VPhA Midyear: “Preparing You for the Future of Pharmacy”
The Virginia Pharmacists Association’s 2014 Midyear Conference promises a few new experiences Feb. 22-23 at the Williamsburg Lodge.
This year’s conference theme, “Preparing You for the Future of Pharmacy,” is particularly apt given that VPhA will host the first-ever Student Pharmacist Policy and Advocacy Forum Colloquium 8:30 a.m.-5:15 p.m. Feb. 22.
Pharmacy students are invited to learn how to plan and coordinate discussion on major health-care policy issues. Keynote speaker Cynthia Boyle, professor and chairwoman of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore School of Pharmacy, will address ”Student Pharmacists’ Roles in Policy and Advocacy.”
VCU School of Pharmacy agenda participants include the school’s SPPAF student leaders, who will introduce the colloquium; Gary Matzke, director of pharmacy practice transformation initiatives, who will speak on “Health Policy and Advocacy 101”; and assistant professor and alumna (Pharm.D. ’09) Jennifer Neal, a member of the respondent panel.
Between the morning and afternoon sessions, colloquium attendees will join VPhA participants for lunch and to hear the 2014 Reginald Rooke Lecture delivered by Rear Adm. Scott Giberson, acting U.S. Deputy Surgeon General and chief professional officer, pharmacy. The topic is “Transform Healthcare in 2014: A Call to Action for Pharmacy.”
View the entire SPPAF Colloquium agenda here.
Midyear Conference sessions scheduled the same day include “Quality Performance Standards: Do You Know Your Numbers? The Plans Do!” with Elliott Sogol, vice president for professional relations, Pharmacy Quality Solutions; “How Do We Get Reimbursed for Our Services?” by Tom Menighan, executive vice president and CEO of the American Pharmacists Association; “The Movement Toward Wellness and Prevention”; and “Pharmacy’s Role in Prescription and OTC Drug Abuse.”
The evening will conclude with a VCU School of Pharmacy Dessert Reception and Silent Auction from 8:30 to 10 p.m.
In addition to a plethora of desserts, this year’s reception features a silent auction of five of 1961 SOP alumnus Al Schalow’s original acrylic paintings. Schalow says the paintings to be auctioned — in addition to a selection of prints — will follow a variety of themes, from Medical College of Virginia and music to flowers and ships.
Auction and print sales will go toward the support and promotion of the new MCV Pharmacy Heritage Collection. Schalow, who also serves as chairman of the Heritage Collection Committee, said, “After working for a while to get [the collection] to this stage, we are seeing light at the end of the tunnel! We have the final preparations to help it become a reality … and we appreciate everyone who’s supporting the idea.
“You will be proud of the Heritage Collection as you enter the first floor of the Smith Building; we are tickled that we are going to have it there, the first thing you see when you enter.” To learn more about the MCV Pharmacy Heritage Collection, click here.
VPhA Midyear’s general membership meeting will take place the morning of Feb. 23, followed by sessions on “Transition of Care Best Practices,” “The Transitioning of Anticoagulation Therapy” and “New Challenges in Insulin Therapy.” New practitioners are invited to attend “After the Pharm.D.” Pharmacy technicians may take part in a technician roundtable and “Recordkeeping in the Pharmacy.”
To register for the SPPAF Colloquium, VPhA Midyear or both, click here. Save the dates!
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