As many of you know, it’s very hard to leave town for a week – e-mails begin to pile up, phone calls get missed, deadlines get pushed farther back. As a new PGY-1 resident, this is definitely the case for me – time flies by and those seconds are so precious.
However, I had such a unique opportunity last week – I attended ASHP Policy Week for the first time. I had no idea what to expect! On Monday, during the opening reception, I looked around the room and noted all of the passionate pharmacists in the room. Some of them were personal mentors, others were national and state pharmacy leaders. All of them are great role models to me as a new practitioner. I spent Tuesday and Wednesday with my peers on the Commission on Affiliate Relations working to help provide resources for state affiliates to continue their great work. It is amazing what state affiliates are doing to continue ASHP’s goal of promoting the profession!
Thursday was the big day – Legislative Day. In school, I always helped with letter-writing campaigns and promoting the practice of pharmacy…but I had never met with any legislative team to speak my opinions. I am very fortunate that I had a few pros with me during my first two meetings with staff members from my state’s senators’ offices. I was able to tell a few personal stories, but I was so intrigued to hear the stories of my peers too. They were such great mentors to me, and I am so grateful I got to learn from the best!
In the afternoon, everyone separated to meet with their individual Representatives from the House. This was it…I was on my own! Admittedly, I was very nervous walking to the office. Did I remember what I learned in my briefings? Did I listen carefully enough to how the group handled the morning meetings? Would I be able to answer their questions? I introduced myself, shook hands, sat down. I pulled out my briefing papers, ready to use them as a crutch...but then I just starting talking. I told him about my residency and what I do on a daily basis. I told him about my training in pharmacy school and our expertise in medications and patient-care. He asked a lot of questions and seemed interested. The meeting lasted a lot longer than I anticipated it would. But I think that I successfully got my message through; it wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be.
Now, we all know how complicated politics are. There’s a pretty good chance that nothing major will happen because of my few minutes with a representative’s staff. However, the awesome thing about Policy Week was that there were so many pharmacists visiting with so many people on Capitol Hill -- all on the same day. I think that all together, that's a pretty loud voice. Even with my meetings with the legislative aides, our stories meant something to them in their personal lives. One legislative aide realized while vacationing with his grandmother that she was on so many medications, and he had no idea if she was taking them all correctly. Another aide told us the story of her mother, who was pursuing a second career in pharmacy and was realizing the impact that pharmacists can make. I feel that we are on our way to demonstrating how we can work beyond dispensing a product and help take care of patients.
My advice? Take the time to get involved. Even if you don’t end up going to Policy Week someday, join a committee, contact your Congressmen, advocate for the profession. It may seem a little daunting, but identify a mentor that can help walk you through the basics. As long as you can talk about your personal experience, you'll be able to make an impact.
And I promise, those e-mails and phone calls and deadlines will most likely be alright for another day or two!