Join us as members of the 2023-2024 ASHP Pharmacy Technician Forum Executive Committee share their journey into leadership at the state and national level. Listen as we explore personal growth and professional insights gained through active involvement in professional associations. Discover how you too can make a meaningful impact.
The information presented during the podcast reflects solely the opinions of the presenter. The information and materials are not, and are not intended as, a comprehensive source of drug information on this topic. The contents of the podcast have not been reviewed by ASHP, and should neither be interpreted as the official policies of ASHP, nor an endorsement of any product(s), nor should they be considered as a substitute for the professional judgment of the pharmacist or physician.
What happens at the biggest and best pharmacy event in the world? Join the best and brightest pharmacy professionals in New Orleans this December for an energizing and riching, enlightening experience like no other. Simply put, there is nothing like it. ASHP's mid-year clinical meeting offers everything you need for your career to blossom, including countless professional development and career advancement opportunities. Just imagine what you can accomplish at an event that brings together 20,000-plus pharmacy professionals from across the globe. Special rates are available when you register and book your hotel before September 27th. Learn more at midyear.ashp.org. That's M-I-D-Y-E-A-R.ASHP.org. Welcome to the ASHP official podcast, your guide to issues related to medication use, public health, and the profession of pharmacy. Hello everyone, thank you for joining us on this episode of Technician Topics. This podcast provides an opportunity to share ideas and best practices focused on professional development, clinical and innovative practices, and other topics important to pharmacy technicians. My name is Jesus Nieto, the pharmacy technician instructor and program coordinator at the Santa Rosa Junior College, and I am also a group member of ASHP pharmacy technician forum. I will be your host for today's episode. With me today is Ashley Snow, pharmacy technical operations manager at HCA Research Medical Center, and she is also a member of ASHP pharmacy technician forum executive committee. Thank you for joining us today, Ashley. Let's get started about today's topic, which is embracing leadership, nurturing confidence, and professional advancement in associations. For our listeners who may be meeting you for the first time, could you share a bit about your background and pharmacy technician journey? Hey, hey, thank you so much for having me today, and I look forward to this conversation. For that question, I have been a pharmacy tech in my state for 22 years. I started out as a junior volunteer in a hospital setting and worked as a part-time retail pharmacy technician and I was through my years of high school. Since then, I developed a nation in compounding and have grown in my previous roles for tech lead, tech buyer, coordinator, supervisor, and now I bring all those experiences to serve in my current leadership role. Ashley, can you share your personal journey of getting involved in a professional association such as ASHP, the pharmacy technician forum, and the impact it has had on your career? Yeah, I absolutely progress through professional associations by starting at the local level, and I served as the tech liaison for the Greater Kansas City Society of Health System Pharmacists, and then on to the state level with Missouri Society of Health System Pharmacists. From there, I was blessed to serve at the national level of leadership as the chair of the ASHP PTF Advancement and Advocacy Advisory Committee, also currently served as the content writer for PTCB certification exams. That was a lot of fun. It really engaged my love for writing and evolving the pharmacy tech practice. The impact of my gradual progression into networking affiliations has been impactful on my career because the exposure to technician practice initiatives outside of my current job role has provided me a truly unique learning experience. I've enjoyed engaging with other pharmacy technician professionals, and that learning has been priceless. From this, I also thoroughly enjoy paying this opportunity forward, and I'm now often engaging pharmacy technicians to network at their own local, state, and national levels. Gashley, from your perspective, how does active participation in associations contribute to both professional and personal development? From my perspective, the active participation in associations has contributed to my personal growth in defining my niche and what I can bring to the table for our technician advancement initiatives, and professionally, I can take this broader scope of skill sets and apply them in my career. Gashley, do you mind me asking you about a skill or lesson you have learned throughout your involvement in ASHP and the pharmacy technician forum that has proven value to your career? Absolutely. A professional school that I learned through my involvement as ASHP PTF chair was how to write my own agendas and facilitate professional meetings, and follow up with those meeting minutes in appropriate timely fashions. Just learning about the process was helpful while I was in college, but actually performing the process in a group of my peers was very next level, and I'm just very thankful for the experience of it. Very awesome. If you don't mind me asking you another question is, how can a professional association such as ASHP and now TPS contribute to influencing policy or even shaping the direction of pharmacy? Well, professional organizations like ASHP and TPS are providing the collective pharmacy workforce the resources to empower current and future leaders that can propel change forward. That collective support education and collaboration at every level in these organizations is just one big powerful voice that moves us towards advancement, and these two powerful entities ASHP and TPS they support each other. So continuing to offer those resources that encourage leaders and educators to develop themselves and others is the great direction to go. What do you think about common misconceptions about the involvement in associations? Is there anything you'd like to address? I do think that a common misconception about involvement in associations is the lack of relevancy. We do need our technicians to be involved in order to showcase our purpose in these organizations. If we don't see an opportunity, we should try to create one. As the tech liaison with a GKC, SHP, and MHHP, I decided to create a webinar project for TEXEE, and that was not a requirement of my role at the time. It was very much worth it, and I would choose to do it all over again. My pharmacist board was completely supportive, too, and I will never forget that. It was a lot of work, but it was a lot of fun. That was very awesome. Hopefully one day I can do that, Ashley, but for those that may be interpreters shy, how can they effectively navigate or contribute to leadership, roles, and professional associations? For those of us that are introverted or shy naturally, I suggest you start small. Begin by joining an organization as a tech member, and then determine what it offers, and what that next level looks like. Maybe follow a path of gradual progression through local, state, and national levels like I've done or don't. If someone is having serving somewhere, that is where they will make the most impact. So a lot of that makes the biggest difference. Service can take on many forms. Some people are speakers, some are writers, et cetera, and everyone has a place and has something they can contribute. Okay, Ashley, I do have a follow-up question for the individuals that may feel nervous on taking on leadership roles. What advice do you have for overcoming that initial hesitation? For those individuals feeling nervous about taking on leadership, or all of those, I suggest you reflect on where you lead in your professional career. You may not be a supervisor or manager in your day-to-day role, but many of us lead from the middle already in using that strength to consider how you can contribute and be a thought leader, or amongst a group of leaders to learn from. Just giving yourself enough grace to develop your leadership skills and be bold enough to start making an impact. Okay, Ashley, I do have one last question. Is there anything else you'd like to share with others about getting involved in professional organizations such as ACHP and now the new pharmacy technician society, TPTS? Absolutely. I would really suggest individuals considering involvement in professional organizations that they just step out in faith and see where it takes you. You might amaze yourself. If you are considering joining, you have a purpose somewhere. My logic for this stems from recalling some of my best learning and promotable experiences having been resulted from my one single bold choice to simply take that step to get involved. Thank you, Ashley. And for those of you listening, if you haven't before, I encourage you all to check out the pharmacy technician society, TPTS, a new membership home for pharmacy technicians. Pharmacy technician resources can be found at www.pharmtechsociety.org. Member exclusive offerings include advanced pharmacy technician toolkits, resume/tv resources, monthly technician newsletters, and forums such as a TPTS connect community, where you can exchange ideas and pose questions with your peers. Thanks again for tuning in to this episode of Technician Topics and be sure to subscribe to the ACHP official podcast for more episodes. Thank you for listening to ASHP official, the voice of pharmacists advancing healthcare. Be sure to visit ashp.org/podcast to discover more great episodes, access show notes, and download the episode transcript. If you loved the episode and want to hear more, be sure to subscribe, rate, or leave a review. Join us next time on ASHP official.
