Idaho Society of Health-System Pharmacy Untitled page

Idaho State University Provides Scholarship Opportunity to Become a Certified Health Worker

Rob Wills — Sat, 19 Nov 2022 11:57:49 GMT

Community Health Workers partner with local public health agencies and primary care and specialty care providers to address social determinants of health among community members. They also assess and evaluate community services and systems in order to identify gaps in, and serve as a resource for, healthcare services in both urban and rural, medically under-served communities.

CHW Certificate Program

The CHW program runs for a total of 13-weeks and consist of 48-hours of online and synchronous (only 3 sessions) learning.

There are two sessions being offered in Spring 2023

Session 1: 1/5/23 - 4/6/23 (with 3 synchronous virtual sessions on Thursdays)
Session 2: 2/22/23 - 5/24/23 (with 3 synchronous virtual sessions on Wednesdays)

Curriculum includes key concepts of public health, outreach, advocacy, community and individual assessments, social determinants of health, health education, navigating insurance, stages of behavior change, service coordination and more

Application Deadline, December 12th, 2022!

Idaho State University (ISU) College of Pharmacy will be providing 8 scholarships to support participation in the CHW course.

If selected for this scholarship, you/your pharmacy will receive $960 reimbursement to cover your time (48 hours of time at $20/hour)

To learn more see the ISU CHW Flyer or contact Elaine Nguyen at elainenguyen@isu.edu

Reflecting On How Far We've Come & How Far We Need to Go

Caroline Merritt — Sun, 11 Oct 2020 18:17:40 GMT

The announcement of the first woman of color nominated to a presidential ticket brought up some good discussions and reflections as to how far Idaho Pharmacy has come in the past few years, and also, how far we still need to go.

Many see how progressive Idaho is with Top Female Leaders like Nicki Chopski, Executive Director of the Board of Pharmacy, Brenda LaDue, Executive Director for the Pacific Northwest VA Region, Kelley Curtis, Chief Pharmacy Officer of St. Luke's Health System, and our own Caroline Merritt, Executive Director of ISHP. Many don't realize that most are the first woman to be named to their current roles.

Nicki Chopski, being in the Executive Director position for a year now is the first woman to serve in this position. She can also quickly reflect back to one of her own mentors with the Board of Pharmacy, who was the first female investigator in Idaho, not so long ago.

Brenda (Story) LaDue, has been serving as the Veterans Integrated Service Network Pharmacy Executive for the Pacific Northwest Regionfor the past decade. In this Executive position she is just one of 18 holding such positions within the Federal Government, representing the Dept. of Veterans Affairs. Within her region, Dr. LaDue has oversight for a total of eight VA Medical Centers and their pharmacies spanning eleven different campus locations across 4 states - Alaska, Washington, Oregon and Idaho. She also has primary oversight for the region’s Academic Detailing Program, a significant role in itself. What is significant about this is that Dr. LaDue is the first woman to serve in these roles for our region.

Kelley Curtis has now been the Chief Pharmacy Officer for the largest Health System and employer in Idaho for over 3 years now. St. Luke's is a recognized top 15 health-system in the country with well over 300 hundred employees in the pharmacy department alone. She is also the first woman CPO in Idaho and most likely many other states currently.

Barb Mason, ISU College of Pharmacy Professor, remembers being just the second female faculty member ever when she was appointed to the University of South Dakota State's College of Pharmacy just a few years ago.

ISHP has been a little more ahead of the game with the naming of the first female president of the society back in 1964 with Frenchie Jensen (just the 5th president overall of the society). Since then women have held the top role at ISHP for 13 terms spanning up to 5 years each, with the 14th occurring this Fall with the naming of Andrea Winterswyk, as the new ISHP president!

ISHP Past Presidents (ISHP established 1956)

1964 - Franchot (Frenchie) Jensen

1967 - Sister Mechtilde Curti

1968 - Robin Kinsey

1980 - Dorothy Galloway

1982 - Carla Dirk

1990 - Tami Eide

1996 - Shawna Kittridge

1998 - Barb Mason

2002 - Debbie (Heckathorn) Rothstein

2010 - Sue Heineman

2014 - Angela Melbihess

2015 - Debbie (Heckathorn) Rothstein

2017 - Lindsay Kaster

2020 - Andrea Winterswyk

If you or someone you know has made a contribution to pharmacy of which we are unaware, please email ishpcontact@gmail.com to let us know!

ISHP Board Spotlight

Rob Wills — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 21:20:13 GMT

Secretary/Treasurer – Elaine Nguyen

Why did you join ISHP?

I believe involvement in professional organizations is important for me as an individual and for the sustainability of our profession. As an individual, I was looking for increased opportunities to connect with other pharmacy professionals in Idaho and ISHP has definitely allowed me to do this. I also wanted to support an organization that would represent pharmacy practice in my state.

What do you enjoy most about serving as ISHP’s Secretary/Treasurer?

I really enjoy being able to directly influence the organization’s actions and thus help shape pharmacy practice in Idaho. As Secretary/Treasurer I am fortunate to serve on both the BOD and Executive Committee. This allows me to stay up-to-date and intimately involved in everything that ISHP does to serve its members. It is exciting and a privilege to be involved in this way. It allows me to see the inner workings of the organization and make an impact. In addition, I better understand how much our organization does for others, which is encouraging because I can see the outputs and outcomes of our work.

What do you want others to know about serving on the Board of Directors?

For me, it has been a personally and professionally enriching experience. While I have (hopefully) grown in different ways in the past two years as a BOD member, I have also had a lot of fun. If you are considering a BOD – go for it!

Are you interested in serving as the next Secretary/Treasurer of ISHP? Click here to learn more. Nominate yourself or a colleague by emailing ishpcontact@gmail.com. Other Board of Directors Positions currently accepting nominations are: President-Elect, Administrative Affairs, Education, and Legal & Public Affairs.

Now Accepting Applications for I-LEAD 2020-2021 Year

Rob Wills — Wed, 13 May 2020 20:03:04 GMT

The Idaho Leadership Academy, I-LEAD, is now accepting applications for the 2020-2021 year. Applications are now available on the ISHP/I-LEAD website and will be open until July 6th. The program will start this August, allowing new PGY2’s to also take part.

For additional information, the I-LEAD manual from this past year is posted on the ISHP Website under I-LEAD to help provide some background on the program.

In terms of timeline, here is a general outline

June: Applications Open
July: I-LEAD Fellow Class of 2021 announced
August: New Fellow Orientation
September:
- I-LEAD Seminar: Crisis Management
- Late Sept: ISHP Fall Conference in Sun Valley/I-LEAD
- Committee Assignments
Oct – Sept 2021: Monthly Seminars and Book club discussions

By completing the program, you receive a Certificate in Organizational Leadership which is recognized by several University Programs as transfer credit towards an MBA or MHA (BSU, ISU and Univ of Wyoming).

For questions, please feel free to reach out to Rob Wills (willsr@slhs.org) or Lindsey Hunt (Lindsey.Hunt@va.gov).

Recap: Idaho Pharmacy Resident Podium Presentations

Rob Wills — Wed, 13 May 2020 19:57:56 GMT

Successful Idaho Pharmacy Resident Conference

Earlier this month we were just blown away with the support and excitement over the first ever Idaho Pharmacy Resident Podium Presentations that was held May 7^th & 8^th. Looking for a way to salvage this spring for the current Pharmacy Residents in Idaho, ISHP threw together a virtual conference format that allowed the residents to present their major projects, remotely, such that they could share their results and check off a milestone for their residency year.

A quick check of the results and there were over 95 attendees to this first ever virtual conference for residents, with over 180 evaluations completed (roughly 6 evaluations per speaker). Each speaker had 20 minutes to present their work, with 5 to 10 minutes for questions. Chris Oswald, ISHP President, and Eliza Borzadek, Residency Program Director for EIRMC, were co-hosts, that facilitated questions and kept the show running on time.

Range of Topics – with a full two days of presentations there was a nice mix of topics and projects that were presented. Everything from Vancomycin AUC dosing (which had nice comparisons between two different hospitals in Idaho!), to antipsychotic medication use, optimization of automated dispensing cabinets, biosimlar comparison and chemo workflow. The conference finished up with a great presentation on Billing for Pharmacist Services in Clinics, showing that there was something for every practice area.

A big shout out to Caroline Merritt, for setting up this virtual event and lending support. Huge thanks to all of you that were able to attend one, or more, presentations! It was a great way to support the pharmacy residents, and most importantly, Pharmacy Practice Advancement in Idaho. Thank you!

Spring 2020 Treasurer’s Report - Budget Overview

Caroline Merritt — Mon, 11 May 2020 03:56:07 GMT

2019 AND 2020 YEAR-T0-DATE BUDGET OVERVIEW

ISHP had a financially successful 2019 as we surpassed our income expectations and ended the year with a net gain of $29,175.95. We are thankful for strong Fall Meeting participation (registration and booth fees) and membership as well as the ability to offer additional educational opportunities that helped drive our 2019 income. We also had lower expenses than anticipated.

As always, ISHP will be using and saving our funds responsibly and judiciously. The unexpected 2019 income allowed us to support two non-budgeted items in 2020:

1) Purchase of Zoom Pro account membership

2) Hire of a Lobbyist (Caroline Merritt)

Given the need for reliable virtual conferencing, we are thankful to have the ability to host Zoom meetings. Hire of Caroline as ISHP’s Lobbyist has also helped move forward the organization’s strategic planning efforts.

With the COVID-19 pandemic there is some uncertainty in 2020. Historically, our Spring and Fall Meetings have been income-generating events for us and it is likely that this will not be the case for 2020. ISHP leadership and the Finance Committee continue to explore alternative revenue opportunities to help our organization move to sustainable (and non-meeting dependent) income opportunities.

Further details on ISHP’s 2019 and 2020 year-to-date income and expenses are available here.

Northwest Pharmacy Convention: Registration is Open

Caroline Merritt — Sat, 15 Feb 2020 22:41:58 GMT

Registration for the 2020 Northwest Pharmacy Convention is open! The event will be held at the Coeur d'Alene Resort May 28-31. You can find details here. Please email ishpcontact@gmail.com for a registration discount code.

From the President: Chris Oswald

Caroline Merritt — Sat, 01 Feb 2020 21:34:35 GMT

Please take a few minutes to read a letter from ISHP President Chris Oswald regarding changes in ISHP's 2020 membership levels and dues structure.

Meet the Member: Kent Quickstad, RPh

Caroline Merritt — Wed, 08 Aug 2018 21:03:56 GMT

Kent Quickstad, RPh

Kent Quickstad has been an ISHP fixture for many years, serving on the Board in many roles, including president, and as our long-time newsletter editor. Likewise he has been a pillar of Idaho pharmacy, having worked at St. Luke's Boise for the past 35 years. It's hard to find a better role model for pharmacy and the profession.

Why ISHP? - Kent Quickstad in his own words

We all have our individual reasons of why we belong to ISHP, but okay, let's be honest, first and probably foremost many of us belong to ISHP in order to get the required CE to maintain our license. ISHP offers two quality CE sessions in our Spring and Fall programs each year. You can knock out a large chuck of the required hours of live CE and law over a weekend.

Through ISHP I have had the opportunity to meet a lot of people who have the same dedication to the profession as I do. ISHP has opened the doors to meeting these colleagues, whom I also now call friends.

Additionally, I think about the ISHP mission statement which promotes "...the highest levels of pharmacy practice by our members". Through the CE, the networking, and the pharmacy practice pearls that I have picked up over the years, I have become a better pharmacist by my involvement in ISHP.

However, and I feel more importantly, is that over the years I know that pharmacy has been good to me and to my family. I therefore feel that I have a duty to give back a little something to the profession that has given so much to me. We all have that duty, but just how much of that we repay is an individual decision with no right or wrong answer. Whether one is a member, active on the Board, helping with a committee, presenting a poster, speaking at a program, or active at the national level, it is all payback to the profession.

These are only part of my reasons why I belong to ISHP. I would encourage you to think of yours.

Meet the Member: Paul Black, PharmD, BCPS

Caroline Merritt — Sat, 04 Aug 2018 15:09:35 GMT

Paul Black, PharmD, BCPS

As one of the most well-known pharmacists in Idaho, Paul has clearly earned the trust and respect through his hard work, honesty and ability to connect with others. Paul has worked his way from resident to Resident Director and senior level in the Boise VA by helping others. He continues to be a tremendous influence on others and the profession.

Why ISHP? - Paul Black in his own words

I have been an ISHP Member since I completed my Pharmacy Residency. The Fall Meeting provides an amazing networking opportunity as well an outstanding poster abstract session. This session allows pharmacy to learn new innovations which they can take and apply at their facilities. ISHP has also embraced their student members. It is amazing to meet these soon to be pharmacist that will represent the profession in the future. As always the continuing education sessions provided by ISHP are second to none. They recruit amazing speakers for the Spring and Fall Meeting and provide sessions that cannot be replicated by online training.

Meet the Member: Chris Oswald, PharmD, BCPS, BCCPS

Caroline Merritt — Wed, 11 Jul 2018 14:18:29 GMT

Chris Oswald, PharmD, BCPS, BCCPS

Chris has been a consummate leader in pharmacy practice since arriving in Idaho to start his PGY1 Residency at Saint Alphonsus Medical Center from Purdue University. After completing his residency, he stayed on with Saint Al's to start their ED Pharmacy Program and now helps guide the PGY1 program that has grown from two to now four residents.

Why ISHP? - Chris in his own words:

Moving to Idaho and starting my career here, I was looking for something that would allow me to stay active in the profession and connect with a variety of people. I first encountered ISHP during my residency year, having joined the Education Committee and participated in conference development. Having established a lot of great friendships throughout the year and feeling a sense of professional satisfaction, I chose to stay involved and soon found myself joining the Board of Directors as Education Chair. ISHP's mission of promoting the highest levels of pharmacy practice by its members is something I personally connect with and believe we have a responsibility to give back to the profession in our own capable ways.

Meet the Member: Barb Mason, PharmD, FASHP

Caroline Merritt — Wed, 20 Jun 2018 12:00:00 GMT

Barb Mason, PharmD, FASHP

Dr. Mason has been a tremendous leader for the advancement of pharmacy practice and a valued mentor to so many new pharmacists. She is well known for her strong work at the Idaho State University College of Pharmacy and for her practice at the Boise VA. Dr. Mason has also inspired new areas and avenues for practicing pharmacists to obtain new skills through Board Certification Prep and a Teaching Certificate Course through the Boise Area Resident Forum.

Dr. Mason has also been an influential leader in institutional practice through her work with ISHP. The 1998 - 2000 ISHP President, Dr. Mason led the organization to one of its strongest times in education and outreach. Idaho Pharmacy and ISHP thank Dr. Mason for her leadership and for paving the path for so many new and advancing pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.

Why ISHP? - Dr. Mason in her own words

"I still remember like it was yesterday, the anticipation of accepting a teaching position at ISU COP knowing that the first CE meeting I would attend would be ISHP Sun Valley just two months later. The lure of the mountains and the status this flat-lander from Nebraska associated with Sun Valley was enough to entice me to join ISHP but it wasn't until I walked into that first meeting that I was hooked. I knew I had found my tribe. The friendly people, the plethora of ideas, motivating atmosphere and the balance of work and play were from that moment on, what has formed my life- time mantra and mission statement. Each position I have held on the ISHP Board has enriched me professionally and personally. There are ISHP colleagues I only see once a year in person but are lifetime friends I can count on for anything. Little did Tami Eide and I know when we were writing up the guidelines for that very first poster session that those Friday evening ISHP poster exhibits would be one of the traditions that yearly warms my heart and renews my energy when I see students past and present succeeding every step of their career, with ISHP as vital to them as it has been to me."