President’s Report: Getting Involved with PTSA
The very first experience I had volunteering with my professional organization was planning the Tech Talk events hosted by the former Alberta Chapter of CAPT. That involved selecting topics I thought would be of interest to pharmacy technicians, finding expert speakers, sourcing sponsorship and planning the logistics. Since that time I’ve had the privilege of experiencing just about every volunteer opportunity PTSA has to offer from continuing education development, website administration and communications, providing consultation responses and developing position statements, participating in promotional campaigns like Pharmacy Awareness Week, working with other organizations and several board positions. Even after my term as President ends in September, I’m sure I will continue volunteering my time to contribute to the success of our organization and pharmacy technician profession. I know much more now than I did almost 20 years ago when I first started planning Tech Talks, but what I remember the most from when I fist started volunteering is that it was okay that I didn’t know everything (probably very little in fact). All of the pharmacy technicians and pharmacy assistants that came before me were more than willing to share their knowledge and provide me with the support I needed to learn the ropes.
Our organization is 100% volunteer resourced. That means it’s pharmacy technicians and assistants like you and I that keep things going. Since most of us have our day jobs, families, friends, hobbies, and other personal commitments it may seem unrealistic to find a great amount of time to contribute to volunteering with PTSA. And while that time may be different for each person, the great thing is that there are opportunities no matter how much time you have to give. It also means that the more volunteers we have, the easier it is to share the work.
Opportunities like what I started with – planning education events – are still available through the Techs in Touch CE Events and Conference Planning committees. As we’re growing the quantity and quality of continuing education that is available there are even more opportunities to help develop continuing education through authoring, reviewing, and online course development. Advocacy and promoting our profession are two strategic areas that have grown in recent years and have many opportunities to get involved. We need many pharmacy technicians and assistants involved in this work from all practice settings to ensure broad representation of our profession. Pharmacy technicians are the pharmacy compounding experts and there are also opportunities to develop the tools to support this growing practice through our new Compounding Task Force. And of course we can’t forget the opportunity to step up and lead our organization by running for election to the board. Click here for more information about what opportunities exist and how to express your interest.
Now that the board election and volunteer recruitment process has begun, you’ll see communications over the next several months highlighting the work PTSA does and the opportunities available. I hope you will take the time to consider what would be a good fit for you. Not only do volunteers keep our organization running, I can personally attest to the resulting personal satisfaction and professional growth. Watch for more information over the next several months from those that have given time to volunteering with PTSA or put your questions into the comments section below.