•From the Executive Director• Penny Shelton, PharmD, CGP, FASCP
Executive Director Update: Spring 2017 Penny Shelton The last day of this month will mark the end of my first year as your Executive Director. To commemorate what has perhaps been one of the fastest years of my life, I thought I would use this column to provide an update on what has been going on within the Association. First, you should know that your Board of Directors has set forth a strong strategic plan for our organization, and they have been meeting monthly to provide appropriate oversight and guidance. The committees that we launched in January are working diligently on their charges and beginning to make a significant impact. The Membership Committee and the Board of Directors have a number of membership recruitment and retention initiatives in progress now. The Practice Forums have challenged each other to a membership drive. I have been making rounds to visit with health systems and local pharmacy associations to seek input, feedback and to encourage NCAP membership at the local or regional level. We have
launched a project team to explore how to make membership more attractive to pharmacy technicians. We have spent time planning for how to retain student pharmacists during their final year of school and after graduation. We are close to launching new messaging that is packaged with specific resources to capture pharmacists reciprocating to our State. Finally, we have created a project team to work on reactivating a North Carolina pharmacy leadership council. The more we can engage and serve the leadership in our profession, the more we will be able to demonstrate meaningful value, which attracts membership.
and mentoring programs. Since the Committee has completed some of their prioritizing task, NCAP staff has begun looking at recommended website changes, including exploring potential new vendors. The “find a member” directory has been developed, and we are working on some new infographics for new and existing members. In the area of new resources, the Association has recently partnered with Dr. Geoff Mospan, who teaches pharmacy law at Wingate University, to create an NCAP study guide for the NC MPJE as an offering for new graduates and pharmacists from other states seeking licensure in North Carolina.
The Resource Development Committee is working on completing a review and comparison of our website. In addition, the Committee has identified and prioritized ten resources, tools and services for NCAP to provide for members. In their work they have identified a need for NCAP to develop a more visually appealing, user-friendly and interactive website for the Association. In addition, they have outlined improvements in areas that include things like: a) find a member directory, b) infographics on how members can get involved, c) interactive networks which allow members with similar interests to connect, d) improvements in the number and diversity of job listings in the career center, and e) new resources such as leadership
The Education Committee, using several special project teams, has made significant strides in moving NCAP toward developing a repository of on-demand webinar programs. They are working on the development of several new webinars, and as Executive Director I have been exploring new partnerships to help the Committee build what will be an NCAP on-demand library of continuing education offerings. The Education Committee is also working on major programming changes to our annual convention to be held September 22-24 at the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem. In this issue you will find an article by Dr. Cody Clifton, a member of our Policy and Advocacy Committee. Cody shares a sum5
