Michelle Huynh: "Awareness of American Pharmacists Month was spread to a larger population in a unique way."
By Michelle Huynh
Recently, I attended a wedding where the bride and groom had a large chalkboard for their wedding guests to take pictures with. I remember thinking, “What a beautiful idea!” Since the “Before I Die ...” chalkboard global art project sparked a lot of interest on social media, I thought, “Why not do something similar, but more catered toward student pharmacists?” Hence, the University of the Pacific Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences APhA–ASP Chapter decided to twist the familiar “Before I Die ...” chalkboard to a “I Am a Provider because …” chalkboard for relevancy toward student pharmacists.
Easier said than done
To be honest, the idea itself seemed easy. Initially, we thought all we would have to do was get four pieces of plyboard, somehow connect them together, and then we would be done. But, with no experience in construction and never having used a drill before, our APhA–ASP Chapter Executive Board and I were very lost and faced with challenges.
Not only did we have to deal with the challenges of not knowing what materials (hinges, nuts, etc.) to purchase, we were also faced with the challenge of having to use our long-lost physics knowledge to figure out how we would attach the four plywood pieces together so the chalkboard would be able to stand on its own. We sought advice from our school’s faculty for their opinion, and luckily, found a classmate who was experienced in construction.
Once we got the ball rolling, we were able to construct the board. However, once we finished, we were faced with yet another challenge. Per school policy, the chalkboard itself would have to meet the general safety criteria, meaning it would have to be “earthquake” proof, and since we decided to place the board inside the school building, there needed to be adequate room for a walkway for a fire exit.
The biggest challenge of all was handling the board, due to its size. The four plywood pieces were a lot heavier and taller than all of us combined. It took a lot of help just to transport the plywood from the store, get it into the school building, and hold it up. There were times when we thought about cutting the plywood to make it shorter, which would save the trouble of also not having to deal with the school safety criteria. But we decided to not take the easy way out. We had already put so much effort into constructing the board that we were not going to let these challenges get in the way of our ambitious idea. With the help of the school faculty, a talented classmate, and the executive board, my chalkboard idea came to life.
Campus comes together
At the start of American Pharmacists Month 2017, we introduced this idea to our chapter and encouraged students to take pictures with the chalkboard and post it on social media with the hashtags #IAmAProviderBecause and #APhM2017. This a great opportunity for our student community to come together to express common thoughts, and because students were encouraged to post their pictures on social media, awareness of American Pharmacists Month was spread to a larger population in a unique way.
On campus, the Speech-Language Pathology students grew interested in the project and asked for more information about the chalkboard. Not only that, but during our chapter’s Legislative Week, we collaborated with the Stockton City Council and Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs. A flu clinic was held on campus, and the mayor and city council members were invited to come receive their annual flu vaccine and take a photo with the chalkboard.
It has been approximately 1 year since our “I Am A Provider because ...” chalkboard was initiated, and I can definitely say that it was a very rewarding experience. Reading the students’ interesting stories of what motivated them to be a provider and why it is important to support Provider Status makes all the time and hard work we devoted to building the board well worth it.
After spending countless hours with chapter leaders, this project also provided us the opportunity to bond and become a close-knit board, ready to conquer the school year. I hope you have similar adventures with your 2018 activities. Have a Happy American Pharmacists Month!