“To amplify and recognize the extraordinary every-day efforts of female pharmacists, Cardinal Health is proud to sponsor #WomenPharmacistDay. As we all continue to face the complexities of the pandemic, pharmacists continue to show up with unwavering dedication to their patients in a time when it’s never been needed more. Our team, and our company appreciates just how important it is to support the women pharmacists within our own Cardinal Health family and all those across the industry.

Embedded in our company DNA is our commitment to female leadership in healthcare. We applaud the companies, pharmacy schools, pharmacy associations, pharmacy educators, practicing pharmacists, and pharmacy students who stand alongside us in championing these incredible women and celebrating #WomenPharmacistDay.”

Victor Crawford CEO, Pharmaceutical Segment Cardinal Health

On behalf of ACCP, I enthusiastically support #WomenPharmacistDay and the many women contributing to medication optimization for patients each and every day.  The vital contributions of women pharmacists in practice, research, and education have extended the frontiers of clinical pharmacy and paved the way for the next generation of our discipline.  ACCP strives to create an inclusive environment for all and is proud to have women serving in leadership roles throughout our organization including as President for 7 of the past 10 years.    I am in awe of the accomplishments of so many women in pharmacy and I look forward to celebrating with them on #WomenPharmacistDay.

Amie Brooks, PharmD, FCCP, BCACP

“As Professor and Dean of the University of Illinois College of Pharmacy, I support #WomenPharmacistDay. Female pharmacists have made incredible contributions to this profession across many different areas – including service to patients, advances in practice, advocacy and leadership, research, and many more. These accomplishments should be celebrated. Doing so will encourage today’s students and future pharmacists to make even greater contributions to the profession. The profession of pharmacy and our patients benefit from the different perspectives and approaches that comes with greater diversity among our practitioners.”

“Women’s Pharmacist Day celebrates the more than 55% of pharmacists in the US that are women – and in the state of Iowa, over 64%. The Iowa Pharmacy Association (IPA) celebrates ALL women pharmacists and intentionally creates a professional home.

• We celebrate the women pharmacists who were trailblazers, paving the way before us.
• We celebrate the women pharmacists in leadership roles – both in their home and communities as well as at their practices and professional organizations.
• We celebrate the women pharmacists who work part time, but are part of our profession full time.

I’m thankful for this day to celebrate with you. Beyond this special day, let’s continue to celebrate – and support – one another. As women pharmacists, we are part of a profession that provides us the opportunity to take care of patients and support one another.”

My personal reflection #WomenPharmacistDay includes Zada Mary Cooper, the ‘grand and glorious lady of pharmacy’ and her extensive influence in the initial decades of the 20th century and Metta Lou Henderson, author of American Women Pharmacists: Contributions to the Profession, a ‘pioneering historian’ deemed by the American Institute of the History of Pharmacy (fellow Arizona alumna and a dear friend). Their stories and those of countless other, well-known, and familiar female names, have made it possible for many women today to contribute meaningfully to the advancement of the pharmacy profession. During 2017, the presidential officers for ASHP, NCPA, and APhA were women. During 2017-2018, three consecutive presidential officers were women and graced the walls of 2215 Constitution NW in Washington DC — to be one of the three and the ninth woman president out of ten since 1973 is a remarkable, surreal, and humbling experience — reality a little larger than my wildest dream! Oh whatever would the Grand and Glorious Lady think of what is happening nearly a century later, I wonder, I wonder? My current dream for today is of a tomorrow whereby a need to acknowledge women as a specific group with a special day within our profession is no longer needed because the complexion of the profession reflects a diverse, vibrant array of wildly successful individuals, each lending strength, influence, and value towards expanded opportunities to positively impact patient care within the communities we serve.  I can dream big because of the inspiration I derive from pioneering women before me! Nancy A. Alvarez, PharmD, BCPS, FAPhA
APhA President 2017-2018
Assistant Dean, Professional, External Relations and Strategy
Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice
Chapman University School of Pharmacy

“As Founding Dean of Chapman University of School of Pharmacy, I support #WomenPharmacistDay. Our school has attained full accreditation on time and on budget because of the contributions of talented women on my senior leadership team, faculty, and staff.  Their collective efforts provide wonderful examples for all of our student pharmacists much like the pioneering women of the profession provided for them.  Our profession is stronger because of the diversity rooted in the past century and is flourishing now and into the foreseeable future.” Ronald P. Jordan, R.Ph. FAPhA
Dean
Chapman University School of Pharmacy

‘Most of us care. We really do. We care about our lives, for sure, and also about the lives of those around us. We care about poverty and injustice, about orphans and the sick. We care about the folks who live and work alongside us and about what happens in their families, and their hearts, and in their heads. And yet, weighed down by everyday responsibilities – bringing home a paycheck, putting food on the table, shuttling kids around – we question our ability to make a difference.’ (Taken from She Did What She Could, by Elisa Morgan; Alive Communications, Inc. 2009). At the University of Southern California School of Pharmacy, we listen to the female students to speak their needs and their voices. Those who wonder whether or not their actions will make a difference, amongst the exams and co-curricular activities and wondering if they’ll make it to graduation, are encouraged to keep doing what they can to persevere in a supportive environment. On Women Pharmacist’s Day, share with us how you breastfeed throughout the semester and your commute to school, how you stand up for your convictions to keep practicing your faith between classes, how you raise three children and still maintain an excellent academic standing, how your partners help you to make a difference. Students, ask for the resources so we can ensure that these resources continue for you when you become a pharmacist mom. Join the voices of thousands of women who continue to make a difference every day, one life at a time. Susie H. Park, PharmD, BCPP, FCSHP
Associate Dean for Student Affairs
Associate Professor of Clinical Pharmacy
University of Southern California School of Pharmacy

On behalf of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Women Faculty Special Interest Group (SIG), I am delighted to support #WomenPharmacistDay. The mission of the Women Faculty SIG is to identify issues of importance to women faculty and assist AACP in responding to them. We have over 80 volunteers spread across five committees and three task forces that are dedicated to advancing women in pharmacy by providing mentorship and networking opportunities; promoting connection/collaboration, wellness, and inclusion; designing programming to advance women pharmacists; and advocating for female faculty through policy change. We believe in women and support women pharmacists in becoming leaders in academia, pharmacy practice, and professional organizations. We are thrilled to celebrate women pharmacists on this important day!

Susan Smith, PharmD, BCPS, BCCCP

As a member and President of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, I am honored to celebrate the first annual Women Pharmacist Day.  In the last 20 years, ACCP members have elected eight female presidents, and our Past President (Dr. Marcia Buck), current President and President Elect (Dr. Suzanne Nesbit) are all women.  This demonstrates substantial support for, and confidence in, women in leadership from the ACCP membership. Everyday women pharmacists improve the health of their patients, advance the practice and science of clinical pharmacy and train and inspire the next generation, while simultaneously balancing home and family responsibilities.  I applaud their current and future accomplishments.  ACCP is committed to advancing women in pharmacy by providing a supportive environment with resources, mentoring, and leadership opportunities. Jill M. Kolesar, PharmD, MS, FCCP, BCPS
President, American College of Clinical Pharmacy, 2017-2018
Professor, College of Pharmacy, University of Kentucky
Director, Precision Medicine Initiatives, Markey Cancer Center

ASCP is excited to participate in the inaugural #WomenPharmacistDay! Our mission is to empower pharmacists to promote healthy aging through the appropriate use of medications. We hope to continue recognizing and empowering female senior care pharmacists through ASCP’s new Women’s Leadership Group.

Chad Worz, PharmD, BCGP
CEO, American Society of Consultant Pharmacists (ASCP)

As the founder of the Minority Women Pharmacists Association, I’m a continuous supporter of #WomenPharmacistDay. This day is important to me because it exemplifies our mission of promoting the presence of women pharmacists in healthcare. As a community of women pharmacists of color, it’s important that women are recognized in this industry especially since we make up over half of the pharmacist workforce. It’s also essential for the different areas of pharmacy to be highlighted as we’ve done in the past with our Journeys in Pharmacy event.

There’s no better way to support women pharmacists than by providing resources to those coming behind us. When women are given economic empowerment, the results are felt for generations.

Renee S. Lewis Pharm.D CPh

“CVS Health is proud to support the inaugural #WomenPharmacistDay. Our company’s nearly 20,000 women pharmacists are leaders and role models for their pharmacy teams, and their unique backgrounds and experiences shape the work they do behind the pharmacy counter. Whether providing trusted counsel to patients, delivering health care services, such as immunizations, conducting medication reviews, or identifying ways patients can save money on their prescriptions, our women pharmacists are on the frontlines of health care and helping our company deliver on its purpose – helping people on their path to better health. Today and every day, we celebrate the many achievements of CVS Health’s women pharmacists.” Papatya Tankut, Vice President, Pharmacy Affairs, for CVS Health

“ASHP is extremely pleased to support the inaugural #WomenPharmacistDay. ASHP is committed to supporting women in achieving pharmacy leadership roles at every level and in every practice setting. ASHP’s direction, growth, and success have always been strongly influenced by women in pharmacy beginning with our first CEO Dr. Gloria Niemeyer Francke. Dr. Francke was a pioneer in hospital pharmacy whose contributions to ASHP and the advancement of our profession are invaluable. The efforts of many women leaders over the years in our hospitals and health systems are what make pharmacy the patient-care focused profession that it is today. ASHP has many resources such as the ASHP Women in Pharmacy Leadership Connect community, interview series, and resource center designed to address the needs of the pharmacy workforce and opportunities for leadership. This is an ongoing priority at ASHP and we are so thrilled to participate in the recognition of the significant impact women in pharmacy make on the bright future of our profession.” Paul W. Abramowitz, Pharm.D., Sc.D. (Hon), FASHP
CEO ASHP

“It is an honor to celebrate the valuable contributions of female pharmacists on #WomenPharmacistDay. I want to especially thank women pharmacists for the work they are doing to provide point of care services, educational resources, and high-touch connections to drive better health outcomes for their patients. Their ability to adapt to the challenges of the pandemic has resulted in contributions benefiting their patients, communities, and profession.

At Cardinal Health, we encourage diversity in our organization and across healthcare, shaping the way we support and serve women in pharmacy. As the healthcare industry continues to evolve, continued encouragement of women pharmacists will foster diversity and inclusion in the profession and provide continued benefits to patients and communities. Please join me in celebrating and thanking women pharmacists for their dedication to healthcare.”

Debbie Weitzman
President, Pharmaceutical Distribution and The Medicine Shoppe International, Inc.
Cardinal Health

“At the National Community Pharmacists Association we’re pleased to support the first #WomenPharmacistDay, particularly this month as we honored NCPA’s first female officer and president – Sharlea Leatherwood, RPh, of Kansas City, Mo. – with a well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award. Sharlea passed away on Monday, October 1. She was a trailblazer for women community pharmacists, and a genuine role model for us all. We celebrate Sharlea’s accomplishments and those of so many other women pharmacists and, on #WomenPharmacistDay and beyond, we look forward to continuing to support future generations of community pharmacists as they assume leadership roles, continue driving change in health care, and through it all, provide quality care for those in their communities.” 

 

– National Community Pharmacist Association CEO B. Douglas Hoey, Pharmacist, MBA and NCPA Immediate Past President DeAnn Mullins, Pharmacist, CDE, owner of Mullins Pharmacy, WeCare Wellness and the WeCare Diabetes Education Program in Lynn Haven, Fla.

The College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences at Drake University proudly supports National Women Pharmacist Day, held on October 12. Pharmacy is becoming one of the top career choices for women, and the statistics prove it. From 1983 to 2012, the presence of women in the field has doubled, rising to 54% from 27%. This year, an impressive 65% of PharmD students at Drake University identify as female. Drake University is also home to the Nu Chapter of Lambda Kappa Sigma, the nation’s oldest professional fraternity which focuses specifically on women in pharmacy. The College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences is proud to support our Lambda Kappa Sigma chapter and their efforts in promoting the advancement of women in the profession. To name a few of the countless female leaders who are products of Drake’s Pharmacy programs:

• Maxine Beatty- Recipient of the Prestigious 2002 Weaver Medal of Honor
• Melissa Corrigan- First director of the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board
• Susan Lutz- Previous IPA President, Pharmacy co-owner, NABP item writer
• Patty Kumbera- Co-founder of Outcomes and current Chief Operating Officer of Prescribe Wellness
• Crystal Lennartz- Vice President of Pharmacy for McKesson
• Kristin Williams- Chief Health Officer for Hy-Vee

These are just a few examples of the women who strive to balance their lives while making a positive impact in their communities each and every day. Renae Chesnut, EdD
Dean and Professor, College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences
Drake University

As Grand President of Lambda Kappa Sigma, I couldn’t be more excited to celebrate this inaugural Women Pharmacists Day! Lambda Kappa Sigma, dedicated to elevating women in pharmacy, has been celebrating the accomplishments of women pharmacists, beginning with our initial chapter at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy in 1913. Because of the vision of our founder, Ethel J Heath, women have been finding their voice in the profession for over 100 years. I was in one of the last classes at the St Louis College of Pharmacy where women were a minority of the students. My class was 45% women; the class that graduated just as I was beginning my studies was only 25% women. I’ve witnessed the rapid growth of women in this profession, and I can’t say that we always knew where women were going to fit into the job market and the profession. With the leadership programs available in Lambda Kappa Sigma, the way has been made clearer for quite a few of us.  My membership has definitely enhanced my professional career! It is my hope that women in pharmacy can find that unique group or opportunity that helps them to see where they belong in this grand profession. I’m thrilled to see the progress that women have made, but even more excited to see where we are heading. Christine A Grass, RPh
Grand President, Lambda Kappa Sigma
Clinical Pharmacist, SSM Health DePaul Hospital, Bridgeton, Missouri