Welcome to McKesson ideaShare

Drug Topics: Hello! And welcome to our ongoing coverage of McKesson ideaShare 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. McKesson ideaShare is the nation’s premier community pharmacy destination, and that sentiment is certainly reinforced by all the exciting activities and programs McKesson has planned for this year’s event.

Focusing on the theme of community resiliency in the city of New Orleans, the McKesson ideaShare exhibit floor, which is modeled with the elements of every hometown, captures the meeting’s theme perfectly. Highlighting specific areas of pharmacy ownership including profitability, front-end and clinical solutions, health equity initiatives, and supply chain, even the general layout of the exhibit floor speaks to the importance of community for independent pharmacists.

One of the exhibit floor highlights includes McKesson’s very own private brand of OTC products, Foster & Thrive. Launched at last year’s McKesson ideaShare meeting, Foster & Thrive has seen notable growth in its first year and was excited to announce a new line of eco-friendly products made of 70% less plastic and are highly recyclable.

Two other key highlights of McKesson ideaShare’s impressive exhibit hall is the new Health Mart Marketing Edge and 150+ non-McKesson exhibitors. Through Health Mart Marketing Edge, stores can access up to $2,400 a year in matching funds to boost their local marketing efforts. It offers a number of programs like turn-key marketing campaigns, search and digital campaigns for customer targeting, 60 plus online directory opportunities, branded merchandise and local event support. Beyond McKesson solutions, attendees can discover solutions from more than 150 exhibitors, offering innovative tools and resources to add to their business. Don’t forget to stop by and visit Drug Topics at booth 304.

At the General Opening Session, titled “Igniting and Inspiring Independents,” held in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center’s Great Hall, the host of the evening—Grammy-nominated jazz musician Dr. Brice Miller—kicked things off by introducing McKesson’s President of Strategic, Community, and Specialized Pharmacy, Scott Miller. The opening session was an exciting welcome to attendees of this year’s meeting, providing an interactive preview of what’s to come.

The kick-off activity at this year’s opening session asked attendees how they want to feel when leaving McKesson ideaShare; the most the common answer was that attendees were hoping to feel “empowered.” Miller then dove into some inspiring stories about successful independent pharmacies who have worked with McKesson. One of those stories was Stockmen’s Drug in Gordon, Nebraska, and its inspiring owner Helen Ianello.

The opening session also featured Jeanine Singer, Senior Vice President of National and Key Accounts & Field Sales, and Crystal Lennartz, President of Health Mart and Health Mart Atlas. The trio of opening session presenters helped welcome one of the most anticipated highlights of McKesson ideaShare: the nominees for the 2024 Health Mart Pharmacy of the Year.

The Health Mart Pharmacy of the Year is awarded to independent pharmacies with clinical and business excellence that go above and beyond to serve their respective communities and further the pharmacy practice. This year’s nominees include Dreier Pharmacy of Shawano, Wisconsin; Creswell Health Mart Pharmacy of Creswell, Oregon; and Hayden Pharmacy of Hayden, Alabama. Meeting attendees are voting for this year’s Pharmacy of the Year winner and the honoree will be announced on the final day of the conference.

With so many insightful sessions throughout the week—from Pharma Talks covering revenue generation and immunization to numerous continuing education sessions—McKesson ideaShare 2024 gives attendees an authentic picture of what independent pharmacy is really about, and that’s community.

So stick with Drug Topics through June 26th for our ongoing coverage of McKesson ideaShare live from New Orleans. Thanks for tuning in, and get ready for the exciting stories and sessions presented at this year’s ever-anticipated meeting.

Click here to check out more of our coverage from McKesson ideaShare 2024.