Glen J Pearson
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Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.
—Barack Obama
As I write this, the season is changing from summer to fall across our beautiful country, and we all are touched by the premonition of winter. Predictably, winter will arrive and eventually relent, and we will then anticipate the changes and bright new beginnings that come with the arrival of spring. This rhythm of the seasons is a constant cycle, and the changes it brings to our climate and natural physical environment are predictable. Conversely, it is very unlikely that change will occur with as much predictability, or as effortlessly, in our personal and professional lives. Likewise, organizational change can only be successful if there is deliberate identification, preparation, and communication of the change initiative (for more information about the concepts of successful organizational change, see the report of ESI International, at www.esi-intl.co.uk/resource_centre/white_papers/the%20change%20management%20life%20cycle.pdf).
Within our rapidly changing health care system, the environment and constituents served by the Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists (CSHP) mandate that the organization continually evaluate its efforts and strategic directions to maintain viability and organizational success. As for other professional organizations, some of the key drivers of change within CSHP include shifting economic conditions, the evolving landscape and marketplace of health care delivery in Canada, changing member needs, provincial/territorial and/or federal regulatory and guideline amendments to the professional practice of hospital pharmacy, and the availability of new technology.
The most notable example of recent organizational change within CSHP was the sunsetting, after 68 years, of the Summer Educational Sessions (SES), formerly known as the Annual General Meeting and Educational Sessions. The final edition of this long-standing CSHP conference took place in Ottawa from August 15 to 18, 2015. The termination of this meeting came about through careful adherence to the steps of organizational change: identify the change, engage the volunteers and members, and implement the change. Given the decrease in pharmacists’ participation in national CSHP education events, the increase in Society costs (in terms of both finances and time) to organize 2 large educational events each year, and other factors, a task force recommended this strategy, and planning for the final SES in 2015 occurred over a number of years. Although I was well aware that this change was coming, I am still mourning the end of CSHP’s longest-running educational program. Of note, contemporary research (as reported by ESI International) has confirmed that, although change has personal and emotional aspects, it also has a neurological effect, which provides me some solace during this period.
Personally, I have always derived the greatest professional satisfaction from my interaction with colleagues from across the country at the various social opportunities during the SES. I am confident that CSHP, as a professional organization, will find a new way to ensure that this rich history of opportunities for networking and socializing among colleagues and pharmacy leaders across the country is preserved. With every change comes the opportunity for a new beginning!
Canadian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy, VOLUME 68, NUMBER 5, September-October 2015