhA Foundation Ronald L. 
Williams Memorial Fund Scholarship. 
 

 

 
Matthew Noble is a third-year PharmD candidate at the University of South Florida College of Pharmacy.

 

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