Community pharmacists to gather for annual NCPA convention

The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) will present the latest in pharmacy education, case studies, and real-world, business-oriented information for the independent community-pharmacy industry at its 112th Annual Convention and Trade Exposition taking place at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia Oct. 23 to 27.

“NCPA is committed to the success of community pharmacists by providing practical business solutions and by advocating for their best interests in legislative, regulatory, and legal arenas,” said Joseph H. Harmison, PharmD, president of NCPA and an Arlington, Texas, pharmacy owner. “Our convention programming and first-rate trade exposition continues to reflect those values.”

The convention theme - Meet. Learn. Succeed. - reflects the goals of the meeting for the representatives of more than 3,000 community pharmacies who attend each year. The 4-day convention will feature nearly 20 hours of continuing education credits for topics such as marketing, merchandising, technology, and profitable niches, including long-term care, immunizations, and compounding.

New formats this year will integrate the topical government-affairs forum into the Second General Session and add the NCPA Foundation Silent Auction to the opening-night activities. New educational programming includes sessions on 340B and diabetes education reimbursement, as well as the return of the all-day technology seminar.

The keynote speaker is Bruce Jenner, gold medalist in the decathlon at the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics and a motivational speaker. The closing-night event headlines “Saturday Night Live” alumnus and television star Jim Belushi and the Sacred Heart Band.

Convention participants cite the benefits of networking with their peers, learning from experts in the industry, and using the knowledge gained to sharpen their patient-care skills and improve their pharmacy’s performance throughout the following year. More than 70% of those surveyed said that what they learned during the convention would “pay for the trip” when they returned to their stores.