A wise man once said, “Do what you can, where you are, with what you have.” We gain a variety of skills in pharmacy school, including learning how to effectively advocate for our patients. An advocate can be defined as; one who pleads the cause of another; or one who defends or maintains a cause or proposal. Yes, we speak up for patients all of the time — whether it is by reaching out to a prescriber with a drug recommendation or helping a patient overcome barriers to medication adherence. I would argue that staying abreast of health policy and becoming involved with public policy on behalf of our profession utilizes those very same skills to help patients on an even larger scale. The reality is whether pharmacists and pharmacy students are weighing in or not, decisions about healthcare are being made constantly that have a direct effect on pharmacy practice and patient care. Moreover, we are most qualified to speak on the behalf of our profession and how to care for our patients.
During my time at VCU School of Pharmacy, I discovered my interest of health policy and its importance after joining the Student Pharmacist Policy and Advocacy Forum. This organization led me to participate in advocacy efforts such as the Virginia Society of Health-System Pharmacist’s Day on the Hill and visits with local legislatures. A year ago, I came across the opportunity to advocate on the federal level in Washington DC. ASHP’s Student Legislative and Advocacy Day was invaluable and empowered me to continue to use my voice and explore my interest of health policy. Now as a P4 on rotation with ASHP’s Government Relations Department, I had the chance to participate once again. This time with a little more experience under my belt, I wanted to spread the message to first time students the importance of advocacy and that they are more than qualified to be advocates.
During the first day’s training session, speaker Chris Topoleski, ASHP’s Director of Legislative Affairs asked the room, “Is anyone nervous about their meeting tomorrow?” A good number of hands went up. The training sessions covered the importance of advocacy and the history of the effort to obtain provider status. This gave us a deeper understanding of our purpose as students on the Hill. We also had a role-playing session where staff enacted scenarios that we could encounter in our meeting. I think watching other students handle the practice scenarios with ease gave others a slight sense of relief. Even though the first-timers were still nervous, the next day we broke into groups and set out for Capitol Hill to educate and gather support for the bipartisan provider status bills H.R. 592 and S.109, the Pharmacy and Medically Underserved Areas Enhancement Act.
Our collective voice echoed a message comprised of pharmacists’ training, their importance on a healthcare team and ability to improve health outcomes, and how pharmacists can fill this growing need. My group, accompanied by Dr. Eric Maroyka, visited the office of Senator Lindsay Graham of South Carolina. Senator Graham is not currently a co-sponsor but his staff was very receptive to information on the bill and intrigued to learn about how pharmacists can help their represented state. I felt this meeting was successful because we did what we came to do — educate, tell them about our experiences, and ask for support.
The most motivating event of the day was a group meeting with Congressman Earl “Buddy” Carter, the only pharmacist in Congress. He explained the importance of staying involved and giving back to your community as a healthcare provider. He further encouraged us to keep educating others about provider status and made the point that pharmacists provide value even in Congress. On the Metro ride back to the conference room, I could hear other students speaking about their experience that day. There was a sense of pride and relief, including “That was easier than I thought!” Many expressed they were happy with the outcome of their meeting. After reconvening the question was presented to the room again, “Who is still nervous about taking meetings?” This time no hands went up. We had accomplished our goal and were ready to take our experience back with us. The collective voice for H.R.592 and S.109 became that much stronger.
As many states are gearing up to outline what provider status will look like for them, we cannot move forward until the federal bill has passed. I encourage my fellow student pharmacists: Do what you can, where you are, with what you have within your state, your community, and in your school. Utilize your training, experiences, and anecdotes as they often resonate with legislators who do not see what we see first-hand. And never hesitate to take it all the way to Capitol Hill.