My name is Carole Girard and following my travel grant confirmation for the attendance of the CAPhO 2018 conference, here are my thoughts regarding the marvelous time I spent during that weekend.
I attended many of the symposia over the weekend (10 in total). My first impression is that there is more than one way to do things. Every health center presented ideas and techniques aimed at accomplishing their various specific pharmacy tasks in different and creative ways. It was fascinating to see how each adapted to their own situations, some having bigger budgets, more patients, resources, or restrictions. There is no such thing as one solution fits all.
One of my objectives in going to this conference was to learn about ways to reduce time lost in our day-to-day workflow. Facts showed me that it couldn’t be entirely eliminated. Every facility is having the same issues and is trying, like we are, to reduce them. Some of the proposed solutions involve a lot more staff related cost (i.e. extra biologist) to reduce the waste of medicine. Is the trade-off worth it? It seems to still be unclear so far. Some centers use other type of adaptors (Phaseal™) that reduces contamination of vial, but they are more expensive; yet another trade off to look into.
I really appreciated the exhibits and posters. I met suppliers that were more than eager to explain the benefit of their product to help us in our work. They ranged from expensive an robot, to inexpensive double layer gloves. The robot especially held my attention as it met my concerns for the safety and wellbeing of my co-worker in the sterile room. Glad that it’s available, but pricey.
Meeting with other technicians was a definite highlight. I was glad to be able to learn and compare the workload from other facilities. All in all, it’s basically all the same. On the same topic, The CAPhO conferences would benefit from having more symposiums, which are specifically designed and focused on technicians needs. We are the right hands of the pharmacist and they would gain a lot if more subjects regarding our daily tasks would be addressed. It would maybe also bring more technicians to this conference.
In conclusion, my expectations were met and this will greatly help me in my daily work. More specifically, in coaching my fellow technicians and in helping pharmacists do their work for the wellbeing of the patient.