The hope of healthcare part 2 – defining the new reality for pharmacists

As we continue our consideration of the hope of healthcare, I am going to start off with a quote from Max De Pree:

“The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality.”

Where are we right now?

Where are we going?

How are going to get there?

What do we have to do to get there?

These are just some of the questions that one can use to begin to define reality. But I caution, this is not a quick and easy task. Real work goes into the process. And even after you have done the work, you still may have to adjust the work. 

For example, how do you think our colleagues would have defined pharmacy a hundred years ago? What would they have said? Do you think it would match what we say today? I doubt that it.

Sometime around 2008, I found myself in Columbus, Ohio, for a meeting with the Ohio Pharmacists Association. During this meeting, a professor from one of the pharmacy schools in the state addressed the group with these thoughts:

He asked if someone was to travel across the continent about hundred years ago. Say from New York City to Los Angeles, how would you have travelled? Of course, these were the days before commercial airlines, and automobiles were still in their infancy.  The most likely, and most comfortable, way in those days would have been by train from coast to coast. In fact, the train industry was so prevalent in those days that practically every town had their own train station. As such, you were very likely to know someone who worked in the train industry. However, if you fast forward to the present day, do you know anyone that works in the train industry? Or how about this one: where is the closest train station to where you live? To many people the answers to those questions are “no” and “I don’t know.”

Herein lies our opportunity to learn the leadership principle from Max De Pree. Leaders must define reality!

At that time, most people looked at the train industry and very much defined it as that.  They did not adjust and would later fall victim to the automobile and airline industries.  But consider what might have happened if the train industry had instead defined itself as being in the transportation industry. Instead of the automobile and airline industries becoming rivals and competitors, they instead could have become new innovations to aid in the transportation of peoples and goods.

To that end, as we consider this idea of pharmacy being the hope of healthcare, it becomes abundantly clear that we need some good definitions. The one I like is a few years old, so I may need to update it (please feel free to share your suggestions and perspectives). 

Pharmacists monitor medication safety and efficacy within the drug delivery system. 

I very much like this definition, but I also understand the need to adjust it as we move forward. We don’t just dispense, we don’t just check for allergies and drug interactions, we aren’t just the medication experts. We are something larger than that which blends these elements (and many others) together for the benefit of the people we serve. 

I have said it countless times before in this column: everyone is a leader. It doesn’t matter your age, title, or experience, you are a leader. As pharmacists, when we monitor medication safety and efficacy, it emphasizes our position and requirement to lead people to better health. 

Do you think our colleagues would have used this definition 100 years ago? I doubt it.  Much has changed, and much will continue to change. This is a good thing. Leaders help people change. Leaders help people from where they are to a better a place. That is what change is all about. 

So, as we continue to consider how pharmacy is the hope of healthcare, we need a reality check. Are there challenges in the marketplace? Absolutely. But do not let challenges become barriers. 

We will continue examining this topic next week.

Until next time

Jesse McCullough, PharmD

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