2020 Presidential Address
by Melissa Theesfeld, PharmD
"Good morning, everyone, and thank you for taking time to tune in to this firstever “virtual” presidential address. I am honored to be your PSW president and to represent the pharmacists, technicians, and students of our profession across all practice settings in Wisconsin. I have to admit that when Matt Mabie first called me last summer to tell me the results of the PSW presidential election, I was pretty nervous. One of the first thoughts that went through my head was, “What if I trip going up the stairs to the stage to give my speech?!” Luckily, I guess,COVID-19 has solved that problem for me and virtual meetings mean that I don’t have to worry about getting up on a stage right now…I just have to stay put in front of my camera and hope the lighting is okay! The next thought that went through my head was, “What on earth am I going to talk about?!” COVID-19 and all of the other significant events of 2020 have, I guess, also taken care of that for me! The first eight months of 2020 have certainly given us much to talk about, healthcare workers and as a society. It’s almost hard to remember life when we didn’t know what “flatten the curve” and “social distancing” meant. Every aspect of our professional and personal lives has been upended. Virtual teaching and learning for our kids, virtual healthcare visits for our patients, and virtual professional meetings are the new norm in our COVID-19 world. Like all of you, I wish we could be together in person at the Kalahari Resort to learn, network, and socialize in person, like we have for so many years previously. We all know as healthcare providers that it’s the right decision for us to gather virtually right now. But that doesn’t mean it’s an easy pill to swallow."
Keywords: Wisconsin, COVID-19, Pharmacists, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, Learning, Hope, Students, Mental Recall
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2020 November/December Table of Contents
"Good morning, everyone, and thank you for taking time to tune in to this firstever “virtual” presidential address. I am honored to be your PSW president and to represent the pharmacists, technicians, and students of our profession across all practice settings in Wisconsin. I have to admit that when Matt Mabie first called me last summer to tell me the results of the PSW presidential election, I was pretty nervous. One of the first thoughts that went through my head was, “What if I trip going up the stairs to the stage to give my speech?!” Luckily, I guess,COVID-19 has solved that problem for me and virtual meetings mean that I don’t have to worry about getting up on a stage right now…I just have to stay put in front of my camera and hope the lighting is okay! The next thought that went through my head was, “What on earth am I going to talk about?!” COVID-19 and all of the other significant events of 2020 have, I guess, also taken care of that for me! The first eight months of 2020 have certainly given us much to talk about, healthcare workers and as a society. It’s almost hard to remember life when we didn’t know what “flatten the curve” and “social distancing” meant. Every aspect of our professional and personal lives has been upended. Virtual teaching and learning for our kids, virtual healthcare visits for our patients, and virtual professional meetings are the new norm in our COVID-19 world. Like all of you, I wish we could be together in person at the Kalahari Resort to learn, network, and socialize in person, like we have for so many years previously. We all know as healthcare providers that it’s the right decision for us to gather virtually right now. But that doesn’t mean it’s an easy pill to swallow."
Keywords: Wisconsin, COVID-19, Pharmacists, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, Learning, Hope, Students, Mental Recall
Download PDF
2020 November/December Table of Contents