August 2024
Dear Colleagues,
I hope everyone is enjoying your summer. I am just returning from the ASHP Pharmacy Futures conference that was held in Portland, Oregon, this year. This is one of my favorite meetings to learn and share what we are all doing in specialty pharmacy and reconnect with my peers across the country. Attending this meeting gets my thoughts going for new ideas to bring back to my team, and it also creates an invigorating conversation amongst the executive committee. This will be my final message as chair of the Section of Specialty Pharmacy Practitioners (SSPP). It has been a pleasure and honor to serve as your chair.
As I reflect on the past year, I am amazed by all the work executed by the Section Advisory Groups (SAGs) this year. Your dedication and excitement around specialty pharmacy makes me proud of this section. You all made my year as chair easy and helped us set strategic goals and priorities for the section.
First, I would like to thank Kim Benner, our board liaison, for her support this past year and for being a champion for specialty pharmacy. Next to the executive committee, your dedication and passion for specialty pharmacy I admire, but I also greatly value the friendships we have developed over the past year working together. And to the staff member who is the driving force of this section, Gabby Pierce, ASHP staff liaison, thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the work you do for the SSPP, and the support you provided me as well as the section over this past year. We would be lost without you.
Now, I want to review some of the highlights from this past year and share what is to come for the year ahead. As I review all the work completed by the SAGs, it is hard to know where to start; from white papers to podcasts, the section has truly done it all this year. The SAG on Accreditation and Compliance collaborated with the SAG on Outcomes and Value to discuss ASHP policy and identify gaps in existing policy related to health system inclusion in payer networks. A goal of the section this year was to be more involved in advocacy and the policy process, since specialty pharmacy faces so many unique challenges, especially around the complexities of the current payer landscape. One of my favorite activities this year as chair was being involved in ASHP Policy Week and meeting with legislators on Capitol Hill to speak about the issues facing pharmacy today.
The SAG on Business Development implemented something new at their monthly meetings this year, in which each member gave a brief presentation on an initiative that is either unique or they are especially proud of within their specialty pharmacy. This was done to foster engagement and networking within the SAG, and allowed the SAG members to learn a significant amount from one another, as well as improve collaboration and engagement.
Another goal set forth by the executive committee this year was to prioritize pharmacy technician engagement in the section. This year, we had pharmacy technicians appointed to three of the four SAGs. Within the SAG on Operational and Workforce Development, one of the workgroups developed an Advanced Pharmacy Technician Roles in Specialty Pharmacy toolkit, which includes job descriptions for pharmacy technicians within specialty pharmacy and educational resources. This toolkit will be available on the ASHP Health-System Specialty Pharmacy Resource Center later this summer. Pharmacy technicians are vital to the success of specialty pharmacy, and we look forward to continued collaboration within the section.
The SSPP also developed many continuing education webinars, such as the Gene Therapy in Sickle Cell Disease webinar, which was developed by the Educational Steering Committee. The SAG on Business Development also developed a white paper on Navigating Copay Adjustment Programs in Specialty Pharmacy. The Educational Steering Committee also contributes to planning for ASHP Pharmacy Futures by selecting relevant and timely practice pearls to be included in the annual ‘Specialty Pharmacy Pearls’ session.
The final initiative the executive committee prioritized this year was the launch of the ad hoc Infusion Services Strategy Committee. Infusion is an area experiencing significant growth within health systems currently, and we heard from our members that this is a hot topic needing an avenue for members to collaborate and learn from one another – around everything from initiating home infusion services to navigating site of care restrictions. The committee is in the midst of its start-up, and I cannot wait to see what this group develops for practitioners in the infusion space.
A warm welcome to Erica Diamantides, who will take the lead this year as chair of the SSPP. The executive committee will be working on topics such as the impact of artificial intelligence on specialty pharmacy, unique ways to optimize 340B, sharing ideas on what is the next hot topic for specialty pharmacy, and continuing to strategize on how to address payer issues, such as copay maximizers. I am sure there will be many new challenges ahead, but this group is resilient and creative enough to face those challenges head on – and Erica is the perfect person to lead the section in this coming year.
I would like to thank everyone who volunteered their time and knowledge this past year. Without each of you, this section would not be so successful. I appreciate you allowing me to lead this section and I am very proud of all the work we achieved.
Have a great rest of your summer!
Thanks!
Denise Scarpelli, PharmD, MBA
Immediate-Past Chair, Section of Specialty Pharmacy Practitioners
Sections@ashp.org