Last September, I was so excited when I received my acceptance email to participate in the ASHP APPE! Since then, I have been imagining who I would meet, what I would to do, and all the things I’d learn while there. Even though this experience has been virtual, my preceptor and the staff of ASHP has excelled as making me feel welcomed and included in the various projects the organization takes on.
One of the things that I noticed first and foremost is how friendly everyone is here. I have scheduled many Meet and Greets and, even though these encounters only last half an hour, everyone I have met has left a positive impact. Several team members have given me valuable advice on residencies, careers, and life journeys. They insist that I keep in touch with them even after the rotation ends and ensure that they would be willing to help me at any point with future connections or insights in certain pharmaceutical fields. As this month continues, I hope to meet with more of these knowledgeable, inspiring team members and learn more about their contributions to ASHP.
I also really appreciate the immediate integration of the externs into the various projects. Within my first week I got to write up comments for revised practice measures for both the Joint Commission and the National Quality Forum, write up two articles for ASHP’s patient-facing medication website “SafeMedication.com,” and draft up a news blurb about changes to emergency management standards for ASHP’s NewsLink. To think, this was all in just one week! I will be expected to take on more projects and work with a wider variety of staff as my time here goes on, and I am truly looking forward to it!
Lastly, I attended the meeting where it was unfortunately announced that both Policy Week and ASHP’s Midyear Conference will be held virtually this year. While I know we all look forward to being able to network and connect with our friends and peers in person again, there is always a silver lining. When Policy Week was supposed to be held in person, I would not have been able to attend since my rotation is remote; however, now I get to participate and I am thrilled to get to see this meeting come together and excel over the next few weeks. Additionally, they announced a major keynote speaker for Midyear at this meeting: Simone Biles! How cool is that?! By participating in this APPE, my anticipation for these events has swelled and I am just itching to attend and soak up as much information as possible over these last few weeks. Check in for my week two update and feel free to reach out to me with any questions regarding this APPE!
Rachel Crusius, Pharm.D Candidate, 2022
ReCrusius@salud.unm.edu