Innovations-Magazine-June-July-2022 - 16

INTERVIEW WITH A BOARD MEMBER
Denise Scarpelli, MBA, PharmD, RPh
Member, Illinois State Board of Pharmacy
When were you appointed to
the Board of Pharmacy? What
type of member are you?
I was appointed to the Board in April 2015.
I am a pharmacist and chair of the Board.
Illinois State
Board of Pharmacy
Number of Board
Members
7 pharmacist members,
2 public members,
and 1 pharmacy
technician member
Number of
Compliance
Officers/Inspectors
6
Rules & Regulations
Established by
Illinois Department
of Financial and
Professional
Regulation, Division of
Professional Regulation
Number of
Pharmacist Licensees
21,122
Number of
Pharmacies
3,879
Number of
Wholesale
Distributors
1,356
What steps should a board member
take to be successful in their role?
First, they should get to know the other
board members by developing a set of
questions to ask each member in order to
understand the board's current challenges,
what it is working on, and what the
pressing state pharmacy issues are. Second,
they need to understand the law from all
aspects of pharmacy. Many board members
tend to focus on where they actively
practice. To be successful and credible,
board members need to represent and
understand all areas of pharmacy. The last
step is to determine what training they
need and to schedule time with tenured
board members to learn about their roles.
What are some recent policies,
legislation, or regulations that
your Board has implemented?
Over the last few years, our Board has worked
on requiring meal breaks for pharmacists.
A new law was enacted a few years back
mandating lunch breaks for pharmacists
and documentation showing that this is
occurring. Another regulation that we are
working on is the expansion of the scope
of pharmacy technicians, by allowing them
to provide immunizations and including
a pharmacy technician on the Board.
Another topic being discussed in
Illinois is white bagging. A bill is being
introduced around the practice of white
bagging that would limit payers from
mandating this practice on patients.
Has the Board encountered any
challenges to developing these new
policies, legislation, or regulations?
Our Board is an advisory board. Many of
our challenges involve waiting for bills to
14 | JUNE/JULY 2022
be approved or, once they are voted in,
waiting to get the language added to the
practice act or rules. With the coronavirus
disease 2019 pandemic, things have been
moving more slowly, and it is taking a while
to get new laws added in a timely manner.
What advice would you give
to a new Board member?
The best advice I received when I was a
new Board member was to always keep the
public in mind when making a decision
for the Board and to ask if the decision will
protect the health and safety of the public.
Have you served as a member
of any NABP task forces or
committees, or attended NABP
or district meetings? If so, in
your experience, what are
the benefits of participating
in these NABP activities?
I have served on an NABP committee and
have attended every district meeting since
I joined the Board. I was advised not to
take the Board seat if I did not plan to
attend or participate in these meetings.
When I attend these meetings or serve on
committees, it gives me a chance to think
and learn from other state boards. The
meetings have allowed me to make great
friends - friends I can call on for advice and
opinions. I always ask myself if we are doing
enough as a board, and I think about what
I can take back to the Illinois Board to help
protect the health and safety of Illinoisans.
Many board members do not attend
the NABP district meetings or the Annual
Meeting. I tell new board members that it
is vital to attend these events to learn and
network. These meetings can help them
understand what other states are doing
and bring what they have learned back
to their state.
Innovations-Magazine-June-July-2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Innovations-Magazine-June-July-2022
