Welcome to American Pharmacists Month 2018!

On Tuesday, we enjoyed celebrating World Pharmacists Day. The event got tremendous attention on social media, so we send a shout out to all of you who took to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to spread the word. It was the perfect prelude to #APhM2018.

APhA, its members, partners, and advocates, will use this October to bring awareness throughout the month about the many ways pharmacists provide care. This year’s campaign is focused on engaging consumers and patients while still leaving room to celebrate all that pharmacists do.

Our campaign’s theme and central message is that pharmacists are “Easy to Reach and Ready to Help.” We want folks to understand the many ways pharmacists provide care. And we want to emphasize pharmacists’ accessibility and expertise in patient care. The public needs to know about your expertise with diabetes and heart disease, allergies and influenza, and much more. A short conversation or an in-depth consultation with a pharmacist can make a big difference.

If you haven’t yet, check out the #APhM2018 website at pharmacistsmonth.com. There you’ll find everything you need to get started, including posters and banners for your pharmacy, buttons to wear proudly, downloadable graphics, a media kit you can use to further spread the message on social media, and more.

As you view the campaign materials, you’ll see our focus on eight patient care scenarios where pharmacists are making a big difference. We can create an even larger impact when patients become more knowledgeable about the roles we play in medication management; immunizations; OTCs and supplements; managing diabetes, hypertension, COPD, and asthma and other chronic conditions.

We’ll be holding a news briefing on Capitol Hill to make sure our elected officials know how vital pharmacists are to taming the opioid crisis while continuing to deliver humane care to patients with chronic pain.

Make sure to share your stories about how you’ve helped a patient, and even more importantly, to encourage your patients to share experiences when a pharmacist delivered care that improved their health. Use the hashtags #APhM2018 and #pharmacistmonth on social media, and don’t forget that you can find even more ways to increase exposure at the #APhM2018 website, pharmacistsmonth.com.