ASHP and AzPA Partnership; Perspective of an Active Member in the ASHP House of Delegates

editorial

editorial

Carol Rollins

ASHP and AzPA Partnership; Perspective of an Active Member in the ASHP House of Delegates

Aimee Itaaehau, PharmD, BCACP; Director At Large, Health Systems, AzPA Board of Directors

In an effort to understand what being a member of the ASHP House of Delegates entails, I had the opportunity to interview Carol Rollins, MS, RD, PharmD, BCNSP, IASPEN. CarolRollinsisanexpertinthefieldofparenteralnutrition and was elected to be an Arizona representative as a delegate to the ASHP House of Delegates. I asked her a few key questions to gain perspective on what it means to be a member of the ASHP House of Delegates.

QCan you explain what you do as a member of the House of Delegates?

AAs a member of the House of Delegates, I am responsible for recognizing what ASHP in Arizona would like, and how pharmacists that we representwouldlikeustovoteonspecificissues.Whenwemeet,we hear different interstate opinions and perspectives on the various issues that affect Health Systems Pharmacists. Ultimately, the members of the House of Delegates are responsible for voting on ASHP Policies that demonstrate how ASHP pharmacists stand on a particular issue.

QWhy do you participate in the House of Delegates?

AIt’soneofthosethingswhereyoueitherlikeit,oryoudon’t.Thefirst thing I did was to observe the executive committee in (our) clinical section trying to get pharmacists’ provider status into Medicare law. The process itself can be daunting if someone was to be thrown into that position, and I was glad to have the chance to sit with an active member who explained what was happening as we went through the process. The truly appealing thing is I had a chance to see how the legislative process works. I felt strongly about how to help move pharmacy forward, and this was the way to get something done! I have had the opportunity to meet incredible people who want to make things better for Health Systems pharmacists. I have made connections with people that I wouldn’t have otherwise had the opportunity to meet, such as lawyers and hospice workers. Being a member of the House of Delegates has given me a chance to understand why things move slowly…they ARE working on issues. One of the challenges is you have to start from scratch every time new legislators are elected.

The Arizona Representatives for the ASHP House of Delegates: (l–r) Renee Tyree, Mindy Burnworth, Carol Rollins, and Christi Jen at the AzPA 2019 Spring Clinical.

QHow are you impacting the practice of pharmacy in the state of Arizona?

ABeing a member of the AzPA Legislative Committee keeps me updated on the laws of interest to the practice of pharmacy. At the meetings that we have, we get a chance to bring up any issues that need to be looked at. We get a chance to consider the impact on pharmacy as new laws are passed. Usually, they impact community pharmacy practice, but it is important to be able to interject the opinion of Health Systems pharmacy.

QWhy do you think it’s important for pharmacists to become members of AzPA?

AWe need a professional organization to help us come together on bigger issues, such as getting laws passed and/or changed that impact the practice of pharmacy. I believe that we have a professional obligation to get involved, and that we (as pharmacists) SHOULD be getting together to actively participate in molding our profession.

QIs there anything you would like to add?

AWe have breakout sessions scheduled for the next clinical AzPA meeting in February in order to discuss debatable policies, and to address various concerns and issues. The results of these sessions will be communicated to ASHP. I would be willing to have one or two interested parties sit with me during one of those sessions to help them understand the process. 