Author Archives

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A Long Walk Out Of A Dark Place

On the rainy Easter weekend, I was wondering…is anyone else getting tired of hearing the word ‘epidemiology’?

Listening to the Nova Scotia government press briefing earlier that week, I noticed the messaging has significantly shifted to positive reports of mass vaccinations and updates on emerging evidence surrounding the currently approved vaccines. We here on the east coast of Canada are fortunate to have low case numbers, and our surges have not been as dramatic or prolonged as those of other provinces, but that hasn’t made it any easier for businesses or recreational gatherings in the community. If anything, successful flattening of the curve through a coordinated effort between Public Health and a cooperative public has meant earlier and more severe restrictions on movement. We’ve been missing our friends and family for well over a year.

Now the good news: the public is getting vaccinated at a rapid rate. As of this writing, community pharmacies have been immunizing for about 3 weeks in NS. After starting with a small handful of successful pilot sites, the program expanded so that most community pharmacies will have appointments available by the end of April. A public health initiative this large is rife with potential pitfalls: coordination between provincial and federal governments, logistical snafus with freezer storage and distribution, and the implementation of the latest evidence around PPE, vaccine side effects, and dosing intervals all serve to complicate clinic rollouts. Finding and implementing immunizers presents the most critical challenge of the moment. Delays could allow more contagious, variant strains to further complicate the pandemic by allowing them time to spread before herd immunity is achieved.

More good news! Nova Scotians are rallying to the cause of mass immunization. Even with all of the stress we have endured over the past 15 months, people are lining up to receive their inoculation with responsible enthusiasm. Pharmacists are eager to be a part of this initiative, many applying to work overtime hours in public health clinics as well as their own stores. Retired nurses and pharmacists are applying for re-licensure to offer their support. The collaboration between front store retail staff and pharmacy personnel to coordinate onsite clinics is like nothing I have experienced previously. Social media posts are full of people telling their friends that they have received their first shot. People can once again envision a trip to the theatre, a sporting event, a parade, or a live concert.

The path is still lengthy but home is in view. The immunization effort will last until August at least, but every week that passes is one week closer to putting the strain of coronavirus behind us and enjoying the little things we might have taken for granted. We now know how to see this through, though none of it would be possible without tough commitment to the public health measures we know by heart: wearing a mask, keeping safe distance, and washing our hands. Thank you to everyone who has done their best to stick to the recommendations.

Sometimes it feels like we’ve been walking through a deep, dark valley that seems endless. Up ahead in the distance, we finally catch a glimpse of a clearing. Keep moving. We’ll get there soon.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation

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A (Rapid) Turn of the Page

Every year I find myself wanting to write about New Year‘s. There is a desire to summarize wins from the past year and look forward to larger opportunities in the new. Often the personal and professional lives of a pharmacist are intertwined, so any resolutions affecting one can have a direct impact on the other.

We all know 2020 was wild, no need to pretend we didn’t notice.

I wrote my last post in Oct, it was 6 months after the start of this pandemic. In that time, I’ve probably had a dozen article ideas ranging from breaking down the past flu season rush to Thanksgiving thoughts. There were thoughts of some Hallowe’en zaniness with some inevitable reference to cloxacillin capsules, and congrats to those pharmacist candidates finally able to write their PEBCs. Every single time I began a paragraph, I couldn’t help but reference the mixed up state of the world due to Covid. I got tired of comparing or contrasting everything we know and love with what’s been happening, so I took the coward’s way out:

I waited for 2020 to fade into the background and 2021 to take centre stage.

The page hasn’t so much turned, as we’re still in the throes of a global pandemic, but it does feel like the story is taking a new direction. Were there silver linings from all of the disruption? Absolutely. However it’s safe to say that an overwhelming majority of those near and dear to me are happy to put 2020 in the rearview mirror.

With that in mind, here is a partial list of my aspirations for this year. I hesitate to call them resolutions, only because one of my aspirations is to go easier on myself when I’m not as resolute as I want to be:

  • Look forward to things – meeting friends, taking day trips, going window shopping, planning projects, etc. Living day to day in isolation is a sacrifice we make to keep others safe, but we can’t take for granted the incredible toll it has taken on our collective mental health.
  • Better discipline – to make time for things that are important. Working from home has changed the dynamic between productive work and downtime. Schedules are fuzzy and personal accountability is paramount. I strive to improve my focus and re-establish a routine that properly dedicates time to work, and prioritizing my physical and mental wellness.
  • Go easy on myself and those around me – For those that experience anxiety and depressive symptoms on a regular basis, the past year was another monumental challenge to face. As the economy opens, remember that better days are ahead, though it won’t be a straight line progression. There will continue to be days of self-doubt and isolation. That is okay, and expected.
  • Communicate – Being open and honest with those I love is more important to me now than ever before. This extends to my professional life as well; being comfortable articulating my feelings around my work makes it easier for my managers to work with me to keep our work engaging and rewarding.

2021 is not the light at the end of the tunnel, but the light ahead shining over a vast sea of opportunity. Let’s sail forward together.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.

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Finding Silver Linings

Thank you to the many friends and family that have taken the time to reach out since my last post on March 15. What seems like years ago was in fact the day my home province of Nova Scotia first reported active cases of Covid-19. As Wikipedia summarizes:

On March 15, Nova Scotia’s first three presumptive cases were detected, all travel-related.

The world has not been the same, and as a result we have all been challenged to find the positives while living within the chaotic uncertainty of the dreaded ‘new normal.’

I have been no different. Isolation was torturous. Mentally, my strength ebbed and flowed much like a tide; I felt that certain days offered some hope that things would return to normal sooner than expected, but there were significant stretches where that semblance of a familiar routine seemed to be getting further and further away. Productivity was down, tensions were up, and distance was affecting relationships.

2020 has so many memes depicting all the horrible and controversial events of the year, and there are too many to list. At what point can we get this train to slow down?

After writing for 7 years, I’ve always relied on this method to put thoughts down and read them back later. It forces me to frame what is happening and what I’m feeling as part of a bigger picture instead of allowing an event (or in the case of 2020, a ridiculous series of events) to overtake all the beauty in the world. After 6 months on hiatus, it’s time to once again channel that energy by writing about the positive changes we’re seeing, particularly in the pharmacy profession:

  • Essential Workers – by any description, those that kept essential services running, and those who worked to support each other through the worst of the pandemic, your passion and dedication is inspirational. I am especially proud of my pharmacy colleagues everywhere for stepping up in so many ways to fill significant healthcare gaps.
  • Conditionally-Licensed Pharmacists – In March, clinical rotations were cancelled, licensing exams were postponed and grad ceremonies were a pipe dream. In many jurisdictions the Class of 2020 were granted the ability to practice at full scope at a time when staff were being quarantined, case loads were rising and teams were being separated. They did not disappoint!
  • Technician Expanded Scope – the move in NS to allow Technician or Technician candidates to perform medication administration via injection will significantly help reduce the burden on what is expected to be a high-demand flu season.
  • Focus on Diversity and Inclusion – The awareness, continued discussion, and meaningful action to address underrepresented and marginalized groups will lead to a much stronger society. We are just scratching the surface and need to keep issues of inequality and equity at the forefront.
  • Social Networks – Physical distancing has kept families and friends apart for way too long, but that distance has been necessary to avoid viral spread to vulnerable members of our society. Video chat applications are now much more prominent in the workplace and the home to keep people engaged. So far I’ve tried Zoom, FaceTime, MS Teams, Webex, and Skype for one-on-ones, group chats with my theatre company, and for hosting education sessions with university classes. It doesn’t replace in-person, but sure beats marathon conference calls!
  • Redefining work environments – Similar to above, we are recognizing that many administrative functions may be transplanted off-site from a traditional office environment. There is less time spent traveling, and schedule coordination is easier.

We are coming out of Wave 1 for the worst pandemic the world has seen since 1918, so recovery is expected to be slow and arduous. I’ll be using these written words to remind myself that we learn and grow no matter the test to our personal constitutions. It will prevent the wrong type of pessimism to affect my outlook for the remainder of 2020.

It’s good to be back 🙂

 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.

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Staying Current

“I give you three years.”

During my internship in 2001, life seemed to be just beginning: I was engaged the previous fall, and after completing our clinical rotations, my fiancee and I set off for New Brunswick in search of budding careers. In our brand new black mica Mazda Protege and brains bursting with the latest clinical evidence, it was an open road and the world would be changing because of our passion for pharmacy.

My preceptor was quite the jokester, with a quick wit and impeccable comedic timing. He enjoyed needling me on my ability to recite DINs and got a kick out of how I would make recommendations featuring obscure molecules from my lesson notes (“No, benazepril would not be the first ACEI I’d go with in this case.”) Sensing my eagerness, he did his best to remove the training wheels that guided me through 4 years of schooling. Part of that education was preparing me for the realities of retail pharmacy. He would opine on the relationships built with fellow pharmacists in other settings of work. He implored me not to be discouraged when upset customers took out their frustrations on me even when I was trying my best to help. Most importantly, he stressed that with so much ready information available everywhere, I should not be expected to know every detail or answer, but rather I needed to be an expert on how to find that answer.

His theory is that there is a three year window to transition from a purely academic approach to that of a practical, patient-focused clinician. During this time, the environment where someone works will influence the breadth of knowledge being applied. Pearls you use regularly are cemented, and those that are less frequently seen tend to get blurry. For example, a clinical pharmacist in a specialized hospital department may be much more equipped to handle questions in their field than someone with community experience. Be it paediatrics, transplantation, HIV treatments, cancer therapies, or infectious diseases, immersion in those areas will bring confidence that decisions are being made with the best and most current available evidence. Alternatively, community pharmacists may have more general knowledge of prescribing habits in their service area, new molecules or brands on the market, and comfort in assessing minor ailments for their patients. Pharmacists in advocacy and regulatory positions would presumably be more in tune with government relations and challenges facing other healthcare professions. The point is that it’s called a practice for a reason; to stay current, one needs to have access to the best information and the opportunity to apply that information consistently.

So here I find myself, just passing my third year anniversary in my current position. My last full-time exposure to dispensing was during a stint managing a long-term care pharmacy. At that time, I felt I could hold my own in the world of geriatrics. I was comfortable with eschewing guidelines that had little applicability to institutional settings, and really challenged my thinking when it came to weighing benefit vs risk in the frail elderly population. At the same time, many of those patients had pharmacare, or were admitted from hospital with restrictive formularies. This meant that many designer drugs, even new therapeutic classes, came to market well before I became aware. Other than in hypothetical case-based discussions, I have not had to face clinical questions from patients about the management of contraceptives, or most minor ailments for that matter, for extended stretches of time. If I’ve fallen behind, then it’s on me to correct any deficiencies.

The only way to improve is to recognize these gaps and work to address them. I’ve recently re-introduced myself to the wonderful website hosted by the University of Saskatchewan College of Pharmacy and Nutrition. It features a plethora of guidelines and algorithms to help support minor ailment prescribing. The next step will be to explore real patient cases to shake off some rust. As for where to start, I have always enjoyed studying renal and infectious diseases, so it’s time for me to get back to the basics and hunt some new pearls.

In order to stay current, I guess you have to go with the flow.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.

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New Year’s Inspiration: Greener Grass from the Canadian Pharmer

One of the original pages posted to this site, on March 3, 2014 was a revelation for me. A simple introduction to the global online community would serve as a starting point for everything I had hoped PharmAspire could be: a place that always looks for the silver lining; a forum to celebrate the profession that has provided so much satisfaction in my personal life as well as my career.

In reading that piece again, I am reminded of my inspirations for starting the blog in the first place: circa 2012, the profession was in the midst of changing in radical ways. Practitioners everywhere were skeptical and calculating what modifications they would need to make to keep current. As a leader, I was often sought out for guidance when there were feelings of uncertainty, or for some, full-blown anxiety. When I realized that the lack of confidence in my own abilities was preventing me from having good answers to clinical questions, or otherwise leading others to jump into the deep end of the pool, I needed to make some major changes in my career path. Joining my peers back on the front line was refreshing and extremely engaging. We worked through those clinical questions, we pushed to the established boundaries of our scope, we redefined dispensary layouts and roles. I learned so much every day from those who had previously viewed me as the subject matter expert and that experience was liberating. The blog was a byproduct of my personal journey, and a celebration of those who continue to inspire me inside and outside of my chosen profession.

“Pharmacists thrive in many sectors of the healthcare system. When significant changes come about, there are almost always negative aspects associated with the transition. The old cliche, ‘the grass is always greener on the other side’ starts to resonate and folks look for new pastures, and new challenges. However, many of us have roots in the sector in which we work, and if our experience can influence how the changes are implemented, it can only help to sand down the rough patches. My goal with the blog is to inspire and motivate pharmacists. Wherever you may be, grab a bag of fertilizer and make your own grass greener. Strengthen those roots and get excited about sharing new experiences.”

I believe these words to be just as significant now as they were back then. When we face significant hurdles borne from the economic realities of the pharmacy industry, we lean on each other to vent, to comfort, to overcome the negative emotions we hold in that moment. I am honoured and blessed to have met and developed deep, long-lasting relationships with patients and practitioners alike, all of whom keep pushing me to be the best pharmacist I can be.

Today, I would like to introduce you to Michelle Stewart, a community pharmacist in New Glasgow who has found her platform to effectively communicate with her peers. The Canadian Pharmer is a weekly podcast that tackles cutting edge changes in the profession, notably in our home province of Nova Scotia. In 2020, Nova Scotian pharmacists have seen their scope expanded to offer assessments on contraception, herpes zoster, and uncomplicated UTIs. In addition, a number of services are now publicly funded for all residents, and not just registered beneficiaries of the public drug plan.

Michelle has been outspoken and tenacious with her vision for pharmacy. Where I have spent time trying to draw a service distinction between a clinical assessment versus the act of prescribing, her only response was to bring it back to the bigger picture; ‘It’s all about care.’

She’s absolutely, 100% right.

Patient-centred care is taking a holistic approach to patient outcomes. The patient is the one affected by disease. The patient is the one who changes drug therapy, or changes eating habits, or exercise routines. The patient is the one who perceives the benefits and risks of such changes. We are a resource to aid decision-making. Our assessments are an opportunity for us to use our expertise to inform a patient of potential options, which may or may not include prescribing. Our ability to communicate effectively the menu of options allow for the best informed patient decisions, and in turn, the best chance of a positive patient outcome.

Michelle is a master at demystifying the idea that we need to be special in some way to properly wield the new powers granted by this new expanded scope. What actually makes us special is our individual nature, and the resulting relationship we have with our patients and colleagues. The expanding scope of pharmacists is not intended to dump healthcare work on our plate as a series of rote tasks or administrative liability. Rather it is a clear recognition that we are best-positioned to perform these tasks. We are trusted. Our hesitant, exacting nature is one of the main reasons that we are entrusted with these ever-expanding roles. The Canadian Pharmer is helping us learn to trust ourselves.

Give the podcast a listen. You won’t be disappointed! In fact, I’ll let Michelle kick things off by introducing herself…

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.

 

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It’s the Most Magical Time of the Year

The holiday season is somewhat of a dichotomy; for many it’s a time to slow down, to spend with loved ones, and unplug from the bustle of our everyday routines. For others, it can be very high-stress; my colleagues who work in essential services can attest that scheduling any downtime can pose a significant challenge.

Visiting stores in my territory is a priority for me leading up to the holiday break. Dropping in to say hi and taking a moment to ask about travel plans or family gatherings is one of the highlights of my year. Retail pharmacy can be so demanding, and teams work so hard to care for everyone that walks through the door. Let’s face it: nobody chooses or wants to be sick or infirm at any time of year, let alone Christmas and New Year’s. We do all we can to meet their needs knowing that there are physician office closures, weather concerns, and last-minute errands to complete. What I choose to focus on are the positives. Every location I visited spoke of patients that had brought in their baking or dropped off chocolates. Merry Christmas well-wishes were prominent and frequent even with longer lineups and wait times.

It’s sometimes easy to take the little things for granted; this time of year causes you to reflect on what’s really important. On this Christmas Eve, I truly wish the best for you and that of your families.

Have a very merry Christmas, and we’ll see you soon in the New Year!

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.

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Musical Replay

Back in the summer, I had written a post regarding my experience in musical theatre https://pharmaspire.wordpress.com/2019/06/11/i-am-fyedka/ and comparing that to how we introduce a narrative to the public with which they may not previously have been familiar. We are relied upon to guide those looking for our assistance, and to do so at their own pace.

Just as the pacing of movements and line delivery is important to the flow of a theatre production, it’s also crucial that body language and counseling are carefully practiced to be effective. I can recognize my own failings in both personal and professional settings. When explaining healthcare concepts to the public, my comfort in pharmacy has sometimes caused me to use medical terms at inappropriate times, or moved through topics too quickly for others to fully grasp.

My reasons for revisiting this topic is actually a combination of my last two posts: the reprisal of my role in Fiddler over a weekend in early November, and the inspiration of Behind the Post where we were orienting a number of new pharmacy team members to our company. Since my personal journey directly contributes to how I carry myself as a professional, my working life is influenced heavily by the relationships I’ve forged inside and outside the pharmacy world.

I was honoured to be recast as Fyedka in another run of Fiddler on the Roof, produced by the Stage Prophets, a theatre company affiliated by the St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church. During the initial run in Wolfville, a town about 45 minutes from where I live, we asked a Jewish Rabbi from Halifax to bless a production steeped with strong religious undertones. In doing so, it brought many people together of different faiths, to learn traditions and help understand love as a shared, underlying value. A partnership ensued with the Beth Israel Synagogue and the show was relaunched in Halifax with the help of a volunteer team of over 100 people. It was a marathon to prepare, but was worth every moment.

After almost 4 months, the cast was brought back together. We knew the show, but the stage had a totally different shape (proscenium vs thrust), meaning we had to rethink every entry, exit, body position and the direction of our actions when delivering dialogue. Some things worked well, maybe even better than the original venue, and some things didn’t. They needed to be modified or removed altogether. Putting some thought into many of these aspects, I attempted to apply some of what I’ve learned into improving our experience behind the pharmacy counter. For instance, if you are a relief pharmacist at a new location, there are plenty of similarities:

  1. You know your professional responsibilities and the rules you are required to follow. There needs to be structure to ensure a consistent performance.
  2. The layout of your work environment may seem familiar in some ways but require adjustment to your routine. Think pick-up and drop-off. Is there an island workstation? How is the staff positioning within the space?
  3. Costumes and uniforms are the same, but some roles are modified, or those playing the roles have changed. For instance, some pharmacy sites have technicians, others have cashiers depending on staffing needs.
  4. Using available props that have been tailored for the workspace. In theatre, the size and shape of canopies, background set pieces, doorways, etc. need to be customized for the best viewing experience. In pharmacy, this is akin to having different counters, balances, or various automation to perform the work. Some sites have basket systems for their clinic rooms, others have mounted drawers.
  5. Expecting the unexpected – even with the best laid plans, in live theatre, or live pharmacy, there is always a chance of a mishap. Whether the sound system goes on the fritz, the timing of a musical cue is off, the third party communications go down, or the drug delivery is late, we need to have strategies in place to regroup and refocus for the next interaction and the next user experience.

At the end of the day, you are still expected to perform at a high level. After all, the audience member, or potential patient, may not know anything about what they will see prior to passing through the doorway.

The impressions we leave are the difference between a simple transaction and the start of a life-long relationship.

 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.

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Behind the Post

Sometimes inspiration comes from the unlikeliest of places. A few of my teammates were holding an orientation for new pharmacists recently. The audience was a mix of those graduating that previous spring along with pharmacists with multiple years of experience. Some had been assistants, students and interns with us prior to their degree and were comfortable with much of the policy / procedure discussion foist upon them. Others were new to our organization and unfamiliar with the structure.

We took our turns hosting half-hour blocks in our office training room. This space has a quirk of sorts; there is a 2-foot square pillar not quite in the middle of the room, but close enough that when seating employees it needs to be taken into consideration. On quite a few occasions, we had to remind each other to ‘come out from behind the post’ because we could hear the message clear as day, but the view was obstructed to some members of our group. This was usually rectified with a comical slide-shuffle step about 3 feet to the left followed by a chuckle break.

It did get me thinking about pharmacy in a different way. For the longest time, pharmacists were known as being good soldiers, practicing patient-centered care and asserting themselves in their comfort zones. We were (and still are) among the most trusted health professionals but admittedly not very aggressive when creating awareness and parlaying our value into enhanced services. I do see a shift happening with every step into government relations and other benefit partners; the rhetoric is more disciplined, pharmacists across the country are more emboldened, and we are realizing that it’s okay to attach monetary value to the healthcare gaps we are more than capable to fill.

So now that our message is stronger, and it’s being heard in different forums. Under-serviced rural communities, affiliated walk-in clinics that are challenged due to physician staffing, and provincial government regulators are urging pharmacists to provide accessible and timely care to their residents. As the recent valsartan and ranitidine recalls can attest, the current system of contacting primary physicians for recommendations has become overwhelming and potentially leads to patient uncertainty and inevitable care gaps.

Pharmacists more than ever need to step out from behind our posts and put that face on those services we can provide. Provinces are expanding scope in the realm of prescribing, including more minor conditions to diagnose and treat, initiating therapies based on diagnostic criteria, and allowing better access to lab testing results. College programs are converting to entry-level PharmD programs which further remove the pharmacist training from the actual technical dispensing process.

We also can’t do this alone.

The role of the regulated technician is also expanding. They are now able to witness OAMT cases, and chatter about their capability to learn injection technique is growing louder. More and more dispensary operations are realizing the immense value of the role to proactively problem-solve. Their technical accuracy is on par (and in some cases may even be superior) to that of a pharmacist. Our assistants are owning dispensary processes like compounding and batching compliance packaging. They tend to be a main point of customer contact and are practicing patient-centered care like never before.

Helping people is why we do what we do. Being more visible will command the attention we deserve, but we may not even realize we’re being obstructed. Have a look around your practice environment; can your audience truly see you?

 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.

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I am Fyedka

At least I was for a weekend.

For those uninitiated in musical theatre, as I was 20 short months ago, Fyedka is a character in The Fiddler on the Roof, a production originally done on Broadway in 1964. The setting is the fictional shtetl of Anatevka, a small Jewish settlement in eastern Europe under Russian occupation. I was cast to play a young, russian, Christian soldier who falls in love with one of the daughters of a poor milkman named Tevye.

I chose to write about this experience because it’s intensely personal to me, but also because it made me realize a few things about myself and how I form emotional connections with places, things and, most of all, people.

I was never interested in musical theatre. In my pre-teen years, I may have attended one or two shows but they don’t evoke any strong memory; I couldn’t even tell you today what they were. So imagine hitting 40 and being invited to take part in something (mostly because of your kids), and finding yourself immersed in a brand new world of discovery.

My love of singing dates back to preschool, when ordering cassettes from Columbia House mailouts became the rage. I still remember fondly knowing every word to Class of ’57 from the Very Best of the Statlers and proving it to family and friends by sidling up to the boombox in the living room. Acting had never been considered, and no research was ever undertaken to see what was involved. Being part of the ensemble cast for a recent production of Oliver! was such a departure from the life which I had always identified. I was involved in a new process, meeting people who didn’t care about my occupation or my background, but who wanted to come together to tell a story. Even though many of these musicals have been around for decades, I honestly didn’t know the story nor was I familiar with the songs. I had to learn them in real time through the eyes of those cast in the main roles, and from the musicians in the pit band. It was magical how those characters came to life.

I went into the shows with a philosophy that derived from my wonderment towards the talented actors and actresses that supported me: someone in every crowd was brought along with only a casual interest in the show or maybe didn’t know anything about it before arriving at the theatre. If I do my job, if I make the role believable, there is a chance they will leave with my image as the character they remember every time they recount their experience.

Even though it’s not a straight parallel, sometimes we forget that as healthcare professionals, we are just as radical a departure from the general public. The impressions we make when someone ventures into our world have the ability to comfort, inspire, educate, and help improve their quality of life. Sometimes we take for granted that it’s old hat to us, but a brand new experience for others.

I remember my first real experience at a pharmacy. I was 16, and had just come out of a minor surgical procedure with a prescription for Tylenol #3’s. At that point, the anaesthetic was beginning to wear off, and I had never experienced a similar pain before. On this day, did I care that the pills may be constipating? Was I thinking about a weaning schedule after three days or so? Did it matter to me whether it was covered by my parents’ drug plan? All rhetoric aside, it shouldn’t surprise us that when someone avails of our services, they may not be in the mindset to appreciate all the steps involved in filling an order, or consenting to a monitoring plan. Everyone is different, and similar to an actor finding just the right ad-lib when the unexpected happens, we resort to our professional training to determine the best approach to that patient. Perhaps a supportive word, and a quick rundown on the essentials are all that matters today. Would a follow-up phone call, after someone has had the chance to process a new diagnosis, allow for a more productive conversation?

Most of all, the one thing I gleaned from this experience is that you truly can’t fake genuine. I know that sounds weird when the whole point of acting is to play a fictional character and tell a story, but the show is borne from a genuine place. It’s not simply reciting the words on a page or simulating movements that are choreographed, but rather studying the reason why those words need to be said. Why do they have a certain order or cadence? It’s trying to understand how the movements enhance the message and contribute to the scene. How does a gesture amplify the emotion of a song lyric? If you believe in what you do and what you say, those watching begin to trust your ability, and your message.

Whenever a patient asks for you, realize that YOU are the pharmacist they talk about with their family and friends. YOU have brought the world of pharmacy into their lives. YOU have the ability to nudge them towards better health choices and increase their quality of life.

Which role do you want to play?

 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.

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Six is the Smallest Perfect Number

It’s true! I used the Google.

As an update, I am currently working on a couple guest posts at the moment. Those pieces, along with some upcoming recruiting events, I expect the spurring of some creative ideas for future content. For today, I wanted to take a moment to acknowledge what I consider a mind-bending milestone: yesterday marked the 6th anniversary of the first PharmAspire post.

Sometimes I take for granted this blog journey; what it’s meant for me, what it’s meant for those close to me, and the community that it has created. I can’t be more thankful for this platform, and the feedback I receive when I manage to write something that resonates with people both inside and outside the pharmacy profession.

I thank Laura, my trusted editor from the very beginning, who encouraged me to write and post back in March 2013. In the very spirit of these pages, she is currently on a transformative journey of her own, aspiring to be the best pharmacist she can be. We may even hear more about it in her own words at some point.

To our newest contributor Tammy, thank you for summoning the courage to post here with us. We look forward to developing your ideas and positive energy to keep these discussions going.

Finally, a huge thank you to all of my colleagues and mentors that continue to push me in directions I don’t always want to go. You are the main reason I write. It’s the people I’ve been fortunate enough to meet and work alongside during my two decades in pharmacy, not the job, not the analysis, not the recognition, that keep me grounded and coming back for more.

A dear friend dating from before my first pharmacist job told me this week that I ‘just need to write more.’ She’s right. I believe I do.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.