# Presentation: 190270

## The Pharmacist Professional Advisory Committee (PharmPAC) Public Health Pharmacy Sub Group

- Charles Hoppes
- Nina Nwaba
- J. Lloyd Johnson
- Vasavi Reddy
- Sharon Gershon
- Chandra Chaurasia
- Diane Frankenfield
- Jeff Mouakket

- Kristina Arnwine
- Puri Subramaniam
- John Quinn
- Nora Roselle
- Melanie Shin
- Carol Holquist
- Bill Koch
- Tia Harper-Velazquez

## Mission Statement:

- 	**Through the PharmPAC mission: **
**	****To support and recognize interventions in the field of pharmacy which promote community health and prevent community health problems.**

## History of the Working group

- Group reorganized in 2000
- 2001/2002
- Brainstorming ideas for community outreach programs (ex.  Brown bag, schools, etc)
- 2002/2003
- Contributions to Pharmacy Week
- Met with ASHP president
- 2004
- Encourage pharmacist volunteerism
- develop website repository for stories to recognize public health services

## Goals for Current Project

- Encourage pharmacist  volunteerism in public
-   health-related areas
- To collaborate with a major Pharmacy Association
- To reach a wide audience through journals,
-   websites, and meetings
- To solicit stories about pharmacists who have
-   volunteered in their community

## Current Public Health Concerns:

- Some of the public health challenges we face today are as a result of lifestyle changes and personal choices
- Sedentary Lifestyle/Improper diet
- Sexual Behavior/STD’s
- Substance Abuse: Alcohol, Tobacco, Drugs
- Family Violence

## Desired Qualities of Pharmacists

- Excellent Communication Skills
- Trustworthy
- People Oriented
- Easily Accessible
- Experts in providing health care information
- Good rapport with other healthcare providers

## Pharmacy Volunteerism to Address Public Health Problems

- Need organized effort to recruit pharmacist volunteers
- Volunteerism is a rewarding outlet for pharmacists
- Volunteer-pharmacist pool is expected to increase as baby-boomer pharmacists retire

## Some Areas Suited to Pharmacist Volunteerism

- Smoking Cessation
- Youth Counseling – Drug Abuse, STD’s
- Elder Outreach – Nursing Home Activities
- Active Lifestyle/Diet Modification Activities

## A Partnership to Encourage Pharmacist Volunteerism

- The PHS PharmPAC
- The PHS Offers Health care credibility, a “seal of approval” that is well known to all
- The PHS can offer expertise
- A major Pharmacy Association
- Can reach a wide audience through journals, websites, and meetings
- A forum for discussion

## Message

- The Public Health Working Group in conjunction with a pharmaceutical organization will develop a message for a pharmacy publication.
- The message will encourage pharmacist volunteerism in public health-related areas
- The message will solicit stories about pharmacists who have volunteered in their community

## Regular Column

- In a regular follow-up column, the best stories of pharmacist volunteerism can be held up to encourage further volunteer efforts
- The column can be a place to spotlight ideas for public health interventions
- The column can be a place to encourage subgroups of pharmacists, e.g., retirees
- The column can be used to encourage the formation of groups of pharmacists to come together to address specific Public Health areas

## The Future

- The working group envisions the grass-roots coalescence of pharmacists into groups to address specific public health problems
- The working group envisions future research to determine where pharmacists now volunteer and where pharmacists can make the greatest impact with volunteer efforts

## Summary

- The Public Health Working Group sees potential in pharmacists’ volunteer efforts at local and national levels
- The Working Group is proposing partnering with a major pharmaceutical group, e.g., ASHP or APhA to encourage pharmacist volunteerism
- The Working Group will send this proposal to the PharmPAC for consideration to go forward