Photo By Patricia Rose | Petty Officer 3rd Class Abygail Roepke, Navy Pharmacy’s 2017 Junior Pharmacy...... read more read more
Exacting precision, commitment, and efficiency are the necessary ingredients to be a top pharmacy technician in military medicine, and Petty Officer 3rd Class Abygail Roepke has that in spades.
Roepke, who was recently selected as Navy Pharmacy’s 2017 Junior Pharmacy Technician of the Year is considered a superstar here at Naval Hospital Oak Harbor (NHOH). An astute technician with maturity beyond her years, she has filled multiple roles expected of a seasoned professional to include inpatient technician, supply technician and Lead Petty Officer.
Probably her most daunting challenge, and one that has ramifications for all of the Military Health System, was her role as an MHS GENESIS Super User. She developed workflows delineating Pharmacy processes and the roles required to build effective systems and ensure uncompromised safety and efficacy. Roepke’s ability to articulate all aspects of Pharmacy processes to non-Pharmacy system engineers was crucial to the development of a viable system.
Roepke also conveyed how proposed changes would affect customers such as nurses, providers, and patients. Her contributions directly enabled the creation of 44 detailed Pharmacy workflows, paving the way for MHS GENESIS implementation at NHOH. These workflows will carry forward to future implementation sites, providing them a head start on preparation and establishing the launch pad for enterprise standardization and high-reliability across the Navy and DoD. While the work of deploying MHS GENESIS to all military medical facilities has just begun, Roepke’s input and coordination is at the forefront of making it better.
The NHOH Pharmacy serves the hospital and fills prescriptions for over 20,000 beneficiaries in the Whidbey Island area. Roepke works with a team of five pharmacists and 16 other pharmacy technicians. The Pharmacy fills about 175,000 prescriptions a year.
In her letter recommending Roepke for the Navy-wide recognition, Pharmacy Department Head, Lt. Mindy Paturzzio, lauded Roepke’s professionalism, enthusiasm, and her continual efforts for self-improvement. Paturzzio, a pharmacist who relies heavily on the support provided through her technicians, said Roepke “exhibits the traits we wish all junior Sailors could display, and embodies the type of petty officer all department heads fervently hope to have running the deck plate.”
Roepke also volunteers as the Lead Petty Officer of the Sexual Assault Forensic Examinations (SAFE) team, providing physical, mental, and emotional support to victims of sexual assault. Her genuine care and diligence is noteworthy as she recruits and trains new SAFE team members. Remembering the gravity and trepidation she first felt as the initial caring party for a victim of sexual assault, she uses her experience and empathy to guide her team in providing the highest level of care possible for their patients.
Roepke, who will be officially recognized later this fall at the Joint Federal Pharmacy Seminar, takes immense pride in wearing the Navy uniform and has consistently expressed the desire to deploy to an operational setting or ship. “I joined the Navy to serve my country...and to be a part of something bigger than myself”, said Roepke.
According to NHOH Command Master Chief Jeffery L. Dell, "Petty Officer 3rd Class Roepke represents not only the finest of pharmacy technicians in Navy Medicine, but also the best of our Hospital Corp and Sailors serving globally, providing world class healthcare, anytime...anywhere."
| Date Taken: | 08.25.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 08.25.2017 12:26 |
| Story ID: | 245999 |
| Location: | OAK HARBOR, WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 1,479 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Naval Hospital Oak Harbor Pharmacy Tech Earns Top Honor, by Patricia Rose, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
