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University of Illinois College of Pharmacy APhA-ASP Fall Newsletter
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Tara Berkson, APhA-ASP Chapter President
As student pharmacists at UIC, all of us are changing the face of pharmacy. Whether it
be during our interactions with each other and our professors in class, at work and sum-
mer internships, within our professional organizations or while volunteering in our
neighborhoods, we have the opportunity to promote healthy communities and the profes-
sion of pharmacy. Our APhA-ASP chapter is wrapping up a very successful semester of
providing valuable health education to patients while representing the College of Phar-
macy and the University in our community and throughout the state. Three things hap-
pen at every event that we participate in:
1. A community member says “thank you” to our volunteers
2. A student pharmacist learns something new about health and pharmacy
3. A patient says “I didn‟t know pharmacists could do that”
I would like to extend an enthusiastic thank you to each and every member. You all
work hard to make our meetings, events and projects valuable to our peers and the com-
munity. To those considering membership, it‟s not too late to become a member!
I would also like to extend a challenge to our new and veteran members in Chicago and
Rockford to participate in at least one APhA-ASP project during the spring semester.
We have many exciting events on the horizon for Spring 2012 including the APhA An-
nual Meeting in New Orleans (3/9-3/12), Legislative Day in Springfield (3/7), the ADA
Diabetes EXPO in downtown Chicago (4/14), professional development workshops and
the launch of our COP running club.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” -Margaret Mead
2011-2012 APhA-ASP Executive Board
President: Tara Berkson
President-Elect: Maria Tangonan [email protected]
[R] President-Elect: Juhae Lee
[email protected] Historian: Evana Robbani [C], Liz
Berthel [R]
Treasurer: Shally Alendry [R] Finance Chair: Janet Kim
[R] Patient Care Project Chair:
Arsany Ibrahim Op Diabetes Chair: Ginnie Kim
Op Heart Chair: Jane Janik
Op Immunization: Andrea Pierce
OTC Chair: Bibek Shrestha
Smoking Cessation: Liz Sullivan
VP of Special Projects: Mayowa
Agbaje-Williams
Generation RX Chair: Jacquie Munn
VP of:
IPSF: Kelly Burke Membership: Farah Barada
PR: Cathy Palladino
Professional Affairs: Mike Kenes Social Affairs: Jason Bena
Professional Events: Mike Bogdan
Legislative Affairs: Neil Schultz
IPhA Liaison: Jeff Krueger
[R] Legislative Liaison:
Alia Black [R] Professionalism Chair:
Cassidy McDonald
Chicago P1 Liaison: Bernard Hsu
Rockford P1 Liaison:
Golf Outing Chairs: Mike Bogdan & Shally Alendry
Chicago Faculty Advisor:
Marlowe Djuric-Kachlic, pharmD Rockford Faculty Advisor:
Jen George, pharmD
Please see our website for
individual e-board member’s
contact information.
2010-2011 Highlights:
UIC 2011 Organization of the Year Winner
APhA-ASP National Patient Care Award Winner
Generation RX: 4th in the Nation
Operation Diabetes, Operation Heart, & Operation Immunization-Regional
Award Winners
Screened more than 10,000 patients in 2010-2011
Establishing APhA-ASP in Rockford 2
Advisor’s Corner 4-5
Going Global! 7
Operation Diabetes & Heart 8-9
Rockford Patient Care 11
Operation Immunization 12
Special Projects 13
Some of what’s inside this issue!
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Volume 7, Issue 1
December 01, 2011
Juhae Lee, Rockford President-elect
Looking back on the process of estab-
lishing APhA-ASP here at the Rockford campus,
I cannot help but be thankful for how much we as
a chapter have grown in size as well as in valu-
able patient care opportunities. „Tis the season
and I feel very much appreciative of all the hard
work of each and every executive board member
to make this chapter possible.
Setting up a chapter of the nation‟s
largest pharmacy association in Rockford seemed
like a big task at first. Many emails and phone
conversations later, the APhA-ASP chapter in
Rockford was able to establish stable networks
with different pharmacies and health organiza-
tions around the area to further promote the pro-
fession of pharmacy through community events.
It was not without its own set of chal-
lenges. Before the full executive board was
elected, setting up effective professionalism and
patient care events was difficult to handle by a
couple of first year student pharmacists. Unfa-
miliarity between campuses made it difficult for
the general members at
Rockford to experience the
full effect of being part of
one organization. As the
inaugural class, not having
upperclassmen with experi-
ences in APhA-ASP events, such as patient coun-
seling competitions and attendance at profes-
sional meetings, required us to communicate with
back-then strangers via email or phone. General
body meetings mainly being held via distance
technology and the unfamiliarity of the technol-
ogy by the prominent speakers prevented the
general members
from appreciating
the full effect of
having a speaker in
person at the Rock-
ford campus. In
addition, coordinat-
ing fundraising
events between
campuses was difficult.
Leaving behind a semester of problem
solving with a big help from Chicago‟s past-
president, Sami, and our current president, Tara,
APhA-ASP chapter in Rockford began to lay the
groundwork and solidify our presence in the
Rockford community. Dr. George as our chapter
advisor was a wonderful and much needed addi-
tion to the chapter; Crusader Community Health
provided opportunities with Winnebago County
health fairs at local churches to conduct blood
glucose and blood pressure events for the Rock-
ford residents. Expand-
ing our network to the
local YMCA, the pub-
lic library, and local
community pharmacies
allowed student phar-
macists to be involved with educating patients in
poison control this past spring. A peer mentor
program was set up by APhA-ASP Chicago to
bridge the gap between first year student pharma-
cists at Rockford and the third- and fourth-year
student pharmacists at Chicago. The P4 Roundta-
ble luncheon with the fourth-year student phar-
macists on
rotations in
Rockford was
helpful in
answering the
q u e s t i o n s
from the first-
year student
pharmacists.
Having developed these relationships, now-P2s
appreciate these events still to this day and are in
good contact with the now-pharmacists. Estab-
lishment of the full executive board enabled
efficient delegation in different facets of the
organization, providing patient care events and
professionalism development opportunities to
both P2s and P1s.
As the student body at the Rockford
campus continues to grow in size, the APhA-ASP
chapter continues to grow as by increasing our
network of connections to healthcare facilities
and pharmacists in Rockford. By initiating pro-
grams to promote the profession of pharmacy and
community initiatives, I believe the APhA-ASP
Rockford chapter will develop into a chapter that
not only meets the needs of the residents of
Rockford, but also provide opportunities for the
future pharmacists to hone their skills in advanc-
ing patient care.
Page 2
Establishing APhA-ASP Chapter in Rockford
“Tis the season and I feel very much appreciative of
all the hard work of each and every executive board
member to make this chapter possible.”
A PHA- AS P FA LL NEWS LE T TER
V OLU ME 7, IS SU E 1
Mike Kenes, VP of Professional Affairs
Every year, October is a time for pharmacists as well as student pharmacists to promote the profession. This October, the members of APhA-ASP at the Univer-
sity of Illinois at Chicago continued to build and expand the message, “Know Your Medicine, Know Your Pharmacist.”
To reach members of our community, many of the project chairs established opportunities for chapter members to educate and
screen the public in their respective areas, as well as to stress the importance of establishing and maintain a relationship with a pharmacist.
In an effort of inter-campus collaboration, the Chicago and Rockford campuses worked together to promote our profession to a larger audience through a billboard advertisement in Rockford, IL. Not only were we able to provide thousands of people with
the APhM message, but the older Chicago executive board members were able to assist the newer Rockford executive board with
setting-up the billboard. As the Rockford campus continues to expand, it provides the Chicago campus an opportunity to help facilitate the growth and refinement of the new campus as it joins Chicago as a nationally recognized organization.
A new community outreach program for us this year was distributing customized coffee sleeves bearing the APhA-ASP logo, which helped to spread our mes-sage of “Know Your Medicine, Know Your Pharmacist.” Thousands of these sleeves were distributed on our campus as well as local Chicago coffee shops. By
using this new marketing tool, our chapter was able to reach a new population in our area and remind them to establish a relationship with their friendly pharma-
cist.
American Pharmacist Month was not only an educational opportunity for the public, but it also served as an opportunity to educate the members of our own
chapter, both in Chicago and in Rockford. Dr. Popovich, Professor and Head of the Department of Pharmacy Practice held a CV workshop to help students create and refine the CV‟s. Dr. Paloucek, the Director of UIC‟s residency program held an interview workshop to help our students learn about and perfect their
interviewing skills.
Throughout the month of October, our chapter activities helped spread the message “Know Your Medicine, Know Your Pharmacist.”
Bernard Hsu, P1 Liaison
Every profession has its own inside jokes. Economists do it on demand. Biologists would prefer to be DNA helicase so they could unzip your genes. Chemists
know how to arouse reactions and pharmacists do it qhs, prn. Fun and games aside, we all have our own professional societies, where members and practicing
professionals can get together and collaborate on the direction in which the profession is moving, how the profession should evolve in the ever-changing land-
scape that is the market, and also to network amongst colleagues. Our P1 class has a very diverse background. We have students that hold graduate and profes-
sional degrees already, as well as classmates who already have worked several years and are changing professions, and recent college graduates. With that said,
in our entire career as pharmacists (and yes this time starts now!), this P1 year will be considered our most formative year. Though we may not see it now, we
will look back upon this time as one in which we were discovering who is involved in pharmacy, what the overall mentality of the profession is, what it means to
think like a pharmacist, and how a pharmacist approaches daily encountered problems. The American Pharmacists Association Academy of Student Pharmacists
(APhA-ASP) is THE all-encompassing association for pharmacists and pharmacy students. It is the largest association of pharmacists in the United States and is
the root of almost every pharmacy specialty organization. The American Pharmacists Association- Academy of Student Pharmacists offers a wide variety of
speakers and experiences that expose students to all aspects of pharmacy practice, and since these are our formative years, it is imperative we be involved. The
speakers that have been hosted this year by the UIC APhA-ASP have had many different experiences, ranging from academia, to pharmacy management, and
pharmacy in the media. This type of far-reaching involvement in the profession is what sets us apart from all others, and it propels us into boundless opportunity
as the landscape of pharmacy is ever-changing. In closing, as pharmacists, we do much more than lick and stick, and it is because we constantly find new routes
of administration that our profession constantly evolves.
40,000 ice bags with other health professional student volunteers, ranging from medical students to physical
therapy students.
After the elite runners crossed the finish
line, we began assisting the code team in assessing
runners and assisting runners to medical tents or to find
their families.
It was an exhausting yet rewarding day. Not
only did we have front row seats to see Moses Mosop break the course record but we were able to promote the
profession of pharmacy through our participation on the
Cathy Palladino,
Vice President of Public Relations
This October, six APhA-ASP e-board
members volunteered on the Bank of America Chicago
Marathon Medical Team, for the second year in the
row. Our day started in Grant Park before the sun
was up. After an orientation on how to assess runners as
they crossed the finish line, we participated in making
medical team.
Page 3
American Pharmacists Month- “Know your MEDICINE, Know your PHARMACIST”
What can APhA-ASP offer P1s?
APhA-ASP participates at the 34th Chicago Marathon
APhA-ASP Billboard in Rockford
Dr. Djuric Kachlic, Chicago Faculty Advisor
„Tis the season to start thinking about preparing for a residency, no matter what year you are graduating. In general,
keeping up your grades and being involved in professional activities are very important all 4 years of pharmacy school.
Along with work experience, residency program directors see applicants with excellent qualities in all of these areas as
well-rounded pharmacists. Here are some commonly asked questions about residencies…
How do you know if you want to do a residency? Many people don‟t know if a residency is right for them until they go
on rotations and discover they particularly like a specific area of practice. Some people intend to do a residency all
through pharmacy school. Your best bet may be doing a pharmacy practice residency after graduation, then doing a
specialty residency in your particular area of interest.
Do you have to do a residency right out of school? No, and not everyone does. However, if you have any inkling that
you might like to do one, do it after graduation, because going back after you‟ve been practicing as a pharmacist is very
difficult.
What types of residencies are there? Residencies are now divided into two main groups: PGY1 (post-graduate year 1)
and PGY2 (post-graduate year 2). PGY1 residencies must (in most cases) be completed before a PGY2 residency.
PGY1 residencies include Pharmacy Practice, Community, and Managed Care. There are many PGY2 residencies, and
they are considered “specialty residencies.” These include ambulatory care, pediatrics, infectious disease, oncology,
transplant, critical care, and drug information, among others. Fellowships are another route that many pharmacists take
after completing a PGY1 residency. Fellowships also involve specializing in a particular area, but are centered around
research.
I’m a P1 (or P2, P3 or P4). What can I do now to prepare for a residency? The table below outlines the general
game plan for each year of pharmacy school.
For more information on residencies across the US, check out www.ashp.org and click on the “Resident Information”
on the right.
P1 year and P2 year P3 year P4 year
Get involved in professional organiza-
tions
Start building your CV
Include activities with professional
organizations (i.e. committee in-
volvement, leadership, etc)
Look for summer internship opportunities
Start getting pharmacy work experience
Attend ASHP Midyear meeting (usually
in the beginning of December)
Research serious opportunities
Plan to stop at about 15 tables at the Resi-
dency Showcase
Start thinking about your letters of recom-
mendation
Elective preceptors, faculty, advisors,
employers
Attend ASHP Midyear meeting, espe-
cially if you plan to go out of state
Have business cards made
Write thank you notes to programs
Research the programs that interest you
Ask good questions
Set up interviews
Page 4
„Tis the season to think about preparing for a residency...
A PHA- AS P FA LL NEWS LE T TER
V OLU ME 1, ISS UE 1
Dr. George, Rockford Faculty Advisor
Whether you are in the process of selecting rotation sites, just about to start rotations, or currently partici-
pating in your advanced pharmacy practice experiential rotations, the manner in which the title statement
might be completed may vary dramatically from person to person. In fact, it may change throughout the
last year. Some might begin the sentence with “finally”, “oh my goodness”, and others “I‟m terrified.”
Regardless of the emotion involved, it is imperative that you take full advantage of every experience.
This will be the only time you can “try out” a certain area of pharmacy for a few weeks. Rotations offer
valuable opportunities to practice, apply, and expand your foundation of knowledge. This is the time to
ask questions and then more questions.
A number of strategies will help you maximize the benefits that can be gained from rotations.
Try something new. You are not expected to know everything at the start of each rotation, nor at
the end. What is expected is that you embrace each opportunity with an open mind, positive atti-
tude, and a demonstrated desire to learn. You will never know if you like an area of pharmacy if
you never try it.
Set your own personal goals and objectives for each rotation.
Communicate with your preceptor. This is important prior to and throughout the rotation. Share
your interests as this may prompt him or her to provide or seek to provide opportunities within
that setting that may pertain to your specific area of interest.
Come prepared. Do your homework. Rotations should not be a 9 to 5 job. Instead, each day you
should leave with questions that have either been posed to you or that you have posed to yourself.
You will often be exposed to different disease states, new medication therapies, and unfamiliar
concepts. Take the initiative to begin the learning process rather than relying on the preceptor
alone. Utilize the preceptor as a supplement to clarify, reinforce, and add to the knowledge base
that you have built.
Seek feedback. Most pharmacy settings are quite hectic. Preceptors may unintentionally neglect to
provide adequate feedback. Never assume that “no news is good news.” Instead, ask for frequent
feedback and use constructive criticism for professional growth.
You will never forget your last year in pharmacy school. Your experience is not simply dependent upon
“getting a good site.” More than anything, it is what you seek from the rotation and the effort you exert
to maximize each experience that determines what you take away from it.
Page 5
“___________ I‟m in my Last Year in Pharmacy School”
more participants during our events. In addition to these
ideas, there were a few other great ideas such as strategi-
cally targeting patient population that are more prone to
heartburn related incidents
such as fire-fighters, sports
clubs members, senior citi-
zens, and women organiza-
tions. Some of those ideas are
in planning phase for next
semester while others are
awaiting co-
sponsorships.
Some of the events that we carried out
during this semester were in the month of
October to celebrate the American Pharma-
cist Month. During the month of October,
we tried to reach as many patients as possi-
ble and educate them about what heartburn
is, how to keep in under control, and possi-
ble over-the-counter medications to help
ease their symptoms. In addition, we also
tried to dispel any myths that patients had
for heartburn and its treatment. In some of
our events, we came across patients who
were knowledgeable about their condition and asked us
specific questions that we had to refer to the pharmacist.
For e.g. a patient asked a student pharmacist if it was ok
to take antacids for his heartburn even if he
has had previous episodes of kidney stones.
In another event at the Indo-American
Center, we had a patient who did not speak
English at all. She was an ESL student at
the center and it just so happened that we
had a student pharmacist who spoke her
language. The patient did not suffer from
heartburn but knew someone who had
frequent heartburn. In this case, we were able to educate
the patient about common triggers of heartburn that she
intended to share with her family member.
Moving forward, to get more interest in the
project, the committee has decided to not solely focus on
Heartburn but transition into other over-the-counter
(OTC) medications. We are planning to include topics
such as cold and cough, pain, vitamins and supplements
etc. which we believe will help us garner more support
from the student population as well as help us reach
more patients in our future events.
Bibek Shrestha
This year we formed the Heartburn/OTC
committee. The Heartburn/OTC committee met bi-
weekly throughout the semester and laid the foundation
for the events that was planned for the semester. One of
the suggestions that we had gotten from the previous
Heartburn members was that the topic of the project was
very narrow and therefore it was hard to get attention
from the public during our events. In our attempt to
make Heartburn more
interesting and interac-
tive, we dedicated a few
of our initial meetings
to solely focus on
brainstorming ideas to
make learning about
Heartburn fun. We
incorporated colorful
images, interactive
displays, use of simple
sentences, and Heart-
burn related promo-
tional samples to attract
Mike Bogdan, Golf Outing Chair
The 7th Annual APhA-ASP Golf Outing
at Odyssey Country Club was definitely a hole in
one. This luxurious course designed by two -time
U.S. Open Champion Curtis Strange posed quite the
challenge for our group of close to 40 golfers. Prior
to tee-off, the golfers had a chance to compete in our
longest putt competition for bragging rights
and a fiberglass driving net. Congratulations
to Mercedes Parra for her 94 foot putt. Hole
12 served to be quite the challenge for our
golfers as they each took a swing at the
longest drive on this par 5. Fun was had by all as they played through this 18-hole course leading them to a
hearty meal during our dinner raffle. With over 20
prizes and a 50/50 raffle, the odds were definitely
stacked in the attendees favor. Prizes such as an Ogio
golf bag, numerous gift cards, wine
tastings, several foursomes at varying courses, and a
McGreggor putter were just a few of the things our
winners took home. Congratulations to Sam Keca,
Phil Mathews, Melissa Kwak, and Justin Kwak for
winning first place in the tournament. Also congratu-
lation to Phil Mathews for winning the Sears/Kmart Longest Drive Competition with an astonishing 295
yard drive. The students of UIC APhA-ASP would
like to thank all those who attended for their support.
We would also like to thank our Gold sponsors Teva
Pharmaceuticals, Walgreens, and UIC Ambulatory
Care Pharmacy; our Golf Ball Sponsor Jewel-
Osco/Supervalu; and event sponsors Abelson-
Taylor Inc, Bergmann Consulting, James T
O‟Donnell with Pharmaconsultant Inc., Alert-
Marketing, and all the other great sponsor that
made this event a success. Thanks to all our support, we were able to raise close to $5,000 that
will help fund our many of our health screenings and
education events in the community.
Page 6
Heartburn & Over-the-counter (OTC) medication Committee
2011 UIC APhA-ASP Golf Outing
“During the month of October, we tried to reach
as many patients as possible and educate
them about what heartburn is, how to keep in
under control, and possible over-the-counter
medications to help ease their symptoms.”
A PHA- AS P FA LL NEWS LE T TER
Maria, our Chicago President-Elect and Jane, our Operation Heart Chair, at the 2011 APhA-ASP Golf Outing.
Heartburn Friendly Recipe
Nutrient Information Per Serving
Grilled Marinated Flank Steak Flank steak is one of the leanest cuts of beef. This recipe has lots of flavor but little of the fat that creates heartburn. You will love it!
Ingredients
For 4 servings, you will need:
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
2 medium shallots, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons fresh chopped rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried 1-1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
20-ounce flank steak
Salt to taste
Directions
In a 13 x 9 x 2 glass baking dish, use a fork or whisk to combine the vinegar, soy sauce, honey, shallots, rosemary, and mustard.
Place the flank steak on top and press meat lightly to coat with marinade. Turn over and press again. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, turning occasionally.
Prepare grill with medium-hot coals or to medium setting, or preheat broiler.
Remove the meat from marinade; discard unused marinade. Grill 4 to 6 minutes on each side (for medium-rare) or until desired doneness.
Transfer steak to a cutting board; sprinkle lightly with salt to taste. Let stand for 5 minutes.
Cut diagonally across the grain into thin slices. Arrange on a platter to serve
Calories 224
Fat 10g
Cholesterol 67mg
Sodium 166mg
Carbohydrate 4g
Protein 27g
V OLU ME 7, IS SU E 1
Maria Tangonan, Chicago President-Elect
Traveling to an exotic country to meet over
500 student pharmacists from over 50 countries and
learn about pharmacy curricula as well as pharmacy
practice around the world sounds like a great experience,
doesn‟t it? It does and it was. After a tedious 31-hour
journey from Chicago, I had finally arrived safely in
Hatyai, Thailand. My exhaustion seemed to ebb upon
the sight of other travelers that clearly expressed they
were there for IPSF‟s 57th World Congress. We quickly
gravitated to each other as we all displayed the same
look of excitement, eagerness, and apprehension.
The 10-day Congress kick-off con-
sisted of an Opening Night Formal in which wel-
coming speeches were graciously delivered to
emphasize IPSF‟s mission- to unite student pharmacists
as well as practitioners with unique backgrounds, vary-
ing ethnicities, and different nationalities for the sake of
professional as well as individual development.
IPSF and the Prince of Songklha University
student pharmacists had scheduled each day of the
Congress with events that catered to students‟ prefer-
ences by providing the option to attend sessions, work-
shops, and seminars paralleled to individual or organiza-
tional needs and interests. Sessions focused on topics
geared toward professional and leadership skills devel-
opment, advocacy, campaigning, and program develop-
ment that addressed a variety of world health issues.
Additionally, session exercises provided opportunities
for student collaboration in promoting awareness of
pharmacy practices worldwide.
I particularly enjoyed the Rational Drug
Use student advocacy White Paper draft session where I
worked with Indonesian and Tunisian students in identi-
fying barriers between lawmakers, prescribers, pharma-
cists, nurses/caregivers, and patients in proper drug
prescribing, administration, use, and management. Our
ideas will then be included in a paper that will be sub-
mitted to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Moreover, I had the opportunity to share
with other students the concepts of Medication Therapy
Management (MTM), the Medical Home Model, and the
difference between medication “compliance” from
medication “adherence”. After several students voiced
that such concepts and practices were new to them, that
they seem so ideal and unreachable, I realized how
pharmacy practice in the United States has progressed to
the level of becoming a model for other countries. I also
realized how fortunate I was to be a future pharmacist in
America and how I need to be proactive in policy-
making and implementation because that is how our
practice is ultimately defined. American pharmacists
have come a long way in advancing the profession, yet
there is still a long road ahead.
The Pharmacy Education Symposium was
another session I found engaging. A speaker compared
various existing pharmacy curricula and provided up-
dates on curriculum changes and development. We
were informed of which programs were most similar,
differences in degrees earned upon graduation, and
implementation of novel teaching tools. The session
continued with student delegates explaining pharmacy
programs within their own countries, highlighting ad-
vancements and barriers as well as answering questions
from the interested audience. Several sessions I also
found valuable were the Scientific Symposium in which
we were educated about various alternative medicine,
the Live Anti-Tobacco Campaign, HIV/AIDS Aware-
ness and Combating Counterfeit Drugs workshops, and
the Leaders in Training sessions.
A final evening formal was a bitter-sweet
ending to the 57th IPSF World Congress. I was grateful
to have participated in such a wonderful, memora-
ble, once-in-a-lifetime event, to have gained new
skills and new lifelong friends, and to have become
more aware of the world and its peoples. I have truly
grown in both my personal and professional life within
the 10 days at the Congress. It was definitely a valuable
experience that is worth more than anything money can
buy and I would do it again in a heartbeat.
The money raised will cover shipping costs to
send used pharmacy textbooks to pharmacy
schools abroad through an international organiza-tion called Pharmabridge. In November, students
learned about the study abroad process at an
APhA-ASP general body meeting. A Rockford student, Brent Bialik, who is also the Rockford
IPSF Co-Chair, spoke about his experience learn-
Kelly Burke, VP of IPSF
In September, IPSF partnered with SNPhA and hosted a bake sale to raise money for the Chicago
AIDS Walk. Several IPSF members individually
participated in the walk and raised money for HIV/AIDS as well. We also co-hosted an event
where students could pay to “dress down” for lab.
ing about pharmacy in the Czech Republic last
summer. IPSF is planning many more activities
for the spring semester to continue promoting international pharmacy at UIC.
Page 7
UIC APhA-ASP Going Global
International Pharmaceutical Student‟s Federation (IPSF)
IPSF’s 57th World Congress, Thailand
IPSF’s 57th World Congress, Thailand
Operation Diabetes
Ginnie Kim, Operation Diabetes Chair
When it comes to diabetes, a major task that stands before pharmacists and other healthcare professionals is establishing lifestyle modifica-
tions for patients. It is one thing to tell a diabetic patient to follow certain rules; it is another thing to show them how. How to eat more
healthy, exercise more, and recognize the significance of lab values and numbers – these are the major issues that Operation Diabetes com-
mittee members have addressed.
This semester, the committee members made progress toward making permanent, beneficial changes in patients‟ lives. This semester‟s
events have been a testament to their capability to apply the knowledge they have obtained in class to real-life situations. With the help of a
dietitian, a diabetes cooking class was created this past summer to help patients practice concepts about portioning food and making the
healthiest choices at the market and restaurants. Presentations and posters were created by members as well, teaching patients in laymen‟s
terms about how diabetes affected each of the major organs in the body. At various health fairs, patients were given blood glucose, blood
pressure screenings, and information based on the results of those tests. Medication lists were created and pedometers were used to help
patients learn how to monitor their medications and exercise habits daily. Operation Diabetes members even worked with Spanish speakers
or learned basic Spanish themselves in order to reach out to the Hispanic population, finding that this particular patient group needed many
of the free services provided by pharmacy students.
The success of Operation Diabetes this fall semester is completely due to the dedication and ability of the committee members. For each
event, committee members worked from the ground up to create quality activities for diabetes patients, from making posters and printouts to
executing activities at health fairs and answering questions about blood pressure. The next semester, the committee will work on creating
bigger and better events to reach a wider range of patients in need.
Simply Peachy
Ingredients
2 large fully-ripened peaches
1 cup organic fat-free peach yogurt
2 tbsp sliced almonds, pan-toasted
4 sprigs fresh mint (optional)
Directions
1. Remove peach stems, slice peaches into 8 even slices and
remove seeds.
2. Place 3 slices onto a small plate, stacked off-center on top of each other. Top with 1/4 yogurt.
3. Sprinkle with almonds and top with mint sprigs (optional).
Diabetes Friendly Recipe
Nutrition Facts
Servings 4
Calories……………………… 86
Total fat………………………………… 6g
Saturated Fat……………………………….0g
Cholesterol……………………………… 0g
Sodium……………………………………50g
Total Carbohydrate…………………… 22g
Dietary Fiber……………………………… 2g
Protein…………………………………… 4g
Operation Heart
Maggie Thomas , Operation Heart Co-Chair
Jane Janik, Operation Heart Chair
It‟s been a wildly successful
few months for Operation Heart!
Members of the Operation Heart
crew have spent the past semester
volunteering at various events
throughout the Chicagoland area.
We‟ve had the opportunity to edu-
cate patients about cholesterol, blood
pressure and the importance of a low
sodium diet. We‟ve also been lucky
enough to have several opportunities
to collaborate with other APhA-ASP
initiatives as well as other organiza-
tions that are active within the Col-
lege of Pharmacy.
On Saturday, May 14th
APhA-ASP kicked off the summer at the Arab Ameri-
can Health Fair. Along with Operations Diabetes and
Immunization, Special Projects and Generation Rx, Op-
eration Heart educated and performed blood pressure
screenings on patients. Throughout the month of Sep-
tember, Operation Heart established a strong presence
at the American Heart Association‟s Chicagoland Heart
Walks. We partnered up with Omron to provide compli-
mentary blood pressure and body fat screenings to help
raise cardiovascular disease awareness. By the end of
the month we had screened over 300 people for high
blood pressure. On October 1st, we also had the chance
to team up with SNPhA‟s AIDS and Power to End
Stroke Initiatives to screen patients for cardiovascular
disease at the 2011 AIDS walk in Grant Park. In honor
of American Pharmacist‟s Month, Operation Heart was
at the Outpatient Care Center, along with ICHP and
PDC, to educate patients about cholesterol and the ef-
fects of too much salt in their diet. On November 11, we
also had the unique opportunity to partner with
MuPhSA and AIPhA educate patients at the Indo-
American Health Fair about sodium in their diet, the
effects that smoking has on the cardiovascular system,
as well as screen patients for high blood pressure.
A key element to the work that Operation Heart has per-
formed this past semester is patient education. By em-
powering patients to become actively
involved in their health management,
we hope to improve long-term patient
outcomes and raise awareness of disease
prevention. With a new semester on our
horizon, Operation Heart has some big
goals we hope to accomplish. Following
in the footsteps of Generation Rx, we
hope to set up educational booths at
UIC Flames games to raise awareness of
cardiovascular health among under-
graduate UIC students and sports fans
alike. Operation Heart also has big plans
for the month of February – American
Heart Month – and National Wear Red
Day. We look forward to another suc-
cessful semester, the chance to work
with great volunteers, to promote the
wellbeing of our community and the
profession of pharmacy!
through the legislative process and were for-
warded onto the national policy standing com-
mittee for consideration at the APhA-ASP
Annual Meeting and Exposition.
MRM is a unique meeting because
it is truly focused entirely on students and the
development of creating pharmacy leaders. It
is typically the easiest way as a student to talk
to other schools and learn to build upon the
professional network we all strive to have. I
am always excited to attend MRM and every
year it seems I find new students to meet and
talk to. For example, this year, Jeff, Alia, and
I spent much of our time talking with students
from University of Wisconsin and The Ohio
State University to try and find a middle
ground in several of our policy proposals that
overlapped.
I would suggest any student phar-
macist that is interested in meeting other stu-
dents and building upon their professional
attributes to attend the APhA-ASP annual
MRM meeting. All of the attendees from our
chapter had a great time and learned plenty
along the way.
Upcoming Meetings &
Professional Events
Legislative Day
March 7, 2012
Springfield, IL
Annual Meeting & Exposition
March 9-12, 2012
New Orleans, LA
IPhA Annual Meeting
TBA, Fall 2012
Midyear Regional Meeting
TBA October , 2012
Madison, WI
Neil Schultz, VP of Legislative Affairs
This year the APhA-ASP Midyear
Regional Meeting (MRM) was hosted by
Purdue University in Indianapolis, IN. It was
a great weekend and paralleled with the Hal-
loween holiday. There were about a dozen of
UIC students in attendance along with hun-
dreds of others from all the chapters across
our Midwest region. The weekend started
with a great celebration on Friday night
where students got to mingle in a social set-
ting with music and dancing with the other
chapters in the region. Typically, Friday night
has always been a celebratory night at MRM,
with much of the conference and professional
activities taking place on Saturday and Sun-
day.
On Saturday the conference kicked
off with a welcoming session for all the
schools followed by several leadership and
patient care project seminars. In the afternoon
on Saturday all of the initial Legislative ac-
tivities took place with the closing Legislative
business session completing on Sunday morn-
ing. We were very proud at UIC to have such
a successful meeting; two of our three sub-
mitted policy proposals survived all the way
Jeff Krueger, IPhA Liaison
The UIC Chapter of APhA-ASP is
excited to be involved in advocacy for phar-
macy-related policy and legislation, especially
during an historic period of healthcare reform
in this country. Overall, the goals of the na-
tional APhA organization continue to focus on
pharmacist clinical services leveraging com-
ponents of the Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-
148) to promote greater roles for pharmacists
in patient care as the medication use expert.
In particular, primary targets are developing
and improving Medication Therapy Manage-
ment (MTM) programs and including pharma-
cist clinical services in integrated healthcare
models. Following are current bills in Wash-
ington of interest to the profession that our
chapter of APhA-ASP supports.
On March 3, 2011, the Medication
Therapy Management (MTM) Benefits Act of
2011 (H.R. 891) was introduced. Among
other improvements, the bill enhances the
Medicare Part D MTM program such that a
licensed pharmacist would be required to
provide person-to-person MTM services at
least once every quarter as part of a compre-
hensive medication review.
On February 3, 2011, the Medica-
tion Therapy Management Empowerment Act
of 2011 (S. 274) was introduced. This bill
also amends Medicare Part D to increase the
number of diseases and conditions for which
beneficiaries may be targeted for MTM ser-
vices. In addition, the bill supports the estab-
lishment and refinement of standards of MTM
services by pharmacies along with incentives
based on performance in meeting these stan-
dards.
Of particular interest to student
pharmacists, the Pharmacist Student Loan
Repayment Eligibility Act of 2011 (S. 48) was
introduced on January 25, 2011. This bill
amends the Public Health Services Act by
providing incentives for pharmacists to partici-
pate in the National Health Services Corps
through a loan repayment program. The over-
all intent is to increase access to patient-
centered, team-based healthcare services for
underserved populations.
In addition to legislative advocacy,
the UIC Chapter is actively engaged in the
APhA-ASP Policy Process to formulate new
resolutions that advance the collective voice of
student pharmacists across the country. In
October, our chapter submitted a number of
proposals that we are hopeful will be adopted
as active resolutions this coming March at the
2012 APhA Annual Meeting and Exposition
in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Finally, as the flagship pharmacy
school in Illinois, our chapter is excited to
participate in the Illinois Pharmacists Legisla-
tive Day scheduled for March 7, 2012. At this
annual event along with the other Illinois phar-
macy schools, a large group of UIC student
pharmacists will join forces with pharmacists
across the state to assemble in Springfield and
meet directly with our state representatives to
discuss the present and future state of the
pharmacy profession in Illinois.
Page 10
APhA-ASP Midyear Regional Meeting (MRM)
Legislative Update
A PHA- AS P FA LL NEWS LE T TER
V OLU ME 7, IS SU E 1
Arsany Ibrahim,
Rockford Patient Care Projects Chair
The American Pharmacists Asso-
ciation here in Rockford was faced with a
challenge to pioneer pa-
tient care events from
scratch. Contrary to my
belief when I was first
elected Patient Care Pro-
jects Chair, initiating
quality patient care events
in the community was a
much more intricate and
elaborate process than I
had expected. We first had to establish rela-
tions with community organizations and find
venues and locations where we could reach
out to community members. Since we were a
new school, we were not very well known in
the community and so our school was com-
monly mistaken for pharmacy technician pro-
grams or the reputable UIC College of Medi-
cine. However, Dr. Jen George our APhA-
ASP pharmacist advisor, who has been work-
ing in this community for quite a while, was
able to connect us to a county-wide initiative
called “Changing Hearts.” This initiative was
put together by the Winnebago County Health
Department in collaboration with the UIC
College of Medicine, and now Rockford‟s
APhA-ASP chapter. Changing Hearts is a
community
wide health
project
which tar-
gets local
churches in
the commu-
nity. Once
a month
doctors,
pharmacists, nurses, student pharmacists,
student medical students, and community
volunteers work together to hold blood pres-
sure screenings after church service on Sun-
days. The church members have cards which
they use to keep track of their blood pressures
each month. In the case where we screen a
person with a very high blood pressure, we
have doctors and pharmacists on site to coun-
sel the members and direct them to the appro-
priate health resources in the community.
APhA-ASP members were able to participate
in two churches this semester; St Edward‟s
Catholic Church and Liberty Baptist Church.
Changing Hearts also has expanded to include
diabetic glucose screenings which as of right
now only happen twice a year (we were able
to attend one of these glucose screenings this
semester). The most rewarding part of this
partnership was not just that we were able to
participate in these established events, but
because of APhA-ASP members‟ enthusiasm,
professionalism, and dedication, the Winne-
bago County Health Department extended an
invitation for us to run our very own screening
program at a new targeted church that was to
join the Changing Hearts initiative, Banner of
Truth Church. We held one blood pressure
screening event there this semester, but this
established event will continue to grow and
provide us with opportunities to reach out and
educate our Rockford community members.
Overall this semester was a rewarding one, in
which we established connections and made
known the UIC College of Pharmacy and the
APhA-ASP student chapter within it, which
has become the largest and most fruitful stu-
dent organization at our new school here in
Rockford.
addiction was thrown out the window.
Is addiction a choice or a dis-
ease? That question lingered in my mind
all week as I listened to stories of addic-
tion and lectures of how the condition
progresses. At first, my decision was that
addiction is definitely a choice. Isn‟t it
your choice what goes into your body?
Don‟t you decide when to stop? As the
week moved forward, I began to under-
stand that those who are addicted have a
disease and it‟s not a choice. The brain
of an addict is different; it is predisposed
Jacquie Munn, Generation RX Chair
Substance abuse is not a topic
that is widely discussed in pharmacy
school. There are no courses aimed to-
ward teaching students how to look for
signs of abuse or even how to treat a pa-
tient who is suffering from addiction. It
wasn‟t until I attended the University of
Utah that I realized how much these pa-
tients need help and how important it is
for pharmacists to understand how to be
empathetic. One week at the University
of Utah and any presumption I had about
to want more. Addicts can‟t stop when
they want to and that isn‟t their choice.
The University of Utah opened
my eyes to a whole world I never under-
stood. A world that is so close to my
profession but that I never saw before. I
can only hope that students who attend in
the years following will take as much
away from the experience as I did.
Page 11
Patient Care Projects in Rockford: A Challenge and a Reward
University of Utah School on Alcoholism and Other Drug Dependencies
Andrea Pierce,
Operation Immunization Chair
Operation Immunization has been
hard at work again this semester to
promote immunizations. Over 300
P1-P3 students completed training to
provide immunization education at
community pharmacies in the Chi-
cago and Rockford area. Once again,
APhA-ASP partnered with ICHP and
local pharmacies to set up times for
students to volunteer for the flu initia-
tive. Rockford students were able to
promote the flu vaccine at local CVS
and Walgreens pharmacies. At the
Chicago Campus, students volun-
teered at sites set up with Jewel-
Osco, CVS, and the UIC Wood Street
Pharmacy. In all, almost 200 students
volunteered to promote the flu vaccine
and flight the flu! Additionally, the entire
P4 class is APhA-ASP certified to admin-
ister vaccinations. The fourth year stu-
dents helped to immunize thousands of
UIC faculty, staff and students against
this year‟s influenza at various events!
Students also took part in an exciting new
flu event sponsored by the UIC Pharma-
cies and faculty at the UIC Student Rec-
reation Facility. Operation Immunization
members provided immunization educa-
tion and participants that received their
flu shot got to meet Chicago Bear, Earl
Bennett.
In addition to our flu initiative, Operation
Immunization also participated at several
local health awareness events. We part-
nered with SNPhA to provide immuniza-
tion education at the AIDSRun/Walk at
Grant Park. This event allowed student
pharmacists to provide outreach to an
especially at risk population where im-
munizations are vital to maintain patients
health.
Operation Immunization provided educa-
tion and dispelled many immunization
myths at Community Health, a local free
clinic. Materials were provided in three
languages (English, Polish and Spanish)
through the help of our bilingual phar-
macy students! In addition, student en-
rolled in the Spanish elective were able to
volunteer with us and serve as translators
when we were educating patients. We
also provided additional information to
patients on ways to obtain immuniza-
tions.
Operation Immunization continued to
provide outreach at the Outpatient Care
Center and Wood Street Pharmacy during
American Pharmacist‟s Month. Through-
out the month of October we provided
education about the Zostavax, pneumo-
coccal and flu vaccines. It was exciting to
be part of an event that featured other
organizations to promote the value of
pharmacists to patients in the UIC com-
munity
A new
initia-
tive
was
started this year by Operation Immuniza-
tion to promote students receiving their
flu shots. The UIC Flu Shot Contest has
been a semester long project to encourage
students to receive the flu vaccine. As
future health care providers it is vital for
students to see the value of themselves
getting immunized to not only protect
their health but also the health of their
patients. The contest will culminate with
the class that has the most students im-
munized receiving a complimentary
breakfast during finals week.
This successful semester would not have
been possible without the continued en-
thusiasm and support of pharmacy stu-
dents, local pharmacies, health clinics,
and faculty/staff. Thank you all for a
great semester!
we partnered up and were able to provide
information to many different members of
the community.
We kicked off the semester with a great
training session given by Dr. Sandra Sung
about both smoking cessation. We were
able to train about 40 students on how to
properly talk to patients about their smok-
ing habits, their readiness to quit, and tools
they could use to help them stay quit. As
future pharmacists, I think it is extremely
important for us to be knowledgeable about
Liz Sullivan,
Smoking Cessation Chair
I cannot believe that the fall semester is
nearly over! If there is one thing that I have
learned so far as smoking cessation chair, it
is that two heads are most definitely better
than one. I owe a huge thanks to Marc
McDowell and ICHP Lung Health – our
most successful events were the ones that
ways to help patients quit smoking. Nico-
tine products are usually located right in
front of the pharmacy, which gives us a
great opportunity to get out there and talk
with our patients about their smoking hab-
its.
Cont. on page 11
Page 12
Operation Immunization
Smoking Cessation
A PHA- AS P FA LL NEWS LE T TER
Educating patients about immunizations at the OCC during American Pharmacists Month.
V OLU ME 1, ISS UE 1
Mayow Abgaje-Williams
VP of Special Projects
This fall semester provided the Special
Projects committee an opportunity to ex-
plore and give voice to L.U.S.T™, which
stands for Low-profile Under-dog Specialty
Type conditions. The Special Projects com-
mittee used September, which is Sickle Cell
Disease Awareness Month, as a platform to
actualize L.U.S.T™ by educating and pro-
moting sickle cell awareness and education
in the college of pharmacy and around the
UIC campus. This disease indication is
noteworthy for many reasons.
The current 1st year curriculum at the UIC
College of Pharmacy involves lectures on a
number of different organ systems and as-
sociated disease conditions in detail. Lec-
tures on disorders
of the circulatory
system included
hemophilia, von
willebrand disease,
acute disseminated
intravascular co-
agulation, throm-
botic thrombocyto-
penia etc., while
sickle cell disease
was briefly men-
tioned in a lecture
titled “Cell injury
and tissue re-
sponse”. Further-
more, upon inquiry, students
from subsequent years con-
firmed that not much was
taught on sickle cell disease. In
addition, sickle cell disease is
not a topic of focus in any
lecture, neither is any elective
class dedicated to the compre-
hensive understanding of the
disease. This omission of
sickle cell disease from the
College of Pharmacy curricu-
lum becomes especially note-
worthy considering that UIC is
home to one of the few dedi-
cated sickle cell centers in the
state of
Illinois,
serving
African-
Americans, who are predominantly affected
by the disease.
In September, Special Projects held a bake
sale and food sale to raise money for the
Sickle Cell Disease Association of Illinois
(SCDAI), an
organization
dedicated to
providing edu-
cation, counsel-
ing, awareness
and advocacy
for sickle cell
disease. In addi-
tion, Special
Projects invited
Dr. Lewis Hsu,
Pediatric Direc-
tor of the Sickle
Cell Center and
Professor of
Clinical Pediatrics, to give a talk on “The
Role of Pharmacists in Managing Sickle
Cell Disease”. Special Projects received a
lot of positive feedback on this talk as it
was specifically related to the impact that
clinical pharmacy can have in mitigating
the burden of sickle cell disease on the
healthcare system.
During the spring semester, we plan to im-
plement a number of events and we wel-
come new opportunities to continue to give
voice to low profile conditions. The Special
Projects umbrella allows us to bring atten-
tion to critical areas in healthcare, while
strengthening established ideas over a wide
range. We look forward to having anyone
interested join the Special Projects commit-
tee as a way to gain leadership qualities and
to advance our profession by advocating
L.U.S.T™.
One of my favorite events this semester was
the ALA Lung Walk in Oakbrook. Along
with ICHP, we were able to educate many
people about smoking cessation, asthma,
and COPD. We spoke with several people
that used to be long time smokers, but had
quit successfully! They were even able to
educate us on what worked for them, which
helps us better educate other patients that
might need some extra help and ideas on
how they can successfully quit smoking.
Page 13
Special Projects
Smoking Cessation cont.
APhA Special Projects; Sickle Cell Awareness
Not only were we able to talk with many
people about our projects, but we got to
cheer on our large UIC Pharmacy team as
they completed a charitable 5K on a beauti-
ful Sunday!
We will have many great events next semes-
ter, so stay tuned! They will include,
among others, shadowing opportunities with
Dr. Lori Wilken at the Smoking Cessation
clinic, and a fantastic booth at the Hustle Up
the Hancock! Have a relaxing and refresh-
ing winter break!
On behalf of APhA-ASP 2011-2012
E-board, we sincerely thank each and
every member for their hard work this
Fall semester. We wish you a wonderful
winter break and look forward to seeing
you at our first meeting;
Tuesday January 17th, 2012 Improving Medication Use.
Advancing Patient Care.
We're on the Web!
http://sites.google.com/site/universityofillinoisaphaasp/
