Celebrating Pharmacists

“And so, my fellow Americans: Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”

John F. Kennedy, President, United States of America

October—American Pharmacists Month—is the perfect time to celebrate our Next-Generation Pharmacist

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category winners. We honored them at the gala dinner held at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Museum and Library in Boston, and we honor them again here in the pages of Pharmacy Times as they accept their awards. When John F. Kennedy gave the speech that included his famous quote, it was a clarion call to serve this nation. These pharmacists, technicians, and students and their fellow finalists demonstrate this high ideal in the services they perform every day.

The Next-Generation Pharmacist

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program, now in its second year, was created in partnership with Parata Systems to select the best and the brightest from the profession and to tell their stories. Access the profiles of each of these individuals by going to http:// phrmcyt.ms/n7A4eo. The highest award— the 2011 Next-Generation Pharmacist

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— was selected from this group of category winners in the pharmacist segments. Major Jeffrey Neigh, PharmD, BCPS, received that honor and appeared on the August cover of Pharmacy Times.

Celebrating these pharmacists—and pharmacists across the country—during American Pharmacists Month is our privilege as we salute these health care professionals who serve their communities and their country. —The Editors

(Left) DIANE GATCHELL, RPH, Technology Innovator of the Year (center) and guests. (Right) MAJOR JEFFREY NEIGH, PHARMD, BCPS, Military Pharmacist of the Year and 2011 Next-Generation Pharmacist

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, and his wife.

(Left) JEANNE LI, CPHT, Technician of the Year. (Right) JOHN FORBES, RPH, Civic Leader of the Year, and his wife.

(Left) STEFFANY LOPER, PHARMD, Patient Care Provier of the Year, with Tom Rhoads, CEO, Parata Systems, and Tighe Blazier, President, Pharmacy Times. (Right) TINA FIEBELKORN, BSPHARM, Long-Term Care Pharmacist of the Year, and her husband.

(Left) KYLE BURCHER, Future Pharmacist of the Year (center), with Tom Rhoads and Tighe Blazier. ABBY CAPLAN REYNOLDS, PHARMD, Rising Star of the Year, and her mother.

KEN FIELDS, PHARMD, Entrepreneur of the Year (third from left), with Tom Rhoads, Mike McBride of Upsher-Smith, and Tighe Blazier. WHITAKER MOOSE SR, BSPHARM (right, center), Lifetime Achievement, with Tom Rhoads and Tighe Blazier.

Know Your Medicine, Know Your Pharmacist

The American Pharmacists Association has designated October as American Pharmacists Month—“A time to recognize the significant contributions to health care and the commitment to patient care by pharmacists in all practice settings from around the country.” The goals of American Pharmacists Month, which has been observed every year since 2004, are to recognize the contributions made by pharmacists to health care; enhance the image of pharmacists as medication experts, and not just dispensers of medication; and educate the public, policy makers, pharmacists, and other health care professionals about the key role played by pharmacists in reducing overall health care costs through medication adherence and advanced patient care.

In celebration of the month-long event, a number of pharmacy schools and state pharmacy associations are holding events such as:

• Immunization days, flu clinics, blood pressure clinics, and screenings for diabetes or osteoporosis

• Brown bag medication reviews held at the pharmacy or at local senior centers

• OTC tours in which pharmacists educate patients on how to select the best over-the-counter products for their individual condition

• Drug disposal events

• Educational sessions that are open to the public

• Inviting local students to visit the pharmacy and get a tour

As part of American Pharmacists Month, pharmacists are also urged to emphasize to patients the importance of reading product labels, knowing the active ingredients in certain medications, and consulting with the pharmacist when questions arise—all of which ties into this year’s theme: “Know your medicine, know your pharmacist.”

In keeping with the spirit of American Pharmacists Month, Pharmacy Times is celebrating the profession by recognizing the nominees and winners of the Next-Generation Pharmacist^TM Awards, which were presented at a dinner event on August 29, 2011, in Boston, Massachusetts. To learn more about this year’s recipients, please visit www.nextgenerationpharmacist.com.