John M. Lonie, R.Ph, Ed.D, an associate professor of social and administrative sciences at Long Island University’s Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, discussed the changing role of pharmacists in improving patient health as the keynote speaker at the recent International Social Pharmacy Workshop (ISPW) held on July 23-26 in Leuven, Belgium.
The ISPW is a biennial conference for scientists from all over the world that focuses on the psychosocial aspects of medication use and the resulting policy implications on health systems around the globe. The theme of the ISPW 2018 conference was the changing landscape of social pharmacy: balancing safety, technology, efficiency and outcomes.
In his keynote address, Professor Lonie talked about how pharmacists can help patients learn to alter their unhealthy lifestyles and habits. By employing the principles of health coaching, he said that pharmacists can increase their patients’ adherence to taking their medication, which is reportedly a serious issue in the U.S. For various chronic medications, the non-adherence rates in America can average 40-60 percent.
At the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Lonie’s research interests are focused on teaching and learning strategies in pharmacy education as well as on helping patients’ change unhealthy behavior.
