Local pharmacy director honored

Gayle Mayer, director of Pharmacy Services at Spencer Hospital (second from left), was recently named Iowa's Health System Pharmacist of the Year. Also pictured: Carl Chalstrom, IPA president; Nancy Bell, Pfizer U.S.; and Kate Gainer, IPA CEO. (Photo submitted)

The Iowa Pharmacy Association (IPA) announced the 2012 recipient of the Health-System Pharmacist of the Year Award is Gayle Mayer, RPh, director of Pharmacy Services at Spencer Hospital. The award was presented at the Association's 2012 Annual Meeting Banquet on June 23 in West Des Moines.

"Gayle has been an innovative leader in the pharmacy profession for many years," Bill Bumgarner, Spencer Hospital president, said. "We value the expertise she has brought to Spencer Hospital as well as the many contributions Gayle and the pharmacy department team have made to ensure optimal care and service for our patients."

Mayer, of Spirit Lake, has been a leader in the profession as demonstrated through her professional association roles -- currently serving on the IPA Board of Trustees and Health-system Liaison Board. Her leadership extends beyond these roles as she has implemented a number of innovative projects at Spencer Hospital.

The most recent innovation is the first Tech-Check-Tech project in Iowa that has been approved by the Board of Pharmacy. Mayer's additional efforts and leadership in this area make her and Spencer Hospital an outstanding role model for other health systems. She has assisted the technicians in her hospital and other practice settings to become certified long before it was required. She has lead efforts with the local community college to develop a pharmacy technician program and is currently co-director of the program.

Her nominator stated, "I have been inspired by Gayle. Her energy and passion for pharmacy is contagious. I am in awe of all the great things she has done in a small rural hospital. She is a role model for students and devoted to making technicians better, and is willing to share her experiences with others."

"Gayle is a health-system pharmacist who has elevated the level of practice in the state of Iowa and has had a positive influence on other health-systems pharmacies, pharmacy technicians and student pharmacists," Kate Gainer, executive vice president of the Iowa Pharmacy Association, said.

Mayer's professional leadership roles include: current president of NW Iowa Pharmacy Association; current Board of Trustees member of Iowa Pharmacy Association; current member of Health Systems Liaison Board/IPA; appointed member of Iowa Patient Safety Task Force; Adjunct professor and co-coordinator of Iowa Lakes Community College Pharmacy Tech Diploma program; and, Adjunct faculty with Drake University, University of Iowa, Creighton University, South Dakota State University, and University of Missouri/Kansas City.

The Health-System Pharmacist of the Year Award is a national awards program sponsored by Pfizer Pharmaceuticals.

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Local pharmacy director honored