On September 13, the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) released the organization’s 2024 strategic plan. The ACCP Board of Regents (hereafter, the Board) guides the College’s ongoing strategic planning process, which is based on a shared vision of organizational direction and integration of the individual missions and initiatives of the College’s three interrelated corporate entities – ACCP, the ACCP Foundation, and Pharmacotherapy Publications, Inc.
The plan development process, initiated in the spring of 2023, began with the all-member ACCP “issues survey,” which formed the foundation for the Board’s comprehensive environmental scan and analysis of organizational strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. During the fall of 2023, the Board reaffirmed the College’s mission and visions for the profession and organization. Core values were reexamined and reaffirmed along with a plan for continued integration and use of the College’s Value Filters. The Board subsequently reaffirmed an ongoing commitment to and focus on the plan’s three critical issues – develop, advance, and position clinical pharmacists to fully contribute their unique expertise to benefit patients and society. From December 2023 to January 2024, member input was solicited to explore two new strategic initiatives (clinical service implementation and digital health). The Board developed and refined the plan’s strategic directions and objectives between November 2023 and July 2024, culminating in a final plan release in September. The 2024 plan not only extends many areas of focus from the 2020 strategic plan, but also includes many new initiatives.
To achieve the first critical issue – developing clinical pharmacists – the plan includes new initiatives targeting the development or exploration of programs and resources that advance contemporary clinical pharmacy practice, such as mental health therapeutics for non-psychiatric clinical pharmacists, digital health application to patient care, advancement of value-based practice models, and contemporary transitions of care services. Other new efforts will focus on professional development in applying artificial intelligence to clinical pharmacy practice, education, and research; opportunities to promote clinical pharmacist wellness and career transitions; and strategies to enhance communication and member engagement. The College will also continue to provide professional development opportunities in the application of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility principles in clinical pharmacy practice, research, and education.
To achieve the second critical issue – advancing clinical pharmacists – the new plan will continue to focus on expanding clinical pharmacy beyond North America and leading the implementation of comprehensive clinical pharmacy services – expanding on prior work to disseminate resources that support and expedite service implementation. Fostering the growth, diversity, and sustainability of the clinical pharmacy workforce is a new strategic direction with objectives including the development of opportunities for networking and support of residency program leaders, promotion of clinical pharmacy pathways to a diverse population of learners, and development of strategies to support career sustainability. In addition, the College will advance clinical pharmacists by communicating their impact in practice, research, and education/training and articulating the unique role of the clinical pharmacist in interprofessional education/training and on multidisciplinary research teams, exploring intraprofessional collaborations to study the impact of board certification, and documenting the impact of comprehensive clinical pharmacy services on patient outcomes and health equity.
The third critical issue – positioning clinical pharmacists to optimally contribute their expertise to patient care – will include continued work toward ensuring and tracking clinical pharmacist involvement in evidence-based guidelines, pursuing collaborations with payers to recognize clinical pharmacists’ contributions, achieving congressional support for payment for comprehensive clinical pharmacy services, and developing a joint statement with one or more medical societies citing the value of collaborating with clinical pharmacists. Additional strategies will focus on continuing to promote an inclusive culture within the College through networking and leadership development opportunities, among others.
The 2024 plan will drive much of ACCP’s agenda over the next 3–4 years. Successful implementation will involve the combined efforts of ACCP members through holding office, volunteering for committees and other service opportunities, and contributing expertise to the College’s programs, publications, and services.