Throughout pharmacy school I have always looked forward to the APhA Annual Meeting & Exposition. I especially enjoy the agenda tailored just for student pharmacists. You can not only broaden your leadership skills and clinical knowledge through various programs but also meet other cohorts with the same goals and passion, making this grand gathering more enjoyable.

 

An unexpected networking coincidence during APhA2013 in Los Angeles brought me a short but priceless experience overseas. I was able to participate in medication therapy management (MTM) sessions with several patients in Hong Kong. It was definitely a very intriguing experience! 

 

As I was waiting in line to attend  an APhA2013 CE session, I started a conversation with a pharmacist behind me, which led to an invitation to visit her clinic in Hong Kong. That pharmacist was Iris Chang, Director of the Hong Kong Academy of Pharmacy, who informed me about Hong Kong’s growth in MTM services and the pharmacist’s changing role. She emphasized if I were to ever visit Hong Kong, I should contact her. She really wanted student pharmacists to provide input on today’s pharmacy practice. I also talked to her about my involvement with Generation Rx and expressed my interest in medication abuse prevention. 

 

When I de-cided to take a 2-week vacation this past summer to visit family in Hong Kong, I recalled my acquaintance with Dr. Chang and contacted her to see if I could shadow her sometime during my short stay overseas. She said yes without any hesitation, and my adventure began.

 

The MTM sessions took place in New Town Medical Centre, a family clinic that provides a wide range of physician services from primary care to bringing specialists onsite for consults. There I found both similarities to and differences from my experiences in the states. Complementary and alternative medicines play a big part of health maintenance in Asia. Although the role of modern medicine is increasingly implemented in patients’ health care regimen, pharmacists cannot disregard less familiar remedies. 

 

Hong Kong is trying to increase the incorporation of clinical pharmacy services in their health system to improve patient outcomes. By changing their pharmacy practice model and learning from some of the European countries and the United States, they hope to better provide patient-centered care. Dr. Chang was very open to hearing about what we, as student pharmacists, can contribute to the future of pharmacy.

 

MTM goals in Hong Kong are the same as in the United States: to improve patient care and health outcomes. As in any MTM session with a patient, we reviewed all the patients’ medications and counseled patients on their uses. The difference came with the amount of herbals and other remedies the patient takes. I am not just talking about “pills” but also herbals in soups, tonics, and foods. Even the lifestyle in terms of diet and exercise is much different; for example, you hear about Tai Chi and exotic foods more often than not. So when it came to counseling on lifestyle modification, our approach was a little different. I discovered there is much to learn about cultural differences and how they can affect efforts to improve patient care. 

 

So my word of advice is this: while taking advantage of planned networking events, be open to unexpected networking that occurs through chance encounters. Whether it’s an hour or a day of exploration, an opportunity like mine may not come along very often or happen again, so take advantage of it.