Students Launch Community Pharmacy
Saturday, August 01, 2009
Pharmacy is one of many public health programs in College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
Continuing its efforts to develop public health-related programs and outreach activities across the state, pharmacy students in Butler University’s College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (COPHS) have partnered with Indiana University students from the schools of medicine, dentistry and public health to develop a student-run clinic housed in Neighborhood Fellowship Church located on Indianapolis’ eastside. The clinic officially launched Aug. 1.
Butler’s contribution to the clinic will be the student-run pharmacy, Butler University Community Outreach Pharmacy or BUCOP. Services provided by the BUCOP include free medications and counseling on non-drug therapies and chronic disease prevention.
The BUCOP will initially target uninsured and underserved patients within the Neighborhood Fellowship community — a community where roughly 50 percent of residents live at or below the poverty level. The BUCOP will begin by treating only patients with acute problems who agree to be seen and diagnosed by a member of the IU Student Clinic. Long term plans call for further expansion of the clinic into the greater Indianapolis area.
BUCOP Committee Chairman Eliza Dy said the idea of serving the health care needs of the community was what interested her most in becoming involved in this project.
“In a time when uninsured populations are ever increasing, I think it is important for us to reach out and support members of our community. I immediately saw the potential of a pharmacy that would provide free medication and counseling.”
Dy is one of five Butler pharmacy students leading the BUCOP. Other committee members include Tyler Trueg, Kalin Clifford, Katrina Coffey and Annie Webster. All are in the third year of Butler’s professional pharmacy program. COPHS Dean Mary Andritz and Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice Kristal Williams serve as mentors for the program.
Dy said because the clinic is entirely student-run it will provide a unique learning opportunity for her fellow committee members and other Butler pharmacy students, who will be able to experience everything from pharmacy management to one-on-one patient counseling.
“Each student that participates in the clinic will walk away not only learning about different aspects of running a pharmacy but more importantly about the different ways they can serve their community as pharmacists.”
This is actually the idea Andritz wants all of her pharmacy students to understand. “Through our public health focus we are sensitizing students to the needs of the medically underserved and expecting them to be agents of change. This pharmacy is a response to the challenge to make a difference in the lives of others.”
The BUCOP is located at 3102 E. 10th St. Hours of operation are Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. More information on the clinic can be found at www.butleroutreachpharmacy.org or by email at butleroutreachpharmacy@gmail.com.
Contact: Courtney Tuell
(317) 940-9807
ctuell@butler.edu
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