President's Message - May/June 2011
by Carrie Sincak, ICHP President
June 10, 2011
How many times have you been asked to complete a survey? How many times have you wondered what the results of the survey were and whether changes are going to be or need to be made? I can assure you that the ICHP staff and leadership value and welcome your opinions to help us gain insight into the needs of our members. The Division of Marketing Affairs works diligently assessing the survey results, how members value our products and services, and additional ways to improve membership benefits.
Of approximately 1,600 ICHP members, there was a 20% response rate (n = 328) to the survey. When asked what keeps members involved with ICHP, the top responses were ICHP providing up to date information on pharmacy issues, local continuing pharmacy education, KeePosted and networking. The ability to give back to the profession and state and national advocacy efforts were also ranked highly.
The Division of Educational Affairs works tirelessly to provide quality educational programming at our meetings and often refers to meeting evaluations to determine topics for future meetings. Our Spring meeting had excellent and relevant topics such as the Pharmacy Practice Model Initiative (PPMI), Medication Shortages, Clinical Pearls and Developing Residency Training just to name a few.
Members of ICHP should be proud of the advocacy efforts that Scott Meyers, Jim Owens, and the Division of Government Affairs dedicate to advancing our profession and keeping our patients safe. Current active legislation items include, but are not limited to, medical marijuana, amending the pharmacy practice act, and amending the IL Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Numerous items are brought forth that may impact the way in which pharmacists practice. ICHP consistently monitors these bills and advocates on our behalf. This is not only done on a state level but some of our members also serve as delegates at the ASHP House of Delegates meeting to represent and vote on policies that may affect our profession nationally. The Division of Professional Affairs also thoroughly reviews our policies and procedures to ensure the improvement and promotion of pharmacy practice in health-systems and affiliated facilities.
The majority of respondents (92%) appreciated the email alerts and updates that ICHP provides to our members. ICHP is very cognizant of the fact that information should be current and timely without inundating your email account with alerts. Most indicated that weekly alerts were acceptable.
As you may know, KeePosted will soon be converted to an electronic publication. This conversion was studied carefully and was based on responses we received from our members. Three-fourths of the members who responded indicated that they were fine with the transition to e-publication and understood that this is an attempt to “go green” and save costs to the organization. Because we know there are some who prefer a hard copy of the journal, we will still be able to accommodate the request for a nominal fee.
Networking was one of the opportunities our members value in this organization. We agree that this is an important aspect of getting involved in professional organizations and thus we are constantly trying to develop ways to increase networking opportunities for our members. ICHP has done this not only with social media (e.g. Facebook®, Twitter®) but also with the development of Networks. We have had the New Practitioners Network in existence for a while now but we have also added the Pharmacy Directors Network and the Clinical Practice and Research Network. These recently established networks meet bimonthly and allow the opportunity for members to not only get together and share ideas and best practices but also to socialize and make new contacts.
I am happy to report that 95% of members feel they receive good value from their membership dues. There is always room for improvement, and we will continually strive to reach 100% satisfaction from our members. ICHP will continue to enhance the items you perceive as most valuable and will work to improve on other items such as our website and online continuing education.
As I have said before, the volunteerism of our members is what makes ICHP the strong organization it is today. I was thrilled that over half of the respondents indicated interest in serving as a volunteer (65% of respondents indicated willingness to volunteer 2 hours per month of their time). ICHP understands that time is valuable as you balance work and personal life, so my goal for our Board of Directors is to develop single short term projects that will allow more members to contribute.
Every member’s input is valuable, and the more ways we can involve everyone, the better organization we will be for it. If you have a suggestion, comment, or idea, please do not wait until the next member needs assessment is distributed. Feel free to contact the ICHP office or me. We look forward to hearing from you. ΓΆβ€"Β
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