Sell Yourself

January 20, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By DWIGHT NYBERG | President | MPA

In the early 1970’s, my Dad’s prescription volume was one-third of today’s volume, and he made twice the profit! That’s the new math I never understood.

The President’s call for zero copay on prescriptions for our Tricare patients is a prime example of not understanding healthcare. The lower copay for prescriptions should be available at the pharmacies that provide one-on-one or face-to-face consultation, patient education, drug therapy modification and/or product selection. The remaining pharmacies are mandated to charge copays.

It’s a proven fact that medication therapy management and patient education are both proactive methods of: Improving healthcare outcomes and quality of life. What an example of managing healthcare expenses! The same pharmacists who are hurt by this are already dispensing a larger percent of generic drugs. This helps the health care system save more money.

Could you do 20 or 30 MTM’s or patient education sessions each day, at $100 to $150 per session?

Remember, you’re the expert, you’re the best, you’re selling yourself.

Take a moment, estimate the dollar savings you could create each day, week, month, and year.

An easy $200 to $300 a day, $1,000 to $1,500 a week, $20,000 to $30,000 a month … you continue and use your estimate. Are you worth more than $150 per session?

Now, think about the diabetic, the asthma patient, the potential fall patient who’s lifestyle and quality of life you helped improve.

You’re the drug expert, you’re selling yourself !!!

Afraid the future will leave you behind? Then help create the future!

Participate with the Missouri Pharmacy Association as we challenge, change, and develop the future of Pharmacy.

An opportunity for all pharmacists!

Sell yourself, SELL YOURSELF!!!

Filed Under: missouri pharmacist, Presidents Letter Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Third National Prescription Drug Take-Back Event Collects 188.5 Tons

December 23, 2011 By Leave a Comment

DEA News Release

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans participating in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s third National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on October 29 turned in more than 188.5 tons of unwanted or expired medications for safe and proper disposal at the 5,327 take-back sites that were available in all 50 states and U.S. territories. When the results of the three Take Back Days to date are combined, the DEA and its state, local, and tribal law-enforcement and community partners have removed 498.5 tons of medication from circulation in the past 13 months.

“The amount of prescription drugs turned in by the American public during the past three Take-Back Day events speaks volumes about the need to develop a convenient way to rid homes of unwanted or expired prescription drugs,” says DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart.

“With the continued support and hard work of our more than 3,945 state, local, and tribal law enforcement and community partners, these three events have dramatically reduced the risk of prescription drug diversion and abuse, and increased awareness of this critical public health issue,” says Leonhart.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, enough prescription painkillers were prescribed in 2010 to medicate every American adult around-the-clock for one month. Often, some of these medicines languish in the home and are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high—more Americans currently abuse prescription drugs than the number of those using cocaine, hallucinogens, heroin, and inhalants combined, according to the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Studies show that the majority of teens who abuse prescription drugs obtain them from family and friends for free, inwcluding from the home medicine cabinet. Many Americans simply do not know how to properly dispose of their unused or expired medicine, often flushing it down the toilet or throwing it away. These methods can pose both safety and environmental hazards.

Four days after DEA’s first Take-Back Day event September 25, 2010, Congress passed legislation amending the Controlled Substances Act to allow the DEA to develop a permanent process for people to safely and conveniently dispose of their prescription drugs. After President Obama signed the Safe and Secure Drug Disposal Act of 2010 on October 12, DEA immediately began developing regulations for a more permanent solution.

The DEA’s Take-Back events are a significant piece of the White House’s prescription drug abuse prevention strategy entitled Epidemic: Responding to America’s Prescription Drug Abuse Crisis developed and promoted by the Office of National Drug Control Policy. ϖ

Filed Under: missouri pharmacist Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Looking to the year ahead

December 19, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By RON FITZWATER | Chief Executive Officer | MPA

Is it possible that another year is coming to a close and a new one waits just around the corner? According to the calendar, that is exactly what is happening.

I hope that 2011 was a good year for you and your store/practice. There has certainly been no shortage of issues to address once again this year that have had (or will have) an impact on the pharmacy profession. Your Board and the Missouri Pharmacy Association have been working aggressively to try to represent you and your patients on both the state and federal levels to try to address those issues and to create opportunities for Missouri pharmacists to participate in the new health care marketplace.

I want to take this opportunity to thank our members who have once again supported the association by attending meetings and events to get educated about those issues and then using that information to help us address them. We started in February with the 2011 MPA Legislative Day here in Jefferson City. The 2011 session had record attendance as we met to address the key issues that were being debated in the Capitol and then moved over to the Capitol to allow our members the opportunity to meet with theirlegislators to discuss those issues. I appreciate the support of all MPA members who gave up a day of their time to travel to the Capitol to enhance our presence. Also, I appreciate the support we got from all three of our Schools of Pharmacy and the students who attended the meeting. Their presence always adds a unique perspective to the discussions with legislators. Please mark April 11, 2012 on your calendar. That is the day of the 2012 MPA Legislative Day. It will be an even more important session since we anticipate another very aggressive legislative session. We are proposing some very exciting new opportunities for pharmacists. We could really use your assistance as we work to move our agenda in 2012.

In June, MPA hosted the 2011 MPA Annual Convention at the Hilton Branson Convention Center. Again, I appreciated the support and participation of MPA members at this year’s meeting. We were fortunate to have a number of great speakers who discussed a wide variety of state and federal issues impacting pharmacy. We also had a detailed update regarding the exciting Missouri Pharmacists Care Network project that MPA has been in the process of implementing. The meeting also provided our members an opportunity to get an update from the Missouri Board of Pharmacy and to discuss auditing issues with a speaker and representatives from Express Scripts. The 2012 MPA Annual Convention is scheduled for June 14-17, 2012 at the Embassy Suites and St. Charles Convention Center. There will also be a block of rooms available at the Ameristar. We already have a number of state and national speakers confirmed for that meeting. I encourage you to try to attend this exciting event and keep up with the critical issues impacting your profession. We will once again have a detailed report on the activities from the 2012 Missouri Legislative Session as well as an update from Congress in this contentious election year. The meeting will also contain an opportunity for some family fun as we sponsor a Night at Busch Stadium on Friday, June 15 when the Kansas City Royals take on the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals. This series will be for the “bragging rights” in Missouri. We have some special events planned at the game. Watch for additional information so that you do not miss this unique opportunity.

Finally, we wrapped up the year in October and November with a series of seven Regional Meetings around Missouri to report on activities of the Missouri Pharmacy Association. I appreciate the MPA members who joined us at one of these meetings to get an update on the association. We also used the meetings to give a report on the Missouri Pharmacists Care Network and to encourage members to sign-up as participants in this unique program. If you need additional information about how you can participate, please contact Drew Oestreich at drew@morx.com.

Thank you for your support. I wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the entire MPA staff. It has indeed been a pleasure to represent you in 2011. We look forward to the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead in 2012.

Filed Under: CEO Letter, Pharmacy Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

STLCOP Awarded NACDS Grant for the Creation of a New Residency

November 9, 2011 By Leave a Comment

The following is a post from the STLCOP newsletter:

 

St. Louis College of Pharmacy (STLCOP) has been awarded a $50,000 educational grant from the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) Foundation through its Community Pharmacy Residency Expansion Project (PREP). The College will use the grant money to support the development of a new community pharmacy residency in Sikeston, Mo., in partnership with Health Priorities, Inc., Medical Arts Pharmacy, and L&S Pharmacy.

“When evaluating a site for a residency, it is important to identify locations where pharmacists are already engaged in patient care activities,” said Jack Burke, director of pharmacy practice at STLCOP. “Residencies are structured post-graduate learning experiences and require that the resident is precepted by an individual who is interested in developing a resident and can instruct, model, coach, and facilitate them in the practice environment. So, we are working with interested individuals to assess whether or not the practice site is ready for a resident or if additional site or preceptor development is needed before placing a resident.”

Burke will guide the creation of the new residency in partnership with Nicole Gattas, assistant professor of pharmacy practice at STLCOP, who will serve as the residency program director, and Sandra Bollinger, Pharm.D., owner of Health Priorities, Inc., who will serve as the residency site coordinator.

“The College’s Strategic Plan, STLCOP 20/20, calls for expansion of both post-graduate year 1 (PGY1) and post-graduate year 2 (PGY2) residencies,” said Burke. “We are currently identifying individuals in a variety of settings who might be interested in partnering for new programs. We hope to contribute to the growth of residency programs that is needed to meet the needs of pharmacy graduates and the profession.”

The NACDS PREP project will award grants to 30 non-profit and public academic institutions in support of community pharmacy residency expansion. For a list of academic institutions that will receive funding, and to learn more about the project, visit the NACDS Web site.

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