Do you feel discombobulated? Perhaps you should take some time to recombobulate. I recently learned what “recombobulate” means, and I think it’s a pretty useful word. Recombobulate means “to recover from a state of confusion or disorganization” or “to gather one’s thoughts or composure.” Recombobulation is the opposite of “discombobulation”; discombobulated means to feel “disconnected,” “unbalanced,” “out of order,” or “confused.” Who knows? Maybe the pharmaceutical industry is developing a new drug for the treatment of discombobulation. Or maybe someone will rename “delirium” as “acute discombobulation.” Discombobulation sounds more serious than delirium, don’t you think? The Milwaukee airport renamed the area just beyond the security check area “The Recombobulation Area.” What an appropriate and clever name for an area where airport passengers go to collect themselves after going through security! Members of the American Dialect Society, a society dedicated to the study of the English language, agreed, naming “recombobulation area” the most creative word of the year for 2008.

Organizations and associations, like individuals, need to recombobulate on a regular basis. As ACCP grows as an association, it is tempting to get involved in activities that are not central to ACCP’s mission. ACCP uses strategic planning to maintain its focus. The ACCP Board tracks and reviews strategic plan progress on a regular basis. During 2013, the ACCP Board of Regents engaged in a process to formally revisit and update the College’s strategic plan. The updated plan, published in the November 2013 issue of the ACCP Report (see http://www.accp.com/report/index.aspx?iss=1113&art=1), updates the previous plan approved in November 2010. ACCP’s core values, mission, and priorities remain the same. ACCP will continue to develop, advance, and position clinical pharmacists within the current health care environment. Many of the strategic directions and objectives are revised or new, and many of these changes support and advance the new ACCP Medicare initiative. For example, the 2013 strategic plan uses more specific terms such as direct patient care, comprehensive medication management (CMM), and team-based patient care. New strategic directions (and objectives) were added in the areas of student engagement, leadership development, and collaborations with international clinical pharmacists.

Last November was the 1-year anniversary of the launch of ACCP’s Medicare benefit initiative. In the Washington Report in the November issue of the ACCP Report, Mr. McGlew provides an excellent summary of the progress made and the lessons learned by ACCP in advancing its Medicare initiative on Capitol Hill. I would like to highlight some of the lessons learned. Lesson No. 1: the policy of our proposal is fundamentally sound. Our message of “Getting the Medicines Right” is simple and understandable, and it makes sense to legislators, health care professionals, and the public. Our proposal is specific; it defines the service provided (the “what”), the individuals qualified to provide that service (the “who”), and the health care system that delivers the service (team-based care focused on collaborative drug therapy management). And Lesson No. 5: our success will require the participation of ACCP members. Grassroots advocacy and financial support are critical to ACCP’s success. ACCP established the Political Action Committee (PAC) in 2010 to help facilitate its advocacy agenda. Financial support of the ACCP-PAC provides evidence to legislators of the level of support for the Medicare initiative. As ACCP continues to work with lawmakers to introduce legislation establishing CMM provided by qualified clinical pharmacists as a Medicare benefit, now is a critical time to contribute to the PAC! If every associate and full ACCP member gave up one soft drink or coffee each month and donated that amount to the PAC (about $25 per year), the balance of the PAC would increase by about $250,000, which would make it one of the largest PACs among the major pharmacy organizations. Members of the ACCP Board of Regents have all made contributions to the PAC—we ask that ACCP members follow our lead!

Many people use the holidays as a time to recombobulate. They reflect on events that occurred during the past year and reevaluate goals for the next year. About 45% of Americans make New Year’s resolutions. This year, I used that time to recombobulate. During the fall semester, piles of papers would eventually form on my desk. I went through all of these papers on my desk, filling several large recycling containers in the process. And I got caught up on my e-mails. I no longer felt discombobulated. Best wishes for a less-discombobulated 2014 for you, too!