Posted by Mary Wimberley on 2011-09-01

 

 

Samford University’s McWhorter School of Pharmacy will hold a continuing education program for pharmacists, “Psychological First Aid,” Tuesday, Sept. 13, 5:30-8 p.m., at Senior Care Pharmacy in Tuscaloosa.

The program is designed to teach pharmacists and technicians the skills necessary to care for patients who have experienced a traumatic or disastrous event.  Presenter is Mark Westfall, M.D., a psychiatrist in private practice in Birmingham.

“Healthcare workers in disaster areas see the effects of such events long after the event has passed,” said McWhorter continuing education director Dr. Susan P. Alverson, adding that the upcoming program is an  effort to aid Tuscaloosa pharmacists who continue to support patients.

Pharmacists will learn the biology behind fear response and psychological trauma, clinical strategies to reduce the impact of psychological trauma, and current pharmacological approaches to treating psychological trauma.

Technicians will learn how the body’s natural response to trauma can lead to emotional symptoms, basic strategies for reducing the impact of psychological trauma, and to identify useful medications for trauma.

The event is free to Tuscaloosa pharmacists as part of Samford’s effort to assist area pharmacies.  For more information or to register, call (205) 726-2722.

The same topic will be presented in a three-hour program in Birmingham at Samford on September 25. There will be a small charge for that program

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 6,101 students from 45 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.