President’s Perspective

Over the next few months, you will get a chance to read the feelings and dealings of myself as they relate to Our Association and Profession. I want to preface these articles with a few ground rules.

First and foremost, if you don’t know me, I am on almost every social media plat

Joel Thornbury form and am pretty much an

President, KPhA open book, especially when it comes to our Profession. I’m proud of it, and it resonates and connects with so many of us. I will be one of your loudest supporters (GO YOU!!!), but that also means I reserve the right to ask questions. Hopefully, my questions will spur thought and perspective. One of the things you need to know about me is my mind is always going on ways to improve our Association and our Profession, especially as it relates to you applying your skills toward improved patient care.

“Our Association is here to represent ALL our colleagues. I will try my best to make it that way also.”

Second, if you are mad or upset with what I write, that’s perfectly OK! I’m not asking you to agree with everything I say. Please note, all the writings are my own opinion and may not correlate with the view of The Association. However, I will ask you to ask yourself, are you angry at my words or at the situation that we have allowed occurring? Are you upset because I will ask you to do something different or not in your usual manner? Or are you upset because my words challenge your current thinking or belief?

Third, I will push you to get Outside of Your Box (OYB) or comfort zone. My mother and father always taught my siblings and me to be as prepared as possible, try not to panic if you aren’t, and to deal with the new adventure in the best way. Admittedly, there were times in life when our nerves were stressed, but we always put our faith in God and each other, and things seemed to work out in the end. I can remember my mom saying, “Keep the Faith!” and that motto stays with me today when I face tough challenges.

Fourth, my columns will generally all be in the digital media format, but I do believe in “Letters to the President or Executive Director.” If you have a feeling one way or another, write that puppy down and send it in! We traditionally aren’t a very vocal profession, so I’m trying to nudge everyone to become a smidge more vocal. I need your thoughts, ideas, and opinions. I need your voices. We need voices.

Finally, I will mention my primary practice area (Community Retail) occasionally, but only out of convenience. I have experience in many areas of our Profession and have no allegiance to one while I’m sitting in this position. Our Association is here to represent ALL our colleagues. I will try my best to make it that way also. So here we go.

TOGETHER, Pharmacy Wins!

TOGETHER! Yes, TOGETHER is the catch phrase of today. If you haven’t heard it yet from an advertisement, just step back a moment. You will realize all the new ads use it as their core. Everywhere I turn, tune, and look, there seems to be this word: TOGETHER. I heard another new advertisement today from a local hospital system out of southern West Virginia. Advertisers, especially in health care, seem to have fallen head over heels in love with the word. Well, I’m not a marketer, and since the professionals seem to find it the word that can get their idea and message across, then who am I to not take it out for a trot.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines TOGETHER as:

Adverb: in or into one place, mass, collection, or group; in or into contact, connection, collision, or union; at one time; by combined action; with each other (as a unit: in the aggregate, considered as a whole).

Adjective: (Slang) Mentally and emotionally stable and well organized (Merriam-Webster).

Does anyone see the similarities of the definition and a profession? Who doesn’t feel some comradery with your colleague, no matter the practice site? Do we not come together respectfully at meetings to learn as one? Have you ever tried to fill a glass of water one drop at a time? Isn’t it easier and quicker when you have a stream of those drops flowing together? Why should we continue to fight for recognition of what we are and

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what we can do singularly? Why should you or your colleague that refuses to join an association scream, ‘Hey, This is what I was trained for and can do!” Shouldn’t someone or something attempt to bring us in as ONE? TOGETHER is much better than APART. Our beloved State’s Motto is “United We Stand! Divided We Fall”. Then why do we seem to fight more against and not support one another? At the core of every druggist are education and an oath committing them to science and improvements to the health of humankind while holding themselves to the highest professional moral, ethical, and legal conduct.

Yes, I am full of questions, but at this point in my professional career as a druggist, this “junk” we deal with on recognition and respect (and lack thereof) is frustrating! I am Joel Thornbury, third generation pharmacist with many years of practice and professional experience, stepping in as President of this beloved Association for the second time because our Profession burns in my belly and soul. Doesn’t it in yours or at least didn’t it one day in your past? I mean, who didn’t use the “I’m called to be a pharmacist because of a childhood experience or witness” as one of the reasons you were applying? So, why are so many of our colleagues so upset with either the Association or the Profession? If it is your calling, then it can’t be considered a job. Don’t like your job? LEAVE! Don’t like your Profession? QUIT! Don’t like either of the previous two statements? Then let’s roll up our sleeves TOGETHER and do something about it! Remember, UNITED WE STAND!!! DIVIDED WE FALL!!!

Our KPhA is Your KPhA Too!

I get frustrated at our present situation because too many times, I sit in silence respectfully and listen to other colleagues beat and bash our Association for not doing anything for them. Is it my fault, The Association’s, or just maybe their fault? Perhaps this is just what they learned, to point the finger. There might be some reasoning here because society doesn’t think we, for the most part, do anything at work except put pills in a bottle, ring them out while taking a power bill, or bother them about getting a vaccination they should have gotten somewhere else. Doesn’t the back of the box have all they need to know about OTC medications and their usage? Maybe we are all simply taught to quietly do our jobs to the best of our abilities and not ring our bells, thus, allowing others to misperceive or describe what is going on.

So how do you think we can fix this injustice or misunderstanding? I’d be lying if I said it was going to be easier than going through pharmacy school again. I have no new secret formula. I don’t have any black magic. However, experience has shown me that it will take all of us TOGETHER to make it happen. Do we even think the Government over the past 20-plus years has been helping us? Some would say “No,” but I see things through rose-colored glasses and say, “Maybe.” They did pass OBRA’90—the requirement to offer counseling upon the dispensing of a prescription. Oh, wait, we fought that tooth and nail because it did not mention being paid. How about Medicare Part D? Where they began paying for CMRs and TIPS interactions? Oh wait, we initially fought that one too because we don’t get paid enough for those to deal with them.

We have to start to change our game before they are going to stop recognizing us any more than we are now. I say we have to learn a more efficient way to deal with patients because we have traditionally treated them more like customers than patients. We stand back and allow more and more medications to freely move Over-the-Counter even though we quiver with the knowledge that interactions are occurring left and right without adequate education on their proper use and dangers. It will take an open mind, getting outside your comfort zone, and beginning back down a path that exists but has overgrown. STOP ASKING WHAT YOU GET BEFORE YOU GIVE and STOP SITTING QUIETLY UNTIL IT IS TOO LATE! We are ALL part of a TOGETHER when we mention pharmacists. We have to start getting others to donate their time, money, or resources toward the Profession or Association if they choose not to roll up their sleeves. Do you want to make a change? Do you want to get to a better place? You have to join others’ voices, or no one will hear you.

There are a few things that I want you to gather from this month’s article. First, I’m super pumped and honored to be back as President of OUR Association. I know, and it burns my soul that we aren’t exactly where we should be as a profession or Association. There is a lot of work to be done to get us moving in the direction of increased relevance. Please feel welcome to become more vocal and involved. TOGETHER, with open minds and a willingness to think more creatively, are the only ways WE can get to where we know we can be. Finally, I hurt when you hurt, not feeling that OUR Profession is the Greatest out there! Until next time, Stay Positive, Keep the Faith, and Keep Your Patient in the Center of your care! GO FUN!!!! GO PHARMACISTS!!!!

References

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Together. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved

August 19, 2020, from https://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/together.

United We Stand, Divided We Fall. (n.d.). Retrieved August 20, 2020, from

https://statesymbolsusa.org/symbol-officialitem/kentucky/state-motto/united-we-stand-divided-we-fall.