Working together is a concept we learn at a very young age. Whether holding hands with friends to form a “red rover” line on the playground, locking arms and building a foundation for a pyramid to cheer on our school’s team, or joining with a partner to complete a lab assignment, we learn early on that we often need to work with others to accomplish a task. With further experience, we learn that the outcomes of our projects and tasks are often enhanced and perhaps surpassed when we work with others – even if we could have accomplished them individually. Similarly, in professional sporting events, although the outcomes of a singles tennis match or golf tournament are determined by an individual player’s performance, some of the most exciting and high-level tennis and golf achievements occur when these extraordinary athletes come together as a team, such as for the Laver Cup or the Ryder Cup.

The energy at these events is palpable, and together, the teams create an atmosphere and outcome that, no matter the winner, take the sport to a new level. This is synergy! Synergy originates from the Greek word συνεργία synergia, which means “working together,” and is defined as “an interaction or cooperation giving rise to a whole that is greater than the simple sum of its parts.” The global unrest in recent weeks and months has heightened our awareness of the importance of allies and partners who support each other in times of need. Working together is imperative to address such monumental challenges. Synergy can also specifically be applied in a professional context such as pharmacy, where aligning with others to achieve shared goals is essential to advance pharmacy practice, strengthen our partnerships with other providers, and, most importantly, improve the outcomes of the patients we serve.

ACCP continues to focus on the 2022 presidential theme, “Advocacy to Advance Our Profession,” where working together is central to these efforts. For instance, during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected every aspect of health care, pharmacists in all practice settings have risen to the occasion in response to this public health emergency. Throughout, ACCP has worked collaboratively with other national pharmacy organizations to provide joint statements, comments, and letters of support for pharmacy initiatives. These initiatives, together with key components of ACCP’s advocacy platform, were highlighted in the January ACCP Report. This month, ACCP joined with 13 other pharmacy organizations to submit a letter to President Biden. In this letter, they urged the administration to remove barriers that prevent pharmacists from ordering oral antivirals and to expand patient access to the Test to Treat initiative that was announced in the White House National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan and shared during the recent State of the Union Address (Pharmacy Letter to President). Indeed, ACCP’s expanded advocacy for the pharmacy profession has never been more important, and the College is committed to continuing its dialogue with other pharmacy associations to explore how to work together on these and other initiatives for synergy in the path forward. I encourage you to stay abreast of legislative and regulatory developments and stand ready to provide your input on strategies and support for initiatives with key stakeholders.

In addition to supporting pharmacist-driven public health initiatives, ACCP remains committed to advancing recognition of the clinical pharmacist’s critical role in patient-centered, team-based practice. To promote this outcome, ACCP has formed partnerships and leadership roles within groups outside pharmacy, such as its role as a founding board member–organization in the Get the Medications Right (GTMRx) Institute. Through GTMRx, the College continues to engage with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services/Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation to advance care delivery models that implement alternative payment mechanisms and incentives for providers and systems to employ value-based reimbursement. The Medicare Coverage Initiative remains a focus of ACCP’s legislative advocacy at the national level, and the College continues to bolster its existing partnerships with physician organizations while broadening its reach and collaborations in the future. As we all work together to strengthen and build these relationships, we create the synergy needed to facilitate team-based care environments that ultimately benefit our patients.

Not only is ACCP working together with external partners to position pharmacists for the future, but its members and staff are also working together to promote ACCP’s mission-driven strategic priorities related to developing and advancing clinical pharmacists. Moreover, the organization continues its work to help members achieve the goal of optimized patient care, which is at the center of the College’s Strategic Plan. In the paragraphs that follow, I would like to share some highlights on progress in these strategic priorities to date.

Recently, the College developed a survey for distribution to members to determine the feasibility and demand for a new curriculum to prepare pharmacists to conduct clinical pharmacy practice research in their respective areas of emphasis. The 2022 ACCP Task Force on Residency Training is developing a commentary that will offer innovative ideas for increasing the number of postgraduate training positions and meeting current/future graduate and employer demands. In addition, dissemination of comprehensive medication management (CMM) resources and tools have moved forward with the implementation of an international CMM certificate program and the offering of a CMM consultancy session at ACCP meetings, We will also launch later this year the new CMM Implementation Certificate Program through the ACCP Academy.

ACCP’s work to ensure it employs practices that embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) remains on track with the College’s DEI implementation plan, including the work of the 2022 DEI Task Force, which is providing input and guidance to the Board of Regents. In January, ACCP leaders participated in the face-to-face Joint Commission of Pharmacy Practitioners (JCPP) meeting. The JCPP agenda, which focused on pharmacists’ roles in health equity and social determinants of health, provided a foundation for future dialogue and potential collaborations. Later this month, Dr. Kathy Pham, ACCP Director of Policy and Professional Affairs, and I will participate in the American Pharmacists Association House of Delegates in San Antonio to provide input on the profession’s policy development. In June, ACCP staff and member leaders will participate in the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy Bridging Pharmacy Education and Practice Summit, which will further inform the College’s practice advancement initiatives.

The initial work of ACCP’s newest PRN, the Community-Based PRN, together with the ACCP white paper being developed by one of this year’s Clinical Affairs committees on the collaboration between community- and clinic-based pharmacists, will provide guidance for the College’s future support of clinical pharmacy in community settings. Further, ACCP’s recently implemented advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) is focused on developing student leadership and will expand in the 2022–2023 academic year. Correspondingly, the ACCP Professional Leadership Program, driven by the 2020 Strategic Plan, will be launched in fall 2022 to develop leaders within ACCP as well as the clinical pharmacy discipline at-large. This 1-year program, which will begin at the ACCP Global Conference on Clinical Pharmacy in October, will employ a dynamic, interactive curriculum over the ensuing 12 months.

From these examples, you can see that, working together, ACCP is making significant strides in achieving the goals and objectives outlined in the Strategic Plan. As well, the ACCP Spring Forum will be held in-person in St. Louis on April 23–24. In addition, plans are essentially complete for the 2022 ACCP Global Conference on Clinical Pharmacy in San Francisco, October 15–18. Mark your calendars and plan for in-person networking and high-quality educational programming! I want to express my thanks to the ACCP staff and member volunteers who are working together to develop and plan these and other ACCP events and programs.

We have a bright future and much excitement ahead. Thanks to the dedication and leadership of the ACCP staff, Board of Regents, PRN officers, committee and task force volunteers – and, most importantly, our engaged membership – we are working daily to develop, advance, and position clinical pharmacy. After the remarkable U.S. victory at the 2021 Ryder Cup, team captain Steve Stricker said of the players: “They had a mission … and you could tell it and they played great and they came together,” noting further that even rivals Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau put aside their differences for the team:

I mean, Brooks and Bryson wanted to play together. That’s how much it came together. So that shows a lot about this whole team.

I believe our ACCP team shares this passion, energy, and “game”! Coming together, working together, even if our “games” and approaches differ, is how we will continue to find this synergy – the passion and energy to move our profession into a new era. It is an honor to be part of the ACCP team, and I look forward to continuing to work together to create the synergy that advances our partnerships, our practices, and the patients we serve!