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Official Newsjournal of the Illinois Council of Health-System Pharmacists

Professional Affairs
Join the ICHP Professional Affairs Division and Make a Difference in the Pharmacy Profession

by Mary Lee, PharmD, BCPS, FCCP

The Professional Affairs Division recognizes, improves, and promotes high quality pharmacy practice in health-systems and affiliated facilities. You can contribute to that process by volunteering to be a member of the Division.

Position Statements
The Division ensures that ICHP’s position statements on major issues of the profession consider current and future pharmacy practice, focus on ensuring safe and effective patient care, and provide “do-able” strategies. These position statements have potentially far-reaching implications. They state clearly and concisely the organization’s opinion on pharmacy practice, health care policy, and societal concerns that impact patient care. They also represent ICHP’s values and beliefs regarding safe pharmacy practice and optimizing patient care outcomes. Position statements educate governmental agencies, political organizations, other healthcare professional organizations, and patients about ICHP and help ICHP engage with other organizations with similar interests.

Each Division member takes the lead on a select number of position statements and reviews the published literature for background information, identifies new trends and supportive evidence for change, and checks for position statements on the same topic from other pharmacy organizations. The Division then discusses proposed updates at monthly meetings. Through this process, the Division systematically reviews all ICHP’s position statements over the course of several years. Once approved by the Division, every updated or new position statement undergoes a second rigorous review and approval process by the ICHP Board.

From September 2019 through August 2020, the Division updated a number of position statements including:

Competency Assessment for Pharmacy Personnel
Direct to Consumer Advertising of Prescription and Non-Prescription Medication
Medication Therapy Management Services
Non-Physician Healthcare Provider Status
Political Candidate Endorsement
Preventing Drug Diversion and Counterfeiting
Training, Certification and Employment of Pharmacy Technicians
Social Media
Quality Sterile Products

To view ICHP position statements, go to www.ichpnet.org/pharmacy-practice/professional.practice/ichp_position_statements/.

Award Programs
The Division recognizes high quality pharmacy practice by judging the ICHP Annual Best Practice Award competition. The objective of this award is to encourage the development of new pharmacy practice programs or innovative approaches to existing pharmacy practice challenges in health systems. Applicants are judged on their descriptions of programs and practices employed in their health-system based on the following criteria: innovativeness/originality, contribution to improving patient care, contribution to the institution and pharmacy practice, scope of the project, and quality of submission.

The Division also annually judges the ICHP Student Chapter Award competition. This award program focuses student chapters on activities that promote the mission of ICHP, provides opportunities for professional development among student members in the chapter, and enhances a student’s understanding of the value of professional organizations and societies.

About the Division
For 2019-2021, the Division is chaired by Amy Boblitt. She will be succeeded by Megan Corrigan in Fall 2021. The Division currently includes eight active members and two to three ICHP staff members. All work as a team to complete the work of the Division.

The Division formally meets for an hour every month. However, much of the work of the Division is done outside of the monthly committee meeting. It is estimated that the average time commitment for “homework” is probably 2 hours/month.

At a recent Division meeting, each member was asked to state why they enjoyed being members of this Division. The responses included an opportunity to meet with and work with others in the organization who are outside of their usual place of work, to develop literature research and writing skills, and to learn about new practices or standards for pharmacy practice.

This Division invites new members to join. If you are interested or have questions about serving, please contact Amy Boblitt, the Division Chair at: Boblitt.Amy@mhsil.com; or Megan Corrigan, the chair-elect, at corrigan.megan@gmail.com.