What a meeting!  More than 550 Pharmacy super-heroes beamed into Oakbrook Terrace, IL to attend the 2019 ICHP Annual meeting this past September. Over the course of three days, attendees networked, met our ICHP lobbyists, attended excellent CE presentations, and learned about the latest and greatest in pharmaceuticals and technology from our exhibitors.  Saturday’s programming also featured some great programming for students – including panel discussions with some of the best and brightest in Illinois’ pharmacy circle as well as a great residency showcase. If you couldn’t attend the meeting – be sure to check out our Facebook page for photos and videos.

The theme of the 2019 meeting was IMPACT Patient Care. One of the ways we set about this goal was with the first ever ICHP Networking Lunch.  During lunchtime on Thursday, volunteer moderators helped guide conversations on the following topics: academia, ambulatory care, leadership and management, medication safety, new practitioners, pharmacy practice and pharmacy technicians. It was a great way for attendees to meet other pharmacy professionals with similar interests and discuss ways to advance the profession.  The networking lunch was followed by an interdisciplinary keynote presentation, Having True Impact on the Opioid Crisis: What Everyone Should Know and featured information from the perspective of a pharmacist, surgeon and an Illinois drug enforcement agent.  The topic was timely and well-presented!  We had quite a few members join us on Thursday evening to meet and welcome our new ICHP lobbyists, Liz Brown-Reeves and Mitch Schaben.  The duo spoke briefly to our members about their experiences in government and why it is so important for every member to take an active role in pharmacy advocacy on a grassroots level! 

Friday morning started bright and early with the reverse exhibit – a favorite of our exhibitor friends!  This event really helps keep our registration prices down for all our attendees and we’re very thankful to the pharmacy directors who take the time to participate on our behalf.   We continued the day with sessions in Ambulatory Care, Pharmacy Practice and Management, and Clinical Practice.  At lunch time we broke for a special Town Hall Meeting – where our members talked about their concerns and ambitions for the upcoming year.  We also swore in our new board and affiliate leaders:

President:
Carrie Vogler

Immediate Past President:
Noelle Chapman

Treasurer:
Christopher Crank

Director of Government Affairs:
Sharon Karina

Director of Organizational Affairs:
Elise Wozniak

Director of Professional Affairs:
Amy Boblitt

Natalie Tucker

Northern Region Director:
Alifiya Hyderi

Central Region Director:
Julie Downen

Southern Region Director:
Jared Sheley

Sangamiss Society President:
Megan Stoller

Northern Illinois Society President:
Milena McLaughlin

We topped Friday off with a wonderful dinner at Ditka’s – where we celebrated (now immediate past-president) Noelle Chapman’s presidential reign and the IMPACT she generated for pharmacy practice in Illinois over the last year.

The conference center was a buzz Saturday morning as we welcomed students from across the state!  The Saturday morning Technician session is always popular and well attended too! Of course, one of the best moments of the day is when we get to award some of our amazing volunteers.  The following awards were handed out this year:

Shining Star Award:
Sharon Karina, Milena McLaughlin, Richard Puccetti, Megan Stoller

Industry Award:
Ginger Cioffi-Carragher (Grifols)

New Practitioner Leadership Award:
Bryan McCarthy

ICHP Student Chapter Award:
University of Illinois at Chicago and Rockford, College of Pharmacy

Outstanding Volunteer Award:
David Martin

President’s Award:
Christopher Crank

Pharmacy Technician of the Year:
Rebecca Ohrmund

Amy Lodolce Mentorship Award:
Mary Ann Kliethermes

Pharmacist of the Year Award:
Jerry Storm

After the awards program our pharmacist and technician members participated in a very interactive ASHP Pharmacy Forecast workshop while students ended the meeting with an amazing Residency showcase – which featured 30 residency programs from across the Midwest! 

So, there’s another successful meeting in the books!  None of this would have been possible without YOU (our members and volunteers) but also our meeting sponsors.  We’d like to give a special super-pharmacy shout-out to our gold and silver sponsors:

Gold:
AstraZeneca, Merck & Co., Inc., QuVa, Sunovion

Silver:
AmerisourceBergen, Bristol-Myers Squibb, IPSEN, McKesson, Mylan, T2 Biosystems, United Pharmacy Staffing, Xellia

Thank you for helping us to “IMPACT” Patient Care! 

We hope we’ll see you again soon at the 2020 ICHP Spring Meeting, March 27, & 28th at the Embassy Suites Conference Center in East Peoria, IL!