NHSHP President 2024 - Tonya Carlton, PharmD, BCPS, CPE

It is an honor to have the opportunity to serve for a second time as President of the New Hampshire Society of Health-System Pharmacists (NHSHP). 

 

Currently, I am the System Director of Clinical Pharmacy Programs at Dartmouth Health where I manage inpatient, outpatient, and pharmacy benefit management settings. My professional career began at St. Joseph’s College of Maine where I received an undergraduate degree in teaching. I taught science at the secondary level for over four years in rural Maine.  I then pursued my pharmacy degree at MCPHS University in Worcester, and graduated in 2004.  My pharmacy career started at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital (WDH), as a clinical pharmacist, where I was directly involved with patient care.  In 2016, I transitioned into a formal leadership role at WDH as the Clinical Manager of Pharmacy Services.  During the seventeen years spent at WDH, I invested time growing the number of clinical services provided by pharmacists including: discharge counseling, warfarin management, vancomycin AUC dosing, and medication reconciliation in the emergency department and preoperative setting. I am currently completing a Master of Health Administration at Saint Joseph ’s College of Maine with an anticipated graduation date of May 2024.

 

Advocating for the pharmacy profession has always been important to me and sparked my interest in participating on the NHSHP Legislative Committee in 2015.  In 2017, I joined the NHSHP Board of Directors and that same year I also served as an ASHP delegate representing New Hampshire.  In 2020, I served as NHSHP President and from 2021-2023 served again as an ASHP delegate for the state of New Hampshire.  For the past two years, I led the planning of two of NHSHP’s major CE events.  Currently, I serve on both the Education and Legislative Committees.

 

Outside of work, I am busy with my two teenage boys, ages 18 and 16, and can often be found on the sidelines of the futsal court and soccer field cheering them on.  My husband and I have been married for over 20 years and reside in Lee, NH. For fun I enjoy reading, traveling to warm climates, eating out at new restaurants, and baking. 

 

I would like to thank our immediate Past President, Keith Foster, for his leadership during one of our most successful years, as well as during the NHSHP’s pursuit of an executive management company.  NHSHP is happy to announce that we have partnered with Retail Association of Maine and Amy Downing will be our Executive Director.  Amy has experience working with both the Maine Pharmacist Association and Maine Society of Health-System Pharmacists.  We are positive that this partnership will ensure that NHSHP is able to serve our membership for years to come. 

 

Please save the date for the upcoming social, educational, and networking events for 2024.

• Cabin Fever CE Weekend-March 15-17 at North Conway Grand in North Conway
• Spring Dinner Meeting-May 30 at Puritan Backroom in Manchester
• Accelerate Continuing Education (ACE) Program-October 6 at Oscar Barn in Hooksett
• November Dinner Meeting- November 12th at Derryfield Country Club in Manchester

 

NHSHP’s advocacy efforts this year are aimed at supporting our mission of advancing patient outcomes by promoting the professional interests of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmacy residents, and pharmacy students, practicing in settings spanning the full spectrum of medication use.

 

Bills that NHSHP are currently supporting include:

·      SB 402 relative to allowing pharmacists to administer FDA approved vaccines without the explicit approval from the general court

-- Repeals the current list of vaccines and allows for pharmacists, interns, and technicians to administer FDA approved vaccines for 18 years and older.

·      SB 600 relative to the board of pharmacy

-- Adds a pharmacy technician member to the board of pharmacy and sets eligibility requirements the same as pharmacist.

·      HB1365 relative to substitution of biological products by pharmacies

 

Please consider NHSHP membership and involvement on one of our committees-Education, Legislative, Membership, Scholarship, & Finance.  Join us online at the following link: https://nhshp.org/join-us. If you have any questions or would like more information on getting involved, please contact us at amy@nhshp.org. 

 

Follow us on social media!

·      Facebook-New Hampshire Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc.

·      Instagram-@nhshpharmacists

 

On behalf of NHSHP, thank you for the work that you do every day to make a difference in the lives of your patients.  We look forward to seeing you at one of our events this year!

 

Sincerely,

 

Tonya J. Carlton, PharmD., BCPS

NHSHP President 2024