It can be challenging to keep up with continuing education requirements, particularly in the midst of the pandemic, but the University of South Carolina College of Pharmacy is ready to help. Pharmacists in South Carolina are required to earn fifteen hours of continuing education annually. To support that mandatory training, the College of Pharmacy announces its annual CE activities which will be held as virtual events during March and April.
The conference normally allows for pharmacists to visit the College of Pharmacy on campus in person, but the pandemic has resulted in a transition to a virtual format. Because the conference will be virtual, it will be available to more pharmacists and technicians who need to earn CE hours regardless of where they live. “Though we will miss seeing everyone in person, we are excited to not have any caps on registration numbers due to classroom size,” says Caitlin Mardis, Pharm.D., director of continuing education and professional development for the College of Pharmacy.
Year after year, we find that participants, regardless of where they practice, really enjoy learning from our faculty experts who bring so much passion to their teaching ...
Caitlin Mardis, Pharm.D. Director of Continuing Education and Professional Development
A full day virtual event, scheduled for March 13, will cover a wide range of topics including evaluating diabetes in older adults, supporting patients with opioid use disorder, and pharmacists as first responders in the community. Additional topics will also be offered as one-hour events each Wednesday evening from March 17 through April 21, and all activities will then be available for home study credit. “Year after year, we find that participants, regardless of where they practice, really enjoy learning from our faculty experts who bring so much passion to their teaching”, says Mardis.
This year, the College is also offering a four-part live webinar series focused on pneumococcal vaccinations beginning March 2 with encore presentations of each session in March and April. Through an unrestricted educational grant from Pfizer, the College is able to provide this training free of charge to all participants. The modules will provide the rationale for the current vaccine guidelines as well as a case-based approach to selecting and recommending pneumococcal vaccines.
“At a time when some schools have moved away from supporting a continuing education program, we are grateful for the opportunity to serve our alumni, preceptors, and the rest of our pharmacy community,” says Mardis. “Whether it be through hosting our own on-campus events or by working with partner hospitals and organizations throughout the state to provide accredited activities for their employees and members, we want to make it as easy as possible for our pharmacy family to stay up to date on practice advancements and to further their continuing professional development.”
Learn more about the Annual Continuing Education Conference activities and access registration.
Learn more about the “Navigating Pneumococcal Immunization Recommendations” continuing education activities and access registration.