Bartlett Regional | House Calls | Spring 2021

cargo the nurse administering the vaccine. Pharmacists and other Bartlett staff trained for this—at health fairs and the first-ever drive-up flu vaccine clinic, which took place in October 2020. Keeping staff up to speed Pharmacists also provide prescription in- formation to patients and, in the case of the COVID-19 vaccine, safety information. Pharmacist Chris Sperry took on the job of informing some of his initially skeptical col- leagues about the safety of receiving the first COVID-19 vaccines. Chris recalls the challenge of putting together the small snippets of information trickling in. “Once we got the whole picture, it was published in The New England Journal of Medicine ,” says Chris. Then there was U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. “We had good science saying yes, these vaccines are safe and highly effective.” His supervisor had high praise for his infor- mational presentation to Bartlett staff. “This is brand-new science, and he really dug deep,” says Ursula. COVID-19 impact Ursula oversees a tight-knit staff of 10 pharma- cists and 11 pharmacy technicians, dispensing an average of 17,000 in-house prescription doses per month. COVID-19 changed pharmacy staff op- erations. Employees were divided into team bubbles, working seven days on, then seven days off. “If one team got sick, then we could still provide service,” says Ursula. Other than that, it is business as usual for the pharmacy. “As far as the clinical services we’re providing, nothing’s changed. We still provide a very high level of care,” says Chris. “I think you could apply that to the whole hospital. It’s just one more thing—the level of care hasn’t changed at all.” Like a short-order cook Chris likens the job of in-house pharmacist to that of a short-order cook. “Things are getting thrown at you so fast, but you have to make sure everything else is cooking properly at the same time. At any given time, you have six doctors in the hospital and dozens of nurses. Their patient is their No. 1 priority,” says Chris. Pharmacists work closely with health care providers on the best drug treatment plan for the patient. “And we’re seeing better outcomes when you have a collaborative effort with the nurses, the doctors, the pharmacist, the respiratory therapists, physical therapists, all working together. It increases the level of safety,” he adds. Time-sensitive orders rise to the top as prescription orders flow in and out of the pharmacy “kitchen.” “We’re still filling orders for every single patient in the hospital. I mean every surgery, every colonoscopy,” Chris says. “I may be verifying prescriptions for colonoscopies while I’m managing medications for a patient with invasive streptococcal disease.” A prescription’s final destination, of course, is home with the patients. While patients may be anxious to get on with their lives, the phar- macist is responsible for counseling to ensure that they’ll be taking the right medications in the correct amounts after they are discharged from the hospital. And the new job duties that arrived a year ago along with COVID-19? “I feel blessed to have this opportunity—to educate our providers and patients, to distribute the vaccine, to be part of this, to be part of pro- tecting our community,” Chris says. “I feel truly blessed and feel lucky to be in this position.” Pharmacy Director Ursula Iha (far right) with some members of the pharmacy staff. Chris Sperry sorts syringes of vaccine as co-workers Krischelle Batac and Andrea Stats look on. Pharmacy tech Andrea Stats gets her first COVID-19 vaccination from Emergency Department Director Kim McDowell. www.bartletthospital.org 5