 Melissa Murer Corrigan, PH’89 |
Drake University has named alumna Melissa Murer Corrigan, PH’89, executive director and CEO of the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board, as the 2010 recipient of Drake’s Lawrence C. and Delores M. Weaver Medal of Honor.
The award, which is the highest honor presented by Drake’s College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, recognizes Corrigan’s dedication and service to Drake and to the pharmacy profession. Lawrence Weaver, a 1949 pharmacy graduate who is dean emeritus of the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy, and his wife, Delores, established the Weaver Medal of Honor.
Since the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board’s (PTCB) founding in 1995, Corrigan has overseen its growth, operations and national certification program. PTCB has certified more than 360,000 pharmacy technicians nationwide and offers the most recognized pharmacy technician certification program in the country.
Corrigan, who recently was recognized at a special reception Saturday, March 13, in Washington, D.C., at the annual meeting of the American Pharmacists Association, also will be honored on Drake’s campus. On Wednesday, April, 21, Corrigan will receive the Weaver Medal and deliver the Weaver Lecture titled, “Making a Difference.”
During her lecture, Corrigan will share experiences from building PTCB and offer insight on the pharmacy profession. Today, most Americans who either fill prescriptions at a local pharmacy or receive medication in a hospital directly benefit from the board’s technician certification.
The lecture, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 2 p.m. in Sheslow Auditorium, Old Main, 2507 University Ave. A reception will follow from 3:30-5 p.m. in the Cowles Library Reading Room, 2725 University Ave.
Pharmacy technicians play a critical role in patient safety — they prepare and dispense medications, maintain patient records and are accountable to supervising pharmacists. The board offers the only pharmacy technician certification that is endorsed by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, the American Pharmacists Association and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. More than 40 states regulate pharmacy technicians and the majority of those endorse PTCB’s certification.
Corrigan served for six years on the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences National Advisory Council. She began her career as a staff pharmacist at Walgreen Co. in Deerfield, Ill. She went on to work as marketing research associate with the American Red Cross and project manager for the American Pharmaceutical Association’s Scope of Pharmacy Practice project.
A recognized leader in credentialing and health care certification, Corrigan received the National Organization for Competency Assurance’s Certification Industry Leadership Award in 2008. She is president-elect for the Institute for Credentialing Excellence, formerly the National Organization for Competency Assurance, for which she served on the Board of Directors. She also served for three years as president of the Board of Directors for the Council on Credentialing Pharmacy. In addition,
Corrigan was named one of six emerging leaders making a difference in health-system pharmacy by the Hospital Pharmacist Report in 2000.
Corrigan has written and co-authored 20 works for publications such as Pharmacy Practice for Technicians, American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy and the Journal of the American Pharmaceutical Association, among others. She also has given more than 100 presentations at international, national and state professional meetings and conferences.
To make a gift in honor of Melissa Corrigan, visit https://wwww.drake.edu/alumni/support/onlinegiving.php. When prompted, please select “Annual Fund 2010A/College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences,” and in the comments box, type “Melissa Corrigan.” Gifts can also be made by calling Emily Hamilton at 515-271-4049.