Technician of the Year

HM1 Angela CalaloUS Naval Hospital Guam PharmacyGuam

A 2-time recipient of the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, HM1 Angela Calalo takes a patient-centered approach to both clinical and administrative duties.

After graduating from the Naval School of Health Sciences in Virginia, HM1 Calalo was assigned as a pharmacy technician at the US Branch Medical Clinic Pharmacy in Iwakuni, Japan, where she managed an annual budget of over $400,000 and worked to establish Iwakuni’s first “Over-The-Counter” pharmacy program.

HM1 Calalo was then assigned as the outpatient supervisor and narcotic vault custodian at the United States Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton Pharmacy in California. In this position, she worked to promote successful safety initiatives which resulted in 2 consecutive awards for annual no lost work days.

She was promoted to lead pharmacy technician at the largest overseas military treatment facility in Okinawa, Japan, where she was responsible for supervising 40 technicians in outpatient and inpatient pharmacies. She also assisted with the planning and execution of a multi-million dollar renovation project in 6 branch medical clinic pharmacies in the region.

After her time in the Pacific, she served as the lead technician at the Branch Health Clinic Bangor Pharmacy in Washington, where she managed an annual budget of $1.25 million and was involved in the facility’s Joint Commission survey.

Currently, HM1 Calalo supervises 18 military and civilian technicians in the inpatient and outpatient pharmacies, processing 160,000 prescriptions to 25,000 beneficiaries each year at Naval Hospital Guam.

To better meet the needs of her patients, HM1 Calalo participated in a lean Six Sigma Project, which reduced patient wait time by 55%, saved 94 personnel hours, and saved more than $17,000. She increased customer satisfaction through an overhaul of the department’s customer service program, which helped the pharmacy to receive the 2012 Outstanding Customer Service Heroes Award.

She also worked to revamp inpatient pharmacy operations and procedures, setting the standards for pharmacy sterile compounding. Most recently, she was involved in the 2013 National Drug Take Back initiative in Guam, which collected more than 250 tons of unwanted and unused medications.

Because of her experience with pharmacy regulations and Joint Commission surveys, she was also selected to help implement enterprise-wide Standard Operating Procedures for outpatient, inpatient, telepharmacy, and administrative functions in 50 US Navy pharmacy facilities worldwide.

Whether at home or abroad, HM1 Edwin Dumpit’s dedication to providing the best services possible has remained constant throughout his 9-year Navy career.

Domestically, HM1 Dumpit served as the Pharmacy Leading Petty Officer, Hospital Corpsman First Class for Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton, where he managed 13 military and 37 civilian personnel in processing, filling, and dispensing more than 30,000 prescriptions each month.

During his time at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton, he also worked as a special projects coordinator, overseeing the successful completion of major pharmacy renovation projects for 8 clinics throughout the base. In this position, he coordinated the demolition of the old pharmacies and helped establish temporary locations for each clinic. He ensured that all pharmaceuticals were transported safely to these temporary spaces, allowing patients to receive uninterrupted services throughout the renovations.

He also managed installations of furniture and technology, preparing each clinic to be fully functional by the grand opening, despite tight, overlapping project schedules. In order to finish each project on time, he volunteered his time off-duty, working long hours with a small staff. His efforts to improve each new facility resulted in optimized work flow and improved patient services.

HM1 Dumpit also focused on serving patients’ needs overseas as a part of Operation Enduring Freedom. He volunteered to serve as the Leading Petty Officer of the pharmacy department with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Role 3 Medical Unit in Kandahar, Afghanistan, where he cared for the sick and injured in a combat zone. HM1 Dumpit did not discriminate, giving all patients the best possible care whether they were American service members, allied forces members, or citizens of Afghanistan.

HM1 Dumpit not only supports his patients, but he also advocates for his fellow sailors. His work in this area has resulted in 2 advancements in pay grade and complete compliance with Perform-to-Serve packages and Career Development Board standards.

He has served as a member of the Bluejacket of the Quarter Board, helping to select 2 directorate and 1 command Bluejackets of the Quarter as well as the Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton’s Junior Civilian of the Year. His achievements have been recognized by his peers, as he was selected as the Navy Medicine’s Senior Pharmacy Technician of the Year for the 2012 fiscal year.

Beginning her career with no pharmacy knowledge, Tricia achieved her goals through extensive training, and later focused on the education of other pharmacy technicians and students.

Without previous experience, Rampersad accepted her first pharmacy job with Omnicare, eager to work in pharmacy. She took advantage of an opportunity to work as a contractor for the Department of Army at the DeWitt Health Care System, learning everything she could in order to take the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board exam and become a Certified Pharmacy Technician.

During her time at DeWitt, Rampersad reorganized more than 2000 line items and helped to plan pharmacy renovations at the Fairfax Health Center. She introduced bar-code technology as well, helping to reduce pharmaceutical waste and decrease the replenishment process.

Using these experiences as her guide, she relocated to the Naval Medical Clinic Quantico in Virginia as a contracted technician. Once there, she became responsible for all equipment training. She was promoted to lead pharmacy technician and began implementing process improvement initiatives, reducing stock, minimizing expired medications, and improving training for military supply personnel. She also worked closely with the department head to completely renovate the pharmacy, restructuring the layout, and implementing new staff training. Features of the remodel, including a new electronic system using bar-coding technology and centralizing stock closer to filling stations, helped to improve workflow and communication.

Now with 11 years of experience, Rampersad supervises 14 pharmacy technicians and manages a $3.6 million budget. She is responsible for the accountability and inventory control of more than a million dollars in pharmacy equipment.

Remembering the important role education played in the early days of her career, Rampersad has become an advocate for training and education. As the American Red Cross coordinator for the Naval Health Clinic Quantico, she leads the youth volunteer program for pharmacy, training youths aged 13 to 21 years. Her program is the largest in the command. She has also trained pharmacy students and has helped pharmacists trained outside of the United States sit for their pharmacy board exam. She is currently being considered by the Pharmacy Training Certification Board to assist in the development of advanced certification programs due to her background in education.