FIRST SEVEN YEARS OF CPF OPERATIONS

FIRST SEVEN YEARS OF CPF OPERATIONS

INTRODUCTION

The Community Pharmacy Foundation (“CPF”) is a national non-profit organization that provides grants and funding for special projects and studies directly associated with community pharmacy practice and the advancement of patient care services by pharmacists (see Mission Statement)

The Community Pharmacy Foundation is not a membership association although it works closely with the national pharmacy associations most directly affiliated with community pharmacy practice – the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS), and the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA). The Community Pharmacy Foundation also works closely with the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) and particularly their respective community pharmacy residency programs. Furthermore many of the grants awarded by CPF are to faculty of colleges of pharmacy working in direct relationship with community pharmacies in their respective region or state. Accordingly CPF considers itself “associated” with these four national pharmacy associations.

IN  THE  BEGIINNING

The Community Pharmacy Foundation was established in 2000 by an act of a federal court order emanating out of a settlement on behalf of community pharmacies across the United States through class action litigation against discriminatory pricing issues. The Foundation, which became operational in 2002, was originally governed by a court appointed Board of Directors consisting of four community pharmacists and a retired judge of the United States District Court in Illinois.

The original Board of Directors established the Bylaws of the organization and administered its operational development between 2000 and 2002. The Board meets calendar-quarterly, most often in Chicago. In late 2001 the Board decided in order to become operational for purposes of the new Mission Statement it adopted it would be prudent to retain executive support staff services. Accordingly its first executive director, Louis Sesti, RPh, was retained and its scope of activities was launched.

THE CPF  GRANTS  PROCESS

The exclusive goal of the CPF Board of Directors during this early development period was to establish a meaningful and responsible process for the receipt, review, evaluation, awarding and monitoring of grant dollars based upon submission of grant requests to the Board of Directors.

Consistent with today’s technology the Board established a Community Pharmacy Foundation website (www.communitypharmacyfoundation.org) which would provide the mechanism for interested persons and organizations to, first of all, learn about the Foundation as well as be utilized as the method for the administration of its Grants Process (for more extensive details see CPF Grants Process).

This commitment to the awarding of grants for community pharmacists and colleges of pharmacy for projects and studies focusing on community pharmacy continues to be the primary mission of the Community Pharmacy Foundation. The CPF Grants Process appears to work satisfactorily and the Foundation continues to invite interested pharmacists and persons to utilize this valuable resource to advance patient care services from community pharmacists.

GRANT FUNDING AWARDED -  As of the end of 2008 … following seven years of operation of the Community Pharmacy Foundation the Board of Directors has received 414 Grant Applications. Of these 175 were invited to submit a Grant Proposal from which 80 were awarded grant-funding support totaling over $3.5 million.

GOING FORWARD

The launch of this all-new CPF Website early in 2009 is a testimonial of the continuing   commitment of the CPF Board of Directors to expand its focus going forward in the years ahead as the profession of pharmacy seeks expanded roles and the world of health care provides continuing challenges.

The initiation of the Community Pharmacy Foundation to what is referred to as  Focus Grants is a reflection of an expanded agenda to reach out to the profession and colleges of pharmacy to partner in pursuing the many challenges associated with patient safety in the use of medications as well as the overall goals associated with medication therapy management (“MTM”) services by pharmacists in collaboration with other health providers.

Also many of the features of this all-new CPF Website is just the beginning of an expanded role of the Community Pharmacy Foundation to help community pharmacy innovators share their practice experiences and thereby be the self-help so essential to build the bridges to the new opportunities on the threshold of new horizons for the profession. Prime examples of this are My CPF; CPF Discussion Forum, CPF Commentary, CPF Best Practices and other such opportunities of cyberspace that are opened via the new CPF Website.

Your comments, suggestions and input are always welcome by utilizing the “Contact Us” section of the CPF Website.