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Board committee weighs broader outreach to promote pharmacist consultations and translation support
Summary
The California State Board of Pharmacy’s Communication & Public Education Committee discussed expanding public outreach about pharmacist consultations — including televised segments, community partnerships and translated materials — and urged coordination across committees and community organizations.
The Communication & Public Education Committee of the California State Board of Pharmacy on June 10 discussed ways to better inform consumers about the value of a pharmacist consultation and how to highlight interpreter and translated materials.
Chair Nicole Thibo opened the discussion by noting existing resources — the Talk to an Expert campaign, a medication‑safety video, an FAQ on consulting a pharmacist and a National Association of Boards of Pharmacy link — and asked members to consider how to extend their reach beyond the board’s website.
Public commenters recommended a range of outreach approaches. Pharmacy technician Chazny Johnson urged a televised news segment to reach Californians and explained that clear expectations for consultations help patients prepare and ask the right questions. A public commenter who cited the campaign for a standardized patient prescription label recommended partnering with community groups that focus on seniors and other high‑medication‑use populations. Sean Kim of the California Pharmacist Association emphasized that the message must reach target audiences through trusted channels — community organizations, health fairs, barbershop or church settings — and offered his association’s help.
Committee members broadly favored a collaborative approach. Several members recommended coordinating work across board committees (licensing; compounding and enforcement) to avoid duplication and to share the results of prior listening sessions with consumers and pharmacists. Claudia Marcato and others suggested engaging disease‑specific and ethnic pharmacist organizations to help tailor messages and reach non‑English speakers.
On translation and interpreter services, staff reminded members that meeting materials included relevant law requiring interpreter services at no cost while a pharmacy is open and a consumer notice poster. Commenters and members said written translations must be paired with qualified verbal interpretation and that signage or short videos displayed where patients wait are more visible than posters placed out of reach. Members also emphasized the need to learn directly from consumers what they find helpful when receiving a consultation.
Next steps: members asked staff to gather and synthesize work already done by other committees and agencies, consider a living set of outreach materials that can be updated as lessons are learned, and pursue partnerships with community groups and professional associations to pilot outreach strategies.
The committee did not take formal action on materials at the meeting; members asked staff to continue refining outreach options for future consideration.
