Time flies. The end of the ACCP 2009–2010 year, culminated by the Annual Meeting next month, will soon be here, and a new cycle of committees, task forces, PRN activities, and myriad other endeavors will soon commence anew. I am proud to have had the opportunity to work with our highly committed and dedicated ACCP members and staff during the past year to continue to advance ACCP’s mission. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank committee and task force chairs, vice chairs, and members for their hard work during this past year. I’d also like to thank all members who volunteered to serve the organization in any capacity during 2009–2010. Furthermore, I wish to thank the entire ACCP membership for its continued dedication to advancing ACCP’s mission of achieving optimal patient outcomes related to drug therapy.
This year has been busy and productive. I’d like to use this space to briefly review some of the achievements and accomplishments of ACCP’s 2009–2010 committees and task forces. As you are aware from recent communications to ACCP membership, the issue of board certification in pharmacy, particularly with respect to the optimal framework for certification and increasing access to specialty certification, is of paramount importance to our organization. During the past year, we have endeavored to advance and communicate our position on these issues and make strides toward increasing access to specialty certification, and we remain committed to working with the Board of Pharmacy Specialties and other stakeholders to achieve these goals. In addition, the Certification Affairs Committee, chaired by former ACCP President Stuart Haines, developed strategies whereby ACCP can effectively promote the value of board certification to (1) residents/residency programs, (2) employers, and (3) other health care providers/provider groups. This committee focused not only on the career development benefits of board certification, but also on the external value of certification (e.g., quality assurance, better patient care, credibility among other health professions). Similarly, the StuNet Advisory Committee, chaired by Alexandra Barnette, which is composed solely of student members of ACCP, formulated recommendations regarding methods of promoting to student pharmacists the roles of specialization and board certification in clinical pharmacists’ career development.
ACCP continues to be committed to extending the frontiers of clinical pharmacy practice, and substantial committee effort was devoted to this subject. The Clinical Practice Affairs Committee A, led by Mary Hess, provided recommendations regarding the development of quality metrics for clinical pharmacy services in the acute care practice setting. The Clinical Practice Affairs Committee B, under the direction of Alan Zillich, developed a white paper that reviews quality metrics for clinical pharmacy services in the ambulatory care setting. This review includes the impact of collaborative/team care on the interpretation of patient outcome measures; clinical pharmacy services (and measures of their success, where applicable) that are primarily or solely delivered by clinical pharmacists; the need for metrics to reflect varied data sources; and the need to measure both health outcomes and cost benefit. The Public and Professional Relations Committee, chaired by Anne Hume, is preparing an ACCP White Paper on transition of care that describes pharmacists’ roles and responsibilities in ensuring pharmacotherapeutic outcomes during care transitions. The Task Force on Acute Care Practice Model, under the leadership of Curtis Haas, is developing an ACCP Commentary that examines the differences between health systems’ “unit-based” decentralized acute care clinical pharmacy practice model and the team- or service-based acute care clinical pharmacy practice model. The task force will critically compare and contrast these models and relate them to the College’s definition of clinical pharmacy and other relevant ACCP papers. The Task Force on Residencies, chaired by Kelly Smith, is developing an ACCP Commentary titled, “A Strategic Plan for Expanding Residency Capacity to Meet Future Societal Needs.” This commentary will build on the foundations provided by the 2009 task force paper (which addressed the organizational perspective on the value of residency training) and will cite emerging data on the growth of residency training, the declining pharmacist workforce shortage, and the growing number of graduates choosing to pursue residency training. The Educational Affairs Committee, led by Chris Rathbun, is generating an ACCP Commentary regarding the current state of advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs) at colleges and schools of pharmacy, with recommendations on how APPEs can incorporate students more intensively and extensively into direct patient care activities.
Research has always been an integral component of ACCP’s mission and activities. During the past year, the ACCP Research Institute conducted another well-received Focused Investigator Training (FIT) Program at the University of Arizona in Tucson. In addition, the Research Institute’s Practice-Based Research Network (PBRN), which now includes more than 600 members, initiated its first study, the Medication Error Detection, Amelioration, and Prevention (MEDAP) Study. The aim of the study is to document clinical pharmacist interventions that help eliminate or reduce medication errors. Central institutional review board (IRB) approval, MEDAP-specific training, and human subjects’ protection training have been established. The data collection period commenced August 5 and will continue until November 5. The Research Affairs Committee, chaired by Brian Overholser, served as the inaugural community advisory panel (CAP), which is a standing committee to the PBRN that will serve as a mechanism for providing feedback regarding the feasibility, significance, and practicality of proposed PBRN projects. In addition, the Research Affairs Committee developed a process and timeline for soliciting nominations and selecting future CAPs and nominated and selected the CAP for 2011–2013.
Other committees and task forces have performed important work for the College. The Member Relations Committee, guided by Sharon See, provided recommendations regarding expanded and improved use of social networking and other modalities to better communicate with the growing and increasingly diverse ACCP membership. The Organizational Affairs Committee, chaired by Anna Dopp, developed recommendations regarding the potential for establishing a cadre of “virtual committees,” which could potentially conduct all of their business online and by conference call. The Publications Committee, guided by Glen Schumock, proffered recommendations regarding the development of new ACCP publications and other resource media. The Presidential Task Force, led by former ACCP President Joe DiPiro and composed of former ACCP Presidents Bob Elenbaas, Tom Hardin, Kathleen Lake, Mary Beth O’Connell, and John Pieper, advised the College regarding methods of fully engaging the talents and expertise of ACCP’s most experienced members and keeping them abundantly involved in the organization’s activities. The Resident Advisory Committee, composed of residents and chaired by Keri Sims, is preparing a commentary describing methods by which to train and prepare residents to teach students, other trainees, and other health care professionals. The Task Force on Governance, under the direction of Lynn Crismon, has provided a report recommending methods by which to ensure that ACCP continues to have an adequate number of qualified candidates to run for ACCP elected offices.
Several of our committees have standing charges that recur each year and that are vital to the achievement of ACCP’s mission. The Awards Committee, chaired by Amanda Corbett, worked diligently to determine the winners of ACCP’s major awards. The Credentials: Fellowship (FCCP) Committee, under the direction of William Webster, reviewed applications for FCCP status within ACCP. The Credentials: Membership Committee, guided by Mary Chavez, reviewed applications for ACCP membership; in addition, this committee developed a frequently asked question (FAQ) series addressing common questions, confusions, and misconceptions about ACCP membership, which will be posted on ACCP’s Web site. The Nominations Committee, chaired by Dawn Havrda, recommended a slate of candidates for the College’s 2011 elections for the offices of President, Secretary, Regents, and Research Institute Trustees. The 2010 Annual Meeting Program Committee, led by Sunny Linnebur, completed its work in developing the program for next month’s Annual Meeting. The 2011 Annual Meeting Program Committee, helmed by David Foster, continued its work on planning the program for next year’s Annual Meeting in Pittsburgh. The Research Fellowship Program Review Committee, chaired by Scott McConnell, had an extremely busy year, reviewing eight applications for approval of fellowship programs.
Other important ACCP activities that have occurred this year, or soon will occur, warrant mention. As directed by then-ACCP President John Murphy, last year’s National StuNet Advisory Committee developed “The Clinical Pharmacy Challenge,” a quiz bowl–like ACCP student competition. Each college or school of pharmacy may enroll a team; as of this writing, 94 teams from U.S. and Canadian pharmacy schools/colleges have enrolled in the competition. The contest launches this month, with preliminary rounds conducted online in September. The “Final Four” will advance to the ACCP Annual Meeting, where live semifinal and final rounds will take place. Team registration is currently open. On another topic, ACCP has established a political action committee (ACCP-PAC), which will be unveiled at the 2010 ACCP Annual Meeting this fall.
Overall, we have had a busy and productive year. In addition to thanking committee and task force chairs, vice chairs, members, and all ACCP members for your contributions, I would like to convey my sincere appreciation to the Board of Regents and to ACCP staff, particularly Mike Maddux, Ed Webb, Nancy Perrin, and Jacque Marinac. I would also like to express my sincere thanks to all staff members, who are extremely dedicated to the College and who perform excellent work.
It has been a distinct honor to serve as ACCP President. Thank you for having granted me this privilege. I look forward to continuing to work with all of you to advance ACCP’s mission and improve the care of our patients.