An Urban Institute Community Outreach Program: The Changing Faces of Pharmacy - A Student Enrichment Program

Pharmacists serve as important resources for health and medication-related questions to many communities across various demographics, races and ethnicities throughout the U.S. This is particularly true for a place as diverse as New York City (NYC). The Changing Faces of Pharmacy-Student Enrichment Program has provided mentoring services and education to a growing cohort of high school students through the active participation of our Pharm.D. students. We will look to create strategic alliances that will provide broader services and support to this group of students, including financial and academic aspects. We will also look to develop partnerships to find STEM focused feeder programs for Elementary and Middle School children to offer the Changing Faces of Pharmacy Student Enrichment Program for their high school years

Awareness of and Readiness for Medication Therapy Management Among Community Pharmacists in New York City: Results from a Focus Group

For pharmacist-provided Medication Therapy Management (MTM) services to operate effectively and efficiently, pharmacists must understand the process of MTM delivery, assess the barriers and challenges in creating a sustainable MTM program, and realize the willingness and readiness of their colleagues to deliver such services. In order to assess feasibility of such services among high-risk neighborhoods in New York City (NYC), a focus group design was used to qualitatively assess pharmacists' perceptions of MTM. Findings showed that reimbursement and allocation of resources were the most discussed challenges/barriers to the provision of pharmacist-provided MTM services. Overall, pharmacists were willing, but not yet ready, to provide MTM services on a large scale. Lack of understanding of MTM structure/process, reimbursement challenges, and the need for collaboration between providers were key components to pharmacists' willingness to provide services. Additional training opportunities were deemed necessary for them to feel confident to conduct clinical services. Although pharmacists discussed several issues regarding MTM, they were still interested in participating and seeing how MTM would impact their community practice settings. Understanding these perceptions of pharmacists on MTM allowed us to better understand and assess ways for continuous quality improvement of services that will enhance patient care.   Type: Original Researc

Awareness of and Readiness for Medication Therapy Management Among Community Pharmacists in New York City: Results from a Focus Group

For pharmacist-provided Medication Therapy Management (MTM) services to operate effectively and efficiently, pharmacists must understand the process of MTM delivery, assess the barriers and challenges in creating a sustainable MTM program, and realize the willingness and readiness of their colleagues to deliver such services. In order to assess feasibility of such services among high-risk neighborhoods in New York City (NYC), a focus group design was used to qualitatively assess pharmacists' perceptions of MTM. Findings showed that reimbursement and allocation of resources were the most discussed challenges/barriers to the provision of pharmacist-provided MTM services. Overall, pharmacists were willing, but not yet ready, to provide MTM services on a large scale. Lack of understanding of MTM structure/process, reimbursement challenges, and the need for collaboration between providers were key components to pharmacists' willingness to provide services. Additional training opportunities were deemed necessary for them to feel confident to conduct clinical services. Although pharmacists discussed several issues regarding MTM, they were still interested in participating and seeing how MTM would impact their community practice settings. Understanding these perceptions of pharmacists on MTM allowed us to better understand and assess ways for continuous quality improvement of services that will enhance patient care.   Type: Original Researc

Risky Business

Type: Commentar

Public Health in Pharmacy Practice: A Casebook 2nd Edition

This casebook, now in its second edition, is a collaboration of over 90 individuals with expertise and training in public health pharmacy. A total of 54 chapters are presented, covering a broad array of topics relevant to pharmacy applications of public health. These topics include, but are not limited to, cross-cultural care, health literacy and disparities, infectious disease, health promotion and disease prevention, medication safety, structural racism, advocacy/policy analysis, chronic disease, women’s health, rural health, travel medicine and more. The book is designed to allow educators/students to choose chapters of interest as they feel suited, as each chapter is independent from the others. Each chapter contains learning objectives and an introduction to the topic, followed by a case and questions. The chapter closes with commentary from the authors and patient-oriented considerations for the topic at hand.https://knightscholar.geneseo.edu/oer-ost/1026/thumbnail.jp

Diagnostic Utility of TTF-1 and P40 Immunohistochemical Markers for Subtyping of Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma

Background : Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality over worldwide. Although the pathological diagnosis of lung carcinoma is limited as only small specimen available for diagnosis, the availability of targeted therapies has created a need for precise subtyping of non-small cell lung carcinoma. Several recent studies have demonstrated that the use of immunohistochemical markers can be helpful in differentiating squamous cell carcinoma from adenocarcinoma not only on surgically resected specimen but also on small biopsy samples. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study of one year duration including 50 cases of lung carcinomas on guided biopsies were first reported on Haematoxylin and Eosin sections and later subjected for IHC using relevant markers TTF-1 and p40. Results: In our study IHC with TTF-1 and p40 aided in subtyping of 35 (92.1%) cases of non-small cell lung carcinoma and this diagnostic accuracy was found to be statistically significant with p value <0.001. On statistical analysis, p40 showed 100% sensitivity and 85.7% specificity for squamous differentiation whereas TTF-1 showed sensitivity of 85.7% and specificity of 100% for adenocarcinoma. Out of 50 cases, after IHC, 29 (58%) were diagnosed as squamous cell carcinoma, 18 (36%) as adenocarcinoma, 3 (6%) as non-small cell lung carcinoma. Conclusion: The minimalist IHC based model of p40 and TTF-1 on biopsy samples were effective to correctly subtype most cases of non-small cell lung carcinoma and contribute in sparing material for molecular testing. Keywords: Non-small cell lung carcinoma, immunohistochemistry, squamous cell carcinom

Stand Up, Speak Out! Racial Justice in Healthcare Education: Experiences of Minoritised Ethnic Students

Funded by Trinity Equality Fund 2022, the Faculty of Health Sciences Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Group and Immigrant Council of Ireland launched a project entitled ‘Stand Up, Speak Out! Racial Justice in Healthcare Education’. This report articulates the lived experiences of racism in minoritised ethnic healthcare students (MEHSs) and recommends strategies to embed racial justice in healthcare education at Trinity. The report will be made available to staff and students in the Faculty of Health Sciences, Equality Office and relevant healthcare and higher education bodies in order to promote the inclusion of students’ voices in future racial justice strategies

Identifying Services Provided in Community Pharmacy Practice Settings

Background: To better address their patients’ needs, community pharmacists are expanding from their traditional role of dispensing to managing medications and providing other care. Objective: This study characterized services reported by pharmacists practicing in community pharmacy settings in the 2019 National Pharmacist Workforce Study (NPWS). Methods: The 2019 NPWS was conducted via an online survey. E-mails containing survey links were sent to a systematic random sample of 96,110 U.S. pharmacists. The survey allowed tailoring of questions related to specific practice settings and for respondents in community pharmacies included reporting on delivery of twelve services. Other descriptive characteristic questions included pharmacy type, staffing, monitoring activities, self-reported workload, and respondent demographics. An index was created by summing the number of yes responses for the service questions. This index served as the dependent variable in an ordinary least squares regression examining the association of work setting chacateristics with the index. Results: Usable responses were received from 2,150 community pharmacists. The top four services were: administer vaccines (91.1%), patient medication assistance program (83.7%), naloxone dispensing (72.8%) and medication synchronization (67.2%). The regression model was significant, with supermarket pharmacies having a higher service index than large chains. Elevated service index scores were associated with more technicians on duty, CPESN participation, direct communication with primary care providers, practicing under a CPA and  monitoring activities. Conclusions: Pharmacy operational characteristics were important influences on the delivery of services in community pharmacies. These findings can help inform the continuing transformation of community pharmacy practice

Developing a Global Community of Practice for Pharmacy Workforce Resilience—Meet GRiT

From MDPI via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: accepted 2021-06-07, pub-electronic 2021-06-10Publication status: PublishedWorkforce resilience in pharmacy is required to ensure the practice, education, and administrative systems remain viable and sustainable over time and when facing challenges. Whether it is addressing burnout of pharmacists or students, or the structure and policies/procedures of employment and professional organizations, working to increase resilience across all individuals and sectors is essential to relieve pressure and promote better well-being, especially during the recent pandemic. The purpose of this article is to describe the development of a community of practice global group focused on development of resilience within the pharmacy workforce that is inclusive of students, pharmacy interns/preregistration and registered pharmacists. The steering group meets monthly and has representation of 24 members across eight countries. Members meet to discuss pertinent issues they are facing in practice, as well as to share and progress ideas on education, research, and practice initiatives. To date, members have collectively implemented resilience training in pharmacy education, researched burnout and resilience in both students and pharmacists, and facilitated international collaborations both within and outside core group members. Future activities will focus on strengthening the community of practice in order to harness the power of the collective

Developing a global community of practice for pharmacy workforce resilience— meet GRiT

Workforce resilience in pharmacy is required to ensure the practice, education, and administrative systems remain viable and sustainable over time and when facing challenges. Whether it is addressing burnout of pharmacists or students, or the structure and policies/procedures of employment and professional organizations, working to increase resilience across all individuals and sectors is essential to relieve pressure and promote better well-being, especially during the recent pandemic. The purpose of this article is to describe the development of a community of practice global group focused on development of resilience within the pharmacy workforce that is inclusive of students, pharmacy interns/preregistration and registered pharmacists. The steering group meets monthly and has representation of 24 members across eight countries. Members meet to discuss pertinent issues they are facing in practice, as well as to share and progress ideas on education, research, and practice initiatives. To date, members have collectively implemented resilience training in pharmacy education, researched burnout and resilience in both students and pharmacists, and facilitated international collaborations both within and outside core group members. Future activities will focus on strengthening the community of practice in order to harness the power of the collective