This year the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Pharmacy (UMKC SOP) was well represented by students and faculty members at the American Pharmacist Association Annual Meeting and Exposition in New Orleans, Louisiana. As student pharmacists this meeting provided us with excellent opportunities for professional development, involvement in the policy-making process and networking with fellow students and practitioners. In addition, we are beyond excited to say that UMKC rocked the national spotlight at this meeting.

While it is fairly easy to employ our pharmacist training and identify problems in a patient’s medication list, the challenge came when creating a viable business from this service.

Three platforms provide the majority of my MTM cases: Mirixa, Outcomes, and Cyber Access. Mirixa and Outcomes deal primarily with patients covered by Medicare Part D plans while Cyber Access allows for access to patients on Missouri Medicaid. In addition to MTM, the three platforms serve as an electronic medical record in the community setting where lab values, medical history and prescription history, all critical pieces to the MTM process, can be shared among members of the healthcare team.

To get the most benefit from an encounter, prepare the patient beforehand with any necessary documentation and reserve an appropriate amount of time to spend with them. Include services that hit on coexisting conditions such as educating on falls prevention and herpes zoster vaccination when a senior patient comes in for their comprehensive medication review. It is easier for patients to work in an MTM consult while they are already visiting the store to fill a script rather than having them make a special trip just for an interview. Tagging eligible Medicare and Medicaid patients in your store’s computer system helps pharmacy staff identify these patients so MTM can be provided on the fly for unscheduled patients.

While building MTM into your practice workflow may take time, the good news is pharmacists and student pharmacists already know how to perform a great deal of MTM. The only real extra step is documentation, and then you are eligible for reimbursement. Each practice site and patient population is different of course, so being able to think on your feet and being positive while promoting your service is essential to building your consumer base.

Turning MTM consults into a business required effort, but learning how to transition from the theoretical world of the classroom to the feasibility of the real world made it worth it. MTM creates an environment allowing pharmacists to provide a wider variety of clinical service all while strengthening the relationship with your patient and allowing them to live healthier lives. MTM is not just a meaningful way to interact with your patients, it is the ability to define your practice and show your community how far you are willing to go to provide great patient care.

Over the past 4 years, the UMKC students’ efforts have twice been recognized with the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Student Community Engaged Service Award as well as the Transformative Community Service Award and the Crystal Apple Award.  Our student pharmacists’ enthusiasm for getting out in the community and helping to deliver care for the underserved is truly remarkable and contagious!  Well, we have more great news to share!

First, if you have plugged into the MPA Pharmacy Flash, you heard already that our students and faculty were just awarded the National Consumers League, National Association of Chain Drug Stores Foundation, and AACP first ever Script Your Future Medication Adherence Challenge for student pharmacists.  There were 81 participating colleges and schools of pharmacy that set out to meet the goal of educating student pharmacists to actively engage their patients in medication adherence.  Only five schools brought home the gold, so we are extremely proud of our students and faculty for this outstanding accomplishment.

Second, UMKC will be recognized at the APhA meeting in New Orleans this year as Immunization Champions!  Our students and faculty collaborated with a large number of local partners to improve immunization rates in Missouri.  Through the annual Wellness Fair, Healthy for Life, and other outreach events, interprofessional relationships have been expanded.  In addition, partnerships have been developed, community health has benefitted, and students’ patient-centered communication and immunization delivery skills have been developed and utilized.

The impact of our students’ efforts is felt state-wide as well.  Through the preparation and training programs of the School, our faculty and students were qualified and able to assist in vaccination relief efforts following the aftermath of the Joplin tornado in late May.  I think the name is very fitting as our students have truly become immunization champions!

All of these student awards not only have brought significant recognition and prestige to the UMKC School of Pharmacy, but more importantly, the activities that produced these awards have prepared our students for the future of health care and the profession of pharmacy!

According to the Report to the U.S. Surgeon General from the Office of the Chief Pharmacists [1] that was acknowledged and commended by Dr. Regina Benjamin, pharmacists are prepared to not only promote health and wellness, but also deliver and sustain value-added patient care services.  Pharmacists are increasingly being relied upon to improve health care delivery systems, improve health outcomes, increase access, and decrease health care costs.  Our student pharmacists are demonstrating these skills through their efforts in the community.   These are exciting times for our profession!

Once again, I extend an invitation to you all to come visit us any time.  Just send me an e-mail and let me know when you are coming.  We enjoy showing people around the school in Kansas City and in Columbia!

Have a great spring and summer!

Homepage: One Stop Information Center

One of the biggest reasons we decided to revamp our presence on the Internet is that we felt our old site lacked the ability to share the vast amounts of information we have to send out to you, our members. When we were in the planning stages for the new site, we researched numerous options for how to share our news and events and the most popular device used across the majority of sites was an item called the rotating centerpiece. We agreed that this would best meet our needs as an association to delineate information to members.

The rotating centerpiece we had designed sits at the top of our homepage. In it, a series of four images will rotate through in a continuous loop, with a short one to two sentence message that will explain just what you are seeing.

If you want to know more, feel free to click the image and it will take you to a designated page where you can explore just what will happen during the event.

By clicking the green arrows of the centerpiece, you can interact with it and toggle through the series to return to an image to reading more if you missed something or you can skip ahead if you’ve finished reading before the picture changes.

Tabbed Content Means
More News For You.

Directly beneath the rotating centerpiece is a tabbed content region which allows you to connect with all our news feeds from local, state and national sources. The default tab is set to the PharmacyFlash News feed. This is an up to date news feed of the PharmacyFlash emails you receive as MPA members every Tuesday and Thursday in your email inbox. If you are looking for more local or association news, simply clicking the remaining three tabs, you’re instantly able to search through the most recent blog posts from ThePharmacyBlog.com, our ever improving YouTube Channel as well as our newly designed Events tab that lays out a map of the next six events the MPA chooses to showcase.

Social Media Interactions

On our secondary tabbed content area which is located off to the right of our homepage links our site to our Facebook and Twitter pages and will display recent status updates from the MPA. You will also have the ability to scroll back through the feed to see all our old status updates.

At the base of the page under the “Navigation” headline, you will be able to find information and new sources aggregated for some of your favorite pharmacy specific topics. This is information that might otherwise go unnoticed by the every day user.

Take Action Now

A process we are constantly looking to streamline is how you can contact your representatives in state and national government. We encourage everyone to try hovering over the Take Action Now tab at the top of our website and looking up the email and or phone numbers for your representative. One of the best things you can do for your business and the profession of pharmacy is to keep in constant contact with your representatives to make sure they will know every side of an issue so they can make the best imformed decision possible. Even if it is just to say hello and introduce yourself, email them today, you’ll be glad you did make the effort!

Donations Made Easy!

One of the features that we are most excited about is the donation box at the very top of the homepage. We placed it there so helping out your favorite MPA organization is only a click away. Three of the services we have set up currently are the Pharmacy Political Action Committee, the Missouri Pharmacy Foundation and the Missouri Disaster Relief Fund.

In the past we’ve been able to set up scholarships, support pharmacy-friendly candidates running for office in Missouri as well as donate to state disaster such as the May 22 tornado that struck Joplin last year. All of this was only made possible through your contributions to these great organizations.

Laying Down
Our New Look

The largest difference of the website is of course the new design. Beginning with simple sketches back in September of 2011, we eventually were able to nail down the current look you are able to see today.

Our hope was that by having this new layout, members would have an easier time discovering how much information we are able to provide for them across our site and how easy it can be to traverse the mountain of material we give them.

He thought about oceanology and veterinary school, all while he obtained his Bachelor of Science degrees in Biology and Chemistry. He soon realized he didn’t want to look down a microscope all day; he wanted to interact with people.

One day, a friend of his father’s asked him what Sater planned on doing with his future.

His father’s friend worked in pharmacy and invited Sater to a meeting they were having at UMKC. After the meeting and speaking with the dean at the time, it clicked for him.

“It seemed like the right fit for me,” Sater says. Through it all it wasn’t an easy decision.

Sater graduated from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Pharmacy in 1972. During school he worked at a few different places but it wasn’t until after he graduated he was asked by Don Peterson of Cassville to come finish his internship at his pharmacy.

With Sater growing up in Cassville, his family living there, and also being a “country boy at heart” Sater agreed to join Peterson’s pharmacy.

Once Sater passed his State Board and became a licensed Missouri pharmacist, it was only a year and half later Peterson asked Sater if he was interested in buying the pharmacy. Peterson saw how dedicated he was to the store and to all of their customers. He knew Sater would be a perfect fit for becoming the next owner of the pharmacy. Shortly thereafter and with a few quick signatures Sater was now the owner of Sater Pharmacy in Cassville.

Sater owned the business for more than 30 years and during that time he says, “It was a fulfilling life to be an owner and operator.” In order to have a successful pharmacy you have to do it all; from filling prescriptions to taking out the trash.

“You cannot be an absent owner” he says.

Although over the years Sater faced some challenges, he proudly overcame them with excellent customer service.

When a large competitor, Wal-Mart, came to town, everyone’s excellent teamwork and personal one-on-one service gave Sater Pharmacy the ability to stand strong.

“My patients are my friends, not a prescription number,” he says.

He knew all his customers by name and their families as well. He would always go above and beyond in the call of duty, proven in year 1983 when he received the Pharmacy of the Year Award.

He joined the MPA in 1973 when Don Peterson referred him and over the years of membership he obtained the true value to the MPA and how it benefits pharmacies and their pharmacists.

“The MPA looks out for those dark clouds coming toward pharmacy and keeps them away” Sater says.

It was about 9 years ago Sater came across the opportunity to take the place of Larry Taylor as a State Representative when Taylor ran for State Senate.

“It wasn’t on my radar” Sater says.

Taylor helped Sater with his decision, they then ran for office promoting each other and then winning their seats at the Capitol.

“I never dreamed to be in office, it’s interesting how life is like that, just kind of falls into place sometimes,” Sater says.

He keeps making his way up in the Legislature, although he says, it wasn’t’ meant to become a stepping stone for him; however, he loves how it all worked out because he greatly enjoys the work he does and he most likes working in the committees influencing certain legislation.

Sater and his wife Sharon have two children, Joshua and Samantha. They are both grown, Joshua graduated from the University of Mississippi, and Samantha from University of Kansas.

Now, when Sater is not hard at work he enjoys spending time with his wife dining out and traveling. He also loves to garden, bird watch, play golf and go crappie fishing.

He also continues to work part-time in a couple different pharmacies when Legislature is not in session.

“It has been a privilege to be a pharmacist” Sater says.