Please see the list of nominees for this year's annual board elections below.  Members: please vote at wmshp.net/vote.  Voting deadline is November 30th.

President-Elect 2019:

Kyle Schmidt received his Doctorate in Pharmacy from Ferris State University in 2013. After graduation, he accepted and successfully completed a PGY-1 Pharmacy Practice Residency at Charleston Area Medical Center in Charleston, West Virginia, followed by a PGY-2 Specialty Residency in Critical Care at Beaumont Health in Royal Oak, Michigan. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice at Ferris State University and has been an active WMSHP Executive Board Member since January of 2016. 

Secretary 2019-20:

Brad Miller (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 the Secretary for WMSHP since 2004.

Board Members 2019-20:

Andrea Borst, born and raised in Denver, Colorado, attended Hope College from 2008-2012 where she received her Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry.  From 2012-2016, she attended Ferris State University and earned her PharmD.  Following pharmacy school, Andrea successfully completed a PGY-1 residency at Spectrum Health and a PGY-2 pediatric residency at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital.  Andrea currently splits her time between Adult Internal Medicine at Spectrum and Pediatrics at Helen Devos.  In her free time, Andrea enjoys running, reading romance novels, and photography.  Andrea has been a member of WMSHP since 2017 and is excited to expand her role in the organization by serving on the board.

Abby Dalman is a clinical pharmacist at Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital and Zeeland Community Hospital.  She splits time working with the internal medicine and Investigational Drug Service teams.  A native of West Michigan, Abby attended Hope College before earning her PharmD at Ferris State University.  Outside of pharmacy, she enjoys visiting local breweries with friends, going to the symphony, spending time with family, and catching up on Netflix.       

Sarah Hoerner (incumbent) is a clinical pharmacist at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, with interests in hematology/oncology and general pediatric medicine. She is a Michigan native who grew up in the Metro Detroit area. After graduating from Concordia University Wisconsin with her PharmD, Sarah successfully completed a PGY-1 residency at Spectrum Health. Following residency, she stayed on at the children’s hospital. In her free time she enjoys figure skating, spending time outdoors, knitting, and trying new restaurants and breweries.

Shelby Kelsh is an Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice at Ferris State University in Grand Rapids. In 2016, she received her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from SUNY-Buffalo in Buffalo, NY. Upon graduation, Kelsh completed her PGY-1 Pharmacy Practice Residency with Spectrum Health. Currently, she is developing a new ambulatory care practice site at Spectrum Health Internal Medicine Residency Academic Medicine Practice where she hopes to develop a transitions of care program. She has been a key planner for Ferris State University's Spring Seminar and the 2018 District IV meeting. Finally, Kelsh has been a member of WMSHP since moving to Michigan in 2016 and currently resides in Sparta, MI.

Mitchell Stein (incumbent) is currently a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist in Emergency Medicine/Critical Care and the Pharmacy Residency Program Director at Ascension Borgess. He has stayed in Michigan throughout his education and career and is dedicated to serving the West Michigan region. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from Western Michigan University, went to the University of Michigan for pharmacy school, and came back to West Michigan to complete the PGY-1 Pharmacy Residency at Borgess. He has worked at Borgess since completing residency in 2015. Mitchell is currently serving as a board member, a position he has held since 2016.

Derek Vander Horst has been a resident of western Michigan the entirety of his life; often jokingly stating that he “lives on US 131”.  He obtained his PharmD from Ferris State University in 2015; and then completed a PGY1 Pharmacy Practice Residency and a PGY2 Infectious Diseases Pharmacy Residency at Munson Medical Center in Traverse City. After completion of his residency training, he relocated to Grand Rapids to continue his career at Spectrum Health as one of their pharmacists working in antimicrobial stewardship and adult infectious diseases. He is an active member of the Michigan Society of Health-System Pharmacists (MSHP), serving on the Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee for several years; and he also served as the secretary of the Northern Michigan Society of Health-System Pharmacists (NMSHP) in 2016.

As always, October was a busy month! Our annual Residency Showcase at Ferris State University College of Pharmacy in Grand Rapids was very successful, with 22 programs and over 80 students attending. We also want to extend a big thank you to Tracy Mersfelder, PharmD, BCPS, for her excellent and engaging presentation about pain management.

We hope you will join us at our November meeting, where we will learn about multiple sclerosis from Jim Curtis, PharmD, BCPS.

Board elections are just around the corner, so if you are interested in running for a board position, please contact any current board member to submit your bio. The deadline for submission is October 22nd.

November is our last meeting of the season. We will be taking December off and returning in January. We hope everyone has a happy holiday season!

If you would like more information about WMSHP, please visit our website at www.wmshp.net.

Thank you to all of the members who joined us in Grand Rapids for our first meeting of the 2018-2019 year, and a big thank you to Tiffany Jenkins, PharmD, BCACP, and Rachel Walters, PharmD, for their illuminating discussion about the pharmacist’s role in population health.

We are looking forward to our annual Residency Showcase, held in conjunction with the Ferris State University College of Pharmacy, on October 4th in Grand Rapids.  Our next monthly meeting will be on October 11th at Borgess Medical Center, with Tracy Mersfelder, PharmD, BCPS, discussing "A Painful Decision."  We hope to see you there!

Board elections are coming up, so if you are interested in becoming more involved in WMSHP by running for a board position, please submit your bio to any board member by October 22nd. Election results will be announced at our November meeting.

If you would like more information about WMSHP, please visit our website at www.wmshp.net

The weather might not be getting cooler, but fall is just around the corner. It’s time for another great year of programming for WMSHP!  The Board had their summer planning meeting in June to start to organize activities for the upcoming year.  This year, we are excited to announce the formation of the Community Outreach Committee.  If you have any interest in joining the Community Outreach Committee or the Membership Committee, please contact any board member for more information.

We would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who came out for the Whitecaps game on July 26th.  Although the Whitecaps didn’t get a win that day, everyone enjoyed the all-you-can-eat BBQ, and spending some time outside!

We hope you will join us on Thursday, September 6th for our first live CE event of the year.  The meeting will be held at Uccello’s in Grand Rapids.  Our speakers will be discussing “The Role of the Pharmacist in Population Health.”  One live hour of CE credit will be offered to pharmacists and technicians.

If you would like more information about WMSHP, please visit our website at www.wmshp.net

The 2018-2019 Michigan Pharmacy Foundation Health Professional Leadership Academy is accepting applications, and WMSHP is offering one scholarship to a qualified pharmacist. The application for the next year of the academy can be accessed online by clicking here. To be considered for sponsorship from WMSHP, please submit your completed application to Katie Adrian at ktjw22@gmail.com by midnight on Sunday, July 22nd.

The Health Professional Leadership Academy is a year-long program designed to train healthcare providers and administrators in the skills necessary to lead teams and organizations in interdisciplinary settings. The Academy is an excellent way to expand your network, increase your involvement in Association and professional activities, and acquire the skill sets that are essential to any leadership role.
Enrollment in the Academy gets you access to:

• Four face-to-face workshops covering core leadership topics
• Monthly online webinars, interfacing with the top leaders in the healthcare industry
• Establishment of a personal leadership project and personal leadership goals

For more information about the Academy, please contact Dianne Malburg, Pharm.D., Executive Director of the Michigan Pharmacy Foundation at Dianne@MichiganPharmacists.org.

Those who attended our March meeting were treated to an excellent presentation about updates in diabetes management from Susan Cornell, BS, PharmD, CDE, FAPhA, FAADE. We want to extend a big thank you to Susan for the very informative and interactive discussion.

On April 12th we will be back at Uccello’s in Grand Rapids to support two pharmacy residents as they present their yearlong research projects.  Lauren Fay, PharmD, from Mercy Health Saint Mary’s will be presenting her project entitled “The Urgent Need for Urgent Care Antimicrobial Stewardship.” We will also be hearing from Lauren VanDenBos, PharmD, from Borgess Medical Center, as she presents her project entitled “Effect of Initiation of Pharmacist Driven MRSA PCR Testing on Duration of Anti-MRSA Antibiotic Therapy.” Both projects focus on the impact pharmacists can have on patient care.

Each year WMSHP offers two scholarships to eligible P3 students.  This year, the Board has voted to approve a scholarship in the amount of $1000, and a second scholarship in the amount of $500. The application deadline is April 6th, 2018, and the winners will be announced at the annual WMSHP Spring Seminar.  For more information please visit our website at http://www.wmshp.net/scholarship/.

New this year: Members now have the opportunity to join the Membership Committee or the Community Outreach Committee. Joining a committee is a great way to get involved with WMSHP, and to give back to the community. For more information about the committees, please contact Katie Adrian at ktjw22@gmail.com.

The qualifications from LARA are as follows:

Pharmacy Technician Relicensure

Applicants for relicensure must submit the following:

• Submit copies of certificates showing proof of having completed 20 hours of continuing education within the 2-year period immediately preceding the application for relicensure including 1 hour in pain and symptom management relating to the practice of pharmacy, 1 hour in patient safety, 1 hour in pharmacy law and 17 hours of pharmacyrelated subject matter including the following topics: Medication or drug distribution; Inventory control systems; Mathematics and calculations; Biology; Pharmaceutical sciences; Therapeutic issues; Pharmacy operations; Pharmacology, drug therapy or drug products; Preparation of sterile products; Prescription compounding; Drug repackaging; Patient interaction or interpersonal skills and communication. A minimum of 5 hours must be obtained by attending live programs, courses or activities

Notice how a minimum of 5 hours must be LIVE. Our CE credits are important for expanding our knowledge and sustaining our certifications and licensures. WMSHP is a resource that will help you accomplish both of those requirements.

If you go to www.wmshp.net you will be linked to a great resource that costs Pharmacy Technicians $30 for a one-year membership which includes a complimentary dinner and live CE once a month (skipping summer months) on a Thursday evening.

WMSHP also has a Spring Seminar (Tuesday, May 15th, 2018) where you can earn all 5 live CE credits (it costs $45 for non-members and $30 for members)

In total, by being a pharmacy technician member you can obtain 12 CE credits in total *7 of them from the monthly meeting and 5 from the spring seminar* for only $60 for the YEAR!

Don't stress about your relicensure and recertification requirements, join WMSHP and enjoy a complimentary dinner before learning alongside your peers!

[Click here to download a printable PDF version of this information.]

We had a great turnout for our February meeting, where we learned about different uses of ketamine.  Thank you to Matthew Gurka, PharmD, BCCCP for the very engaging and interesting presentation!

Congratulations to Lauren Fay (Mercy Health Saint Mary’s) and Lauren VanDenBos (Borgess Medical Center) for being selected to present their year-long projects at our April meeting.  We are looking forward to hearing more about their research!

We invite you to join us at our next meeting on Thursday, March 8th at Borgess in Kalamazoo.  We will be featuring a presentation from Susan Cornell, BS, PharmD, CDE, FAPhA, FAADE, entitled “2018 Diabetes Update:  The Medication Makeover Edition.”

We had a great start to 2018 with our January meeting at Martell’s in Kalamazoo. Thanks to everyone who came out to hear an excellent presentation on updates in heart failure by Jona Lekura. Our next meeting will be in Grand Rapids at the Wege Center in the lower level classroom. Matthew Gurka, PharmD, BCCCP will be presenting on the expanding uses of ketamine. Hope to see you all there!

Reminder to Pharmacy Residents: Submit your research abstract for an opportunity to present your residency project at our April WMSHP meeting! Interested residents will need to email their research abstracts to Carrie Morrison (cmorrison00@hotmail.com) no later than February 1st.

I hope everyone is having a happy holiday season!  We had another great year of programming in 2017, including our November speaker, Lauren Ice, PharmD., BCPS, BCOP, who educated us about the treatment of oncologic emergencies.  It’s hard to believe that it’s already time to look ahead to the opportunities of 2018.  Our next meeting will be held on Thursday, January 11th at Martell’s in Kalamazoo.  Jona Lekura, PharmD., BCPS, who is a clinical pharmacy specialist in cardiology at Henry Ford, will be presenting “An Overview of Chronic Heart Failure Management.”  We hope to see everyone there!

We also welcome our new and returning board members. The newly elected board members are:

President-Elect 2018: Stacy Brousseau, PharmD, BCPS

Treasurer 2018-2019: Jordan Posey, PharmD, MBA, NHDP-BC

Board Members 2018-2019:

• Tara Longman, PharmD

• Julie Schmidt, PharmD, BCPS

• Kyle Schmidt, PharmD, BCCP (incumbent)

• Mitchell Stein, PharmD (incumbent)

• Natalie Washburn, PharmD

Resident-at-Large 2018: Stephanee Schrader, PharmD (Spectrum Health PGY1)

If you would like more information about WMSHP, please visit our website at www.wmshp.net