ASHP announces courageous service awards winners

An Oklahoma pharmacist and the pharmacy department at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston have received the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists’ (ASHP’s) Chief Executive Officer’s Award for Courageous Service.

The awards, presented during the opening session of ASHP’s Summer meetings in Las Vegas, honor incidents of inspiring, unselfish service under adverse conditions.

One recipient was Barbara Poe, who was the pharmacist on duty at Moore Medical Center when a tornado ravaged Moore, Okla., on May 20, 2013.  After the tornado struck, Poe helped coordinate relief and recovery efforts.

Later, she organized a mobile pharmacy unit that provided prescription medications and vaccines to patients and volunteers displaced by the storm.  She now works at the Norman Regional Health System in Norman, Okla.

“Her courage and selflessness in the aftermath of the Moore tornado demonstrate the critical difference one person can make in a disaster response, as well as the important contributions pharmacists can make to emergency preparedness and response,” ASHP officials stated in a release.

The other award recipient was the MGH pharmacy team, which was honored for contributions to the community following the Boston Marathon bombing.

“MGH Pharmacy staff assisted in the emergency department as victims of the bombing arrived. When the city was put on lockdown as police searched for the bombers, the staff ensured the continued provision of pharmacy services to patients,” ASHP stated. “Pharmacists on disaster medical assistance teams, who were on site at the finish line expecting to treat typical race issues of dehydration and dizziness, were suddenly taking care of runners and spectators injured by the bombing, providing both medical and psychological support.”