President’s Perspective

Thoughts and Reflections on Recent Phamily Achievements Happy Easter! Happy Spring! Happy Derby Day! Happiness! Yes, these are all things that should spring wonderful thoughts around your family. This is the time of year when the cold harsh winter begins to melt away and new life begins to spring eternal. This is the beginning of the year when family events and celebrations, like Easter, are celebrated. Well, at least this is how it is within my family. I come from a family of nine. My father grew up around the KY/VA border; Mother was from Lexington. They met in college and managed pharmacies, as well as a family of 7 kids thereafter. Yes, NINE people sitting around a dinner table in the 70’s/80’s and every major holiday ever since. NINE people and it was extremely dynamic with its ins and outs, but all in all, the inner workings were like the government. Yes, there were differing opinions and views to say the least; however, we were together and A FAMILY! That being said, each member of my family has vastly different personalities that range from quiet and reserved too boisterous and extroverted. I am immensely proud of all the members in my family! Not for their successes, but just because they are my siblings. I would hope at this point, each one of us could look back and say that our parents are extremely proud of what we have become and what we do for our communities and society. That's not to say that there have not been some ups and downs along the way. We all have points in our life that, when we look back, would be perceived as “interesting”. Since this article is being written by me, I, of course, was the favorite child and perfect in all ways, especially in my parents’ eyes. Some would even call me the Golden Boy, OK, maybe no one could call me the Golden Boy; however, that doesn't prevent me from continuing to aspire toward improvement. My parents always taught us that it was much better to give than receive. I often ponder how my mother and father did it, having seven kids running amok in seven different directions. There are no two of us alike. The greatest similarities that we all contain might be around our various professions and connections in health care. As I look around at my siblings and wonder why we are what we are, I believe it goes back to watching our parents. We had a headstrong mother who was determined to fight all the odds to succeed, not only for herself but for anyone who she saw needing either a cheerleader or the support to move further. She gave us a grand sense of adventure in her ability to move from her home three hours east to an environment that was 1/10th the size and many years behind in economic development. However, she fought the odds not only as a female pharmacist, but also as a strong woman in a rural southwest Virginia community. My father was always referred to as the number’s guy. I very rarely remember my dad raising his voice; however, he was mighty with his whistle, mind, attention to detail, and subtle actions. Both parents gave us tremendous love and support; they allowed us the freedoms to explore, dream, and error. Both were optimistic in the way they approached life, even though there were difficulties surrounding the community in which I grew up. They wanted us to be the best we could be and showed that to us in their faith, not only religious, but in us as their children. They believed in us! Our

decisions to do and go wherever life led us, of course with certain parental guidance on occasion, were always welcomed at the dinner table and open for general debate. I miss my mother and father daily, but I know the gifts that they have instilled in me and my siblings are worth a lifetime. So why do I bring up my family in this article? Personally, the pharmacy profession has some strong similarities to the life I lived at home as a child and growing up. As pharmacists, we are like siblings trying to learn and run in many directions; however, we have in common one great theme, PHARMACY! Pharmacy brings us together in unity as a family, maybe better stated as PHAMILY. No matter where you work or where you are in your professional life, you will always have pharmacy as a part of you. My siblings and I have been all over the world, but even though we were miles apart, we knew that wherever our parents were, we always had family and a home. Pharmacy, in much the same way, gives us that unity no matter where we are in time or space. In the last 100 days, at least here in Kentucky, I have seen the profession’s flame burn brighter than ever before in my 30 years of practice. Going into this past Legislative Session, I made no qualms about the fact it would be one of the most difficult that I had ever been around. Yes, as many of you know, I fully understand that our profession (or really any profession) is all politics. (See above as the reminder that my family and the governmental way at which it works are very similar. Thus, dinner table conversations required a little “politicking” before, during, and afterwards). Politics is what allows us to dispense medications, our ability to provide the best patient centered health care education, and our ability to provide care as recognized by not only our patients but others in society. This Session was considered a “Short Session”. Undertaken in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, there was little, if any, attendance at the State Capitol. In an environment that could be considered superbly politicized, the philosophy surrounding politics today seems to be one of “My way or No way”. If I have the idea, it sounds and works great. If the idea is yours, it's horrible and there is very little collaboration across political parties/families. This type of confusion and lack of compromise tends to be the formula for little to be done in a constructive manner. However, looking back now, I do not believe the political environment of today ever met the force of a unified profession such as ours. All pharmacists and other health care colleagues got behind an injustice that has lived for too many decades to begin to correct it. The passage of house bill 48 and the method in which this was accomplished (not a single negative vote cast against it) is a feather EVERYONE can put in their hats. There is no single person that deserves more credit than YOU! What I witnessed was something I hope we as a family can take and grow on moving forward. If we do not forget how we felt about our profession during the last 100 days and how we worked to better the situation for every patient we will interact with, health care, especially as practiced by pharmacists, will stay forever changed and improved. I remain numb in belief that such a task was accomplished during this time and by this manner. House Bill 48, which finally allows the recognition of the services you provide as a pharmacist to be billable, moves the arrow away from medicines being your only point of recognition. Don't misunderstand me, I know there were colleagues that led us in this battle for recognition; however, at the end of the day, not only our patients, but the profession benefited the most AND WE ARE PHAMILY!!! Traditionally, in families, people come together certain times of the year: birthdays, anniversaries, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, other religious Holidays, in the celebration of freedom and each other. I hope that the April Journal article from the President will mark the point that we celebrate our successes annually. I am only one ninth of my family and an even lesser fraction of the pharmacy profession in Kentucky. However, as in my family, we do not measure things in fractions, we all are ONE. As my mother and father allowed me and my siblings to do as we grew up, dreaming of what we wanted to become or where we wanted to go, I hope you feel the same inspiration to continue your dreams and path toward wherever you want to go as a professional. A BIG THANKS to all my brothers and sisters out there who are part of this phamily that directly or indirectly helped in moving the arrow of our profession in a positive manner. WE DID

IT!!! BOOOOOM!!!! IT WILL BE THE SHOT HEARD AROUND THE PROFESSION FOR GENERATIONS TO COME!!! GO FUN!!!! GO PHARMACISTS!!! GO PHAMILY!!!! Please feel invited to join the PHamily Reunion this year, IN PERSON, at the Downtown Louisville Marriott the first weekend in June. We will continue the celebration of the past successes, discuss how we will proceed to implement those victories, recognize those phamily members standing a little taller this year for the phamily photo, and party down with our sister, Cathy Hanna, as she steps into the lead role and driver’s seat of The Association. Until then, Stay Safe, Healthy, and Vigilant! Peace and God’s Blessings Your way. Joel