IPA PHARMACY TECHNICIAN ADVANCEMENT SCHOLARSHIPS

IPA recognizes that supporting pharmacy technician advancement is crucial to the sustainability of our healthcare system, most notably in rural communities. IPA has awarded 42 Pharmacy Technician Advancement Fund scholarships to pharmacy technicians across Iowa, providing 100% reimbursement for the Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam (PTCE), Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) and CEimpact Pointof-Care Testing programs, and other advanced credentials and certifications offered by PTCB.

This scholarship is made possible with grant funding received from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and PTCB. Congratulations to the following scholarship recipients!

Christine Adkins, Jennie Edmundson Hospital

Kelly Andersen, MercyOne Des Moines

Kayla Behrens, Drilling Pharmacy

Julie Berger, Winneshiek Medical Center

Tracie Capoccioni, MercyOne Waterloo

Sandra Cary, MercyOne Clear Lake Pharmacy

Zack Church, Hy-Vee

Melissa Dahna, Drilling Pharmacy

Heather Darling, Donlon Pharmacy

Travis Dibbet, UnityPoint at Home

Amanda Eden, MercyOne

Karla Eilts, Rex Pharmacy

Emily Eyheralde, Owl Pharmacy

Dannette Fahrney, Spring City Pharmacy

Anna Fishel, MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center

Lisa Gross, Hy-Vee #1544

Shannon Hahn, NuCara Pharmacy #9

Gabriella Hammer, St. Anthony Regional Hospital

Brenda Harders, Spencer Municipal Hospital

Christine Hare, Main at Locust Pharmacy

Leah Hunter, UnityPoint at Home

Kim Hurlburt, Spencer Hospital

Lori Jennings, Spencer Hospital

Emily Kedzie, Walgreens

Isaac Kim, MercyOne Regency Pharmacy

Jacob Klein, SafeNetRx

Tracy Kleinschrodt, GRX Holdings

Judy Kruse, MercyOne Waterloo Pharmacy

Dane Messersmith, Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital

Kimerly Metcalf, CVS Pharmacy, Target

Angela Moore, Spencer Hospital

Toni Pieken, Rex Pharmacy

Mckayla Pint, MercyOne North Iowa

Ashley Reiter, Osterhaus Pharmacy

Christopher Ruiz, All Care Health Center

Sue Schmitz, MercyOne

Shaylee Shedenhelm, Spring City Pharmacy

Nicole Simons, Owl Pharmacy

Emily Stecklein, MercyOne Medical Center

Melanie Stennes, Donlon Pharmacy

Chelsea Willis, Manning Pharmacy

Samantha Wright, Whiting Family Pharmacy

1815 Update

To recognize the work of pharmacists in ambulatory clinic, community and hospital pharmacies, IPA is providing technical assistance and support to 21 pharmacies across the state on initiatives around diabetes, hypertension and hyperlipidemia. The participating pharmacies are working on establishing accredited DSMES programs, increasing referrals to surrounding DSMES programs, expanding MTM services for patients with diabetes, hypertension and hyperlipidemia, as well as providing services under Collaborative Practice Agreements (CPAs). IPA staff submitted the Mid-Year grant report in January and are in the beginning stages of planning for the next iteration of the DP18-1815 program. It is expected that Community Health Workers will be a large focus of the CDC for the next cycle of funding. To be notified of future opportunities to work with IPA and Iowa HHS on these initiatives, please contact IPA’s Director of Professional Affairs, Emmeline Paintsil, at epaintsil@iarx.org.

Vaccine Equity Grant

In December 2022, IPA staff completed a media training led by Wixted & Co. to develop communication skills for engaging with legislators and the media in communicating the strategic and legislative priorities of the association. At the end of the year, IPA staff requested a grant extension and additional funding for work under the COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Grant. IPA was awarded an additional $75,000 in funding and an extension through December 31, 2023. IPA intends to continue working on all four activities under the grant including: Promote Vaccine Confidence; Develop Messaging; Engage Trusted Messengers and Support Grassroots Style Outreach. To learn more about this project, contact Emmeline Paintsil at epaintsil@iarx.org.

Health Disparities Grant

IPA staff have been focused on the development of 2023 IPA Goes Local programming and accompanying workshops. IPA plans to host 7-8 National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Mental Health Provider Trainings in addition to ACPE accredited educational programming. In response to the current landscape and needs of the profession, the focus of the educational programming has been changed to understanding and treating obesity as a complex disease and its intersectionality with health disparities. To learn more about this project or collaborate with IPA, contact Emmeline Paintsil at epaintsil@iarx.org.

Amendments To Ipa Bylaws

At the end of 2022, the IPA membership voted in favor of amendments proposed by the Bylaws Review Committee and IPA House of Delegates. The newly adopted Bylaws better reflect IPA’s current values and mission. Changes include: updated language to be more inclusive and representative of all pharmacy professionals, including non-practicing and non-traditional members; increasing pharmacy technician representation on the IPA Board of Trustees from one member to two; adding the Vice Speaker of the House as a non-voting member of the IPA Executive Committee; and changing term limits for the IPA Treasurer and IPA Delegates. Visit www.iarx.org/governingdocs to review the updated Bylaws.

Hiv Prevention Project

2023 marks the fifth year of a five-year project IPA has been leading that implements free HIV and HCV screenings in community pharmacies. This project is in collaboration with the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Bureau of HIV, STI, and Hepatitis.

Pharmacists can play an important role in fighting the HIV epidemic by offering testing services. Testing within the project allows patients confidentiality, as they are not required to provide insurance information or identification. Participating pharmacies work with their local public health department or within a collaborative practice agreement to refer any patients for confirmatory testing. The testing data over the last four years is as follows:

If you are interested in participating or would like to learn more, please contact Kellie Staiert, IPA’s Lead Project Manager, at kstaiert@iarx.org.