I hope everyone is enjoying what's left of the summer! Cross your fingers that the weather stays nice a little longer! It's hard to believe that September is already here. WMSHP has been on hiatus for a bit, but meetings resume this month.

Here's a quick update of WMSHP events:

• In May, WMSHP enjoyed another successful Spring Seminar. Attendees were presented with a diverse range of topics such as sickle cell pain, diabetes treatment, discussions from the Capitol, HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, and transforming care. Thank you to Angela Green and all of the WMSHP board members for making this event a success!
• In June, the WMSHP board met to plan activities for the year ahead. Look forward to some great programming in the months to come!
• In July, WMSHP members and their families enjoyed a social night out with the West Michigan Whitecaps baseball team. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate, but it was still a great time with friends and colleagues! Luckily, the Whitecaps were able to brave the rain and score a win over the Dayton Dragons!
• In September, we will kick-off our fall monthly meetings at Uccello's on the 17th. Hope to see everyone there!
• New this year, WMSHP will provide financial support for WMSHP members and pharmacy students interested in conducting community service projects that fulfill the Society's purpose of advancing public health, patient care, and the interests of the pharmacy profession in Western Michigan. Please review the community service grant application for more details!

As always, if you'd like more information about WMSHP, please visit our website wmshp.net.

We learned about “MRSA in the USA” at our March meeting in Kalamazoo.  A big “thank you” to Dr. Dean VanLoo, PharmD, for presenting. 

At our April meeting, we will continue the tradition of having pharmacy residents present their residency projects.  Two residents were selected by the WMSHP Board to present.  Congratulations to them!  The scheduled presenters and their project titles are listed below.      

• “Assessing the Use of a Standardized Order Set for Postoperative Pain Management in Total Arthroplasty Patients,” presented by Brittany Bowen, PharmD (Spectrum Health Medical Center).
• “Adjunctive Valproic Acid for the Treatment of ICU Delirium in Intensive Care Patients: A Retrospective Study,” Phuong Tran, PharmD (Bronson Methodist Hospital).

Until April 3rd, WMSHP will be accepting scholarship applications from eligible P3 students.  Please visit http://www.wmshp.net/scholarship/ for more information. 

Don’t forget to register for WMSHP’s Spring Seminar on Tuesday, May 5th at the Prince Conference Center on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids.  Registration is available at http://www.wmshp.net/seminar/

Hope to see everyone at our upcoming events!

We're about one month away from the first official day of spring! I'd like to be hopeful that spring is right around the corner, but the frigid temps this week are convincing me otherwise. Winter is still in full force!

Despite the weather, we had a great turnout at our February meeting. Ciji Marckini, CPhT, spoke about the medication history process and how this can transform care. Thank you to those who attended!

WMSHP will soon be accepting applications for our annual scholarship awarded at Spring Seminar. For interested students, more info will be coming shortly.

If you're willing to brave the cold temps and snow, our next meeting will be Thursday, March 12th, at the Bronson Gilmore Center in Kalamazoo. Please join us! Hope to see everyone there!

Brrr...is anyone else ready for warm weather yet! Fortunately, the cold temps didn't keep anyone away from our January meeting! Tracey Mersfelder, PharmD, BCPS, presented an interesting and informative topic about the history of pharmacy!

Attention Pharmacy Residents! Don't forget to submit your Great Lakes Project abstract to WMSHP if you would like the opportunity to present your project to our members at the April meeting. This is a great opportunity to practice your presentation before attending the Great Lakes Conference.

Reminder! 2015 MPA Annual Convention & Exposition February 27-March 1 at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center. WMSHP has three delegate positions for the MPA House of Delegates. If you are interested in being a delegate, please email me at kari.vavra@yahoo.com.

Our next meeting will be Thursday, February 12th, in the East Auditorium at Spectrum Health – Butterworth Hospital. Stay warm and hope to see everyone there!

Happy Holidays! During this hectic time of the year, I hope that everyone is enjoying time with family and friends and also hopefully enjoying some downtime as well! We had a lot of wonderful programming in 2014 and planning for the spring is already well underway. You should expect great speakers/topics in the year ahead!

In January, we welcome a new set of board members! For 2015, the WMSHP leadership is as follows:

• President: Kari Vavra (FSU)
• Past-President: Angela Green (Mercy)
• President-Elect: Rebecca Maynard (Borgess)
• Treasurer: Kim Melgarejo (Borgess)
• Secretary: Brad Miller (Spectrum Health)
• Technician: Ciji Marckini (Spectrum Health)
• Returning Board Members: Katie Adrian (Bronson), Ryan Bickel (Borgess), Kasey Bucher (St. Mary's), and Tara Holt (Bronson); Katie Axford (FSU) and Carrie Morrison (Mercy) are returning for a second term
• New Board Members: Stacy Brousseau (Bronson) and Allison Rider (Spectrum Health)

Additionally, a big "thank you" to Dana Staat (Spectrum Health) and Michael Michutka (Borgess) as they complete their terms as past-president and board member, respectively.

We've been on hiatus this month, but will return in January! Our next meeting will be held on Thursday, January 15 at Mangia Mangia in Kalamazoo. Tracey Mersfelder, PharmD, BCPS, who is a Professor at Ferris State University College of Pharmacy, will be presenting "A Traveling Pharmacist through Time and Place." Should be a great topic! Hope to see you there!

Finally, Save the Date! This year's WMSHP Spring Seminar will be held on May 5, 2015 at the Prince Conference Center on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids.

It is election time for WMSHP. Make sure to vote for officers and board members. We also are updating the WMSHP bylaws. If you attend the November meeting you will be given a hard copy of the bylaws. Voting for approval of changes will happen in January.

WMSHP hosted their annual residency showcase at Ferris State University on October 16th. It was another successful event with more than 20 programs in attendance.

Sarah Feinauer, PharmD, BCPS from Mercy Health Muskegon will be presenting "Medical Marihauna: Clearing the Air." Hope to see you there.

Below you will find a short bio for each member running for a 2015 WMSHP Board position.  Ballots are open now, and will remain open until the beginning of our next General Meeting on November 13th.

____________

President-Elect 2015:
Rebecca Maynard, Pharm.D. is a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist in Internal Medicine and Residency Program Director at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo. She obtained her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Ferris State University and completed a PGY-1 Residency at Bronson Methodist Hospital. Becky has been a WMSHP Board Member since January 2011.

Treasurer 2015-16:
Kim Melgarejo, Pharm.D. (incumbent) is currently a Pharmacy Manager at Borgess Medical Center and Borgess Pipp Hospital. She graduated from West Virginia University with her pharmacy degree and then pursued a pharmacy practice residency at Riverside Methodist Hospital. Soon after her residency she moved to Michigan and has worked at BMC as a clinical pharmacy specialist, clinical pharmacy manager, and now a pharmacy manager. She has been a board member of WMSHP since 2005.

Secretary 2015-16:
Brad Miller, Pharm.D. (incumbent) is currently an Informatics Pharmacist at Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids. He graduated from Ferris State University in 2002, and then completed a Pharmacy Practice Residency at Spectrum Health. Prior positions he has held include Pharmacy Director at Pennock Hospital in Hastings, and Clinical Pharmacy Specialist in Emergency Medicine at Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids. Brad has served as Secretary for WMSHP since 2004.

Board Members 2015-16:
Katie Axford, Pharm.D. (incumbent) is an Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice at Ferris State University College of Pharmacy and maintains a practice site in Inpatient Family Medicine at Mercy Health Saint Mary's. Katie has been an active member of WMSHP and has served on the Board for the last two years.

Charles Berklich, Pharm.D. graduated from the University of Michigan in 2013. He currently rotates as the Adult Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Specialist at the Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion (LHCP). Additionally, he works in the outpatient chemotherapy infusion clinic at the LHCP as well as the emergency department at Butterworth Hospital. Charles is also an adjunct assistant professor of clinical pharmacy at Ferris State University and active in ASHP but eager to become more involved in WMSHP. In his spare time, Charles plays rugby for the Grand Rapids Gazelles and serves as community volunteer coordinator for the team.

Stacy Brousseau, Pharm.D. is a 2013 graduate of Ferris State University. She recently completed a PGY-1 pharmacy practice residency at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo, and she is currently practicing as a clinical pharmacist in the emergency department there. Stacy is actively involved in both the Education Task Force and the Educational Affairs Committee for MPA / MSHP, and she would like to become more involved in WMSHP as well.

Lisa Dumkow, Pharm.D. is a 2011 graduate of the University of Toledo. She currently works at Mercy Health St. Mary's in Grand Rapids as a Clinical Pharmacist as part of the Antimicrobial Stewardship program at that facility.

Kristen Felice, Pharm.D. received her degree from the University of Michigan, then completed an ASHP-accredited PGY-1 Pharmacy Practice Residency and an ASHP-accredited PGY-2 Emergency Medicine Specialty Residency at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her previous experiences include starting Emergency Medicine pharmacy services and expanding ICU clinical coverage at Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls, SD. She is currently a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist in Critical Care at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo.

Carrie Morrison, Pharm.D. (incumbent) is employed with Mercy Health Muskegon as an ambulatory care pharmacist. She is a current WMSHP board member, serving since 2013. She graduated from Ferris State University with her bachelors in pharmacy (1998) and later went back to school for her PharmD with Creighton University in Nebraksa (2009).

Julie Pardy, Pharm.D., BCPS graduated from Ferris State University. Julie completed her PGY1 residency at Spectrum Health which where she works as a clinical generalist. She has been a member of WMSHP since 2011 and would love the opportunity to expand her involvement as a board member.

Allison Rider, Pharm.D. is a Clinical Generalist at Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids, where she works primarily in the ICU. Allison graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Molecular Cell Biology and Chemistry from Saint Mary's College in South Bend, Indiana in 2009, followed by her Pharm.D. from The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio in 2013. After pharmacy school graduation and prior to starting at Spectrum Health, Allison completed a PGY1 pharmacy residency at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Allison has enjoyed being involved with pharmacy organizations such as APhA/ASHP, and has found being a part of WMSHP for the past year to be a great experience and would appreciate the opportunity to become more involved as a board member.

WMSHP kicked off with a great educational event at Uccello's last month. We learned a lot about the different roles dexmedetomidine can play in our acutely ill patients. Slides are available on our website, wmshp.net, if you missed it.

In October we will hear from Jessica Prociv, PharmD at Bronson on a topic surrounding transitions of care. WMSHP will also be hosting their annual pharmacy residency showcase on October 16th at Ferris State University. This is a great event for students to learn about residency programs in the area.

See you in October!

Hope everyone had a great summer. It is hard to believe that it is already September. Here is a quick update of WMSHP events.

WMSHP enjoyed another successful Spring Seminar in May. There were a variety of topics presented including cardiovascular disease, informatics, and the affordable care act. Thank you to Dana Staat and all of the WMSHP board members for making this event a success.

WMSHP also held two summer events this year. We enjoyed a night at the ballgame in June and happy hour in August. It was really fun to be able to meet and spend time with colleagues and friends outside of the workplace.

If you missed these events, WMSHP kicks off their monthly meetings at Uccello's on September 11th. Julie Belfer, PharmD from Spectrum Health will be presenting "Dexmedetomidine: Various Roles and Utilization Strategies."

Hope to see you in September!

We had a great time in March eating and learning about honey, garlic, and elderberry and their place in treating infectious diseases. Thank you to Tracey for her interesting presentation.

April is the month where we hear from two pharmacy residents about their residency project. Kayla Uganski from Mercy Health St. Mary's will present "Do criteria-based urine cultures contribute to unnecessary antibiotic use in a community teaching hospital?" and Emily Chan from Mercy Health Muskegon will present "A joint collaboration between nursing and pharmacy to improve medication-related HCAHPS score".

WMSHP is offering a scholarship to a west Michigan native P3 student. If you are looking for more details, click on the scholarship tab. Application deadline is April 4th.

Also look forward to our 45th annual Spring Seminar on May 6th 2014 including topics on cardiovascular pharmacotherapy, pain management, and the affordable care act. More details to follow on our website.

See you in April.