2008 Woodie Awards
Vote Absentee
Changing the scope of pharmacy
Student's study inspires UA to improve its pharmacy program
By: Shain Bergan
Issue date: 5/13/08 Section: Greats of 08
|
It is a lesson their daughter Megan McKee, a graduating pharmacy student, still takes to heart two decades later.
The advancement of pharmacy begins with the development of willing and able leaders to take the field to new heights. There is no way to bring pharmacy to the next level without such leaders, McKee said.
"My goal has been to foster student leaders," she said. "I want to push the world of pharmacy forward."
The formula is simple. If students are leaders in school, they will continue after graduation and into their future professions, something pharmacy desperately needs, McKee said.
The goal is easier said than done.
The lack of communication between the individual health care fields is a serious cause for concern, because patients' lives are often literally in the hands of these professionals, she said.
Fed up with these obstacles, McKee sought for a way to alleviate the health care communication problems rather than waiting for someone else to step up, she said.
"I'm always excited to start something," she said.
McKee found it "bizarre" that health care professionals from different fields did not consult each other more, so she organized a pilot program examining the issue.
She used students from the College of Pharmacy, College of Medicine, College of Nursing and College of Public Health to take part in a case study. The project forced individuals from different health care backgrounds to work together, each college lending its own strength and expertise, McKee said.
Pharmacy students focused on medicinal drug possibilities while medical students showed strength in diagnosing. Nursing students saw the personal side of a patient's troubles and public health students examined the case's possible public influence on society, she said.
The program was a significant breakthrough in the way health care professionals looked at their own work methods and interprofessional communication.
Following McKee's study, the UA began implementing curriculum to create teamwork experiences between the four health care colleges, McKee said.
Developing a successful pilot program is not McKee's only major achievement. In her four years at the university, McKee amassed several significant awards, including the American Pharmacist
Association-Academy of Student Pharmacists Professionalism Award and the UA Foundation Outstanding Senior Award, said Ginny Geib, communications director for the College of Pharmacy.
Policy on posting: The Arizona Daily Wildcat would like to offer readers an opportunity to voice their opinions and engage in community conversation. However, readers should refrain from personal attacks or advertisements in their comments. When a reader chooses to participate in the Wilcat's online comments, they should be aware that all comments and postings do not reflect the views of the publication. Links referencing different sources for the sake of discussion are tolerated and encouraged, but comments and links that are posted only to advertise other sites will be deleted at the discretion of the Wildcat.
Be the first to comment on this story