Pacific Pharmacy Students Contribute to Health & Wellness on Hillsboro Campus
October, American Pharmacists Month, is a time to recognize pharmacists' invaluable contributions to healthcare, patient health and wellness, and everything else they are doing for their communities.
Pharmacists are integral members of healthcare teams no matter the practice setting and contribute daily to improving patient outcomes. They are some of the most accessible healthcare professionals and as medication specialists practicing in different practice settings such as healthcare systems, community pharmacy, and managed care ensuring safe and optimal treatment, pharmacists play critical roles in population health. Pharmacy teams have been at the forefront of the recent COVID-19 pandemic, playing an integral role in the vaccination efforts and they still continue to provide guidance, as well as increase accessibility of immunizations against influenzas, pneumonia, shingles, HPV, as well as other vaccinations for our communities.
Pacific University's School of Pharmacy ensures that our curriculum is designed with these critical impacts in mind. We train our pharmacy students early during their first semester of their P1 year to become certified in Pharmacy-Based Immunization Delivery using training developed by APhA. Because of this, our students are able to step up in their communities and participate in immunization clinics, either as part of their internship positions, IPPE or APPE rotations, or initiatives of our students’ professional organizations.
Our American Pharmacists Association Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP) student chapter aims to serve as a voice of student pharmacists, provide opportunities for professional growth, improve patient care, and further advance the future of the pharmacy profession. It gives our PharmD students the opportunity to work on meaningful projects, including community service events, patient care events, and hosting guest speakers from various areas within the pharmacy industry.
One of the important projects they work on is Immunization Patient Care Operation 2023. As part of that effort, our APhA-ASP chapter partnered with Walgreens on Oct. 11, and organized a one-day influenza vaccine clinic. These vaccinations and other supplies were generously provided by Walgreens. The event took place at the College of Health Professions (CHP) on the Hillsboro Campus. Our students utilized the School of Pharmacy facilities and provided immunizations to all faculty, staff and students from CHP who visited the clinic. Vaccinations for these individuals were free of charge and covered by either insurance, or if uninsured, by a coupon from Walgreens. During the clinic our student pharmacists, led by our pharmacy faculty, administered a total of 170 vaccines during a four hour period in the afternoon.
Events like these are not only a great testament of the drive and dedication of our students and faculty for wellness and well-being of our communities, but also demonstrates the impact of pharmacists in the public health sector. These events also provide our students valuable opportunities to interact with other professions at our college/campus and, as equally important, allows our students an opportunity to gain valuable experiences in the organization of such clinics and administering immunizations.
The focus of this event was to allow immunization-certified student pharmacists to polish their one-on-one patient care skills, while providing the College of Health Professions the opportunity to receive their yearly recommended influenza vaccinations. Overall, this was a successful event that benefited Pacific University's faculty, staff and students!