ICHP Board of Directors Profile: Jered Bauer, Director of Government Affairs

by Jennifer Ellison, ICHP Central Regional Director and WCSHP President
November 1, 2009

Where did you go to pharmacy school?

I graduated from the St. Louis College of Pharmacy (StLCOP) in 1999 with my Pharm.D. StLCOP is a private pharmacy school located within the Barnes-Jewish and Washington University Medical Campus. They have a beautiful campus with excellent resources for the students.

Trace your professional history since graduation: where have you trained / worked, any special accomplishments?

While a student, I worked for 4-5 years at Alexian Brother’s Hospital (St. Alexius) in St. Louis. I remained working there part-time during my residency. During my residency I also worked part-time in a community pharmacy, but it didn’t take me too long to realize I was not cut out for retail (if you want to learn why you will have to ask me at the next ICHP event).

Following graduation I completed my ASHP-accredited PGY-1 residency at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Belleville, Illinois. Upon completing my residency, I stayed on as a staff pharmacist for six months before moving into a clinical specialist position with St. Elizabeth’s. I eventually worked my way up to Pharmacy Manager overseeing clinical services before leaving to join Broadlane in December of 2007.

Describe your current area of practice and practice setting.

I am currently employed by Broadlane as Director of Clinical Services within the Preference Group (the consulting division of Broadlane). Broadlane is a group purchasing organizations with a comprehensive and relevant suite of services. My division provides clinical consulting for Broadlane clients with a focus on identifying and achieving savings through evidenced based clinical program development and formulary management. I currently work with several Broadlane clients (all are acute care facilities) that are seeking clinical assistance to identify, develop, implement and track cost-effective medication management.

What initially motivated you to get involved, and what benefits do you see in being active in a professional association such as ICHP?

Todd Karpinski had brought me to my very first ICHP meeting and Don Lynx was speaking at a “get to know the candidates” session. It was interesting to me because it felt like Don was calling me out. This was only my first meeting, but he was telling the audience it was time for younger pharmacists to get involved and become leaders within ICHP. I remember him mention that he has served repeatedly and was ready for others to step up and take over. He challenged those of us sitting there to become more involved so that it is not the same people time after time serving in the various roles at ICHP. So when the microphone became available for questions from the audience, right there at that meeting I answered Don’s challenge and offered to run against him for Director of Organizational Affairs. I wrote a short bio and was added to the ballot. It didn’t matter though; he continued to run and trounced me in the election. But that experience gave me enough confidence to step up and take my place in pharmacy leadership.

Is there an individual you admire or look up to, or a mentor that has influenced your career?

I have had several mentors that I have admired throughout my career. Most notably have been Bill Wuller and Todd Karpinski. Bill took a chance on me as a resident after I graduated, and I have always been very thankful for his guidance and leadership early in my career. Todd has been a great example for me and has made me aware of the impact that I can have on the profession of pharmacy outside of the workplace. This has encouraged me to become more involved in organizations whether it is serving in a volunteer role or presenting my experiences at meetings. I know what some of you are thinking as you read this. “Todd is younger than Jered. How could he be Jered’s mentor?” Yes, this is true, but I see mentor tantamount to leader and Todd has been a fantastic leader; plus he has significantly more gray hair than me.

Do you have any special interests or hobbies outside of work?

Spending as much time as possible with my family – I have two delightful daughters (Ainsley 6 and Ava 2½) that I devote much of my time to. We have bike trails near my home that my wife and I enjoy. I can never put down a good book (I recently finished an excellent political suspense series by Joel Rosenberg). I also enjoy volunteering at my church, landscaping around the house and various other home improvement projects.

Do you have a favorite restaurant or food?

I could eat pizza and Mexican every day, but my favorite restaurant is Porter’s here in Collinsville. They are famous for their pepper loin, and they have an excellent sommelier.

What is your favorite place to vacation?

Disney World (with my family of course)

What is the most interesting/unique fact about yourself that few people know?

My wife and I are high school sweethearts. We met during our junior year of high school on a blind date. That alone may not be too interesting but wait until you hear how it happened. My friend’s mother and my wife’s friend’s mother (who both taught together) were talking at school one day. Imagine two mothers fawning about how great their children are. They decided it would be great to set their kids up together on a blind date (we went to different high schools). Keep in mind this was all set up without our friends’ consent. When our friends found out they as expected said ‘absolutely not’, unless they were able to take someone with them and make it a double date. It just so happened that my wife and I were the single friends brought along for comfort. We hit it off while the other two were miserable with each other! We have been together for over 17 years and are quickly coming up on our 12 year wedding anniversary.

What 3 adjectives would people use to best describe you?

Innovative
Humorous
Insightful

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