Scott Knoer, Pharm.D., can tell you the date – 1240 AD – when King Frederick II of Hohenstaufen officially separated the practice of pharmacy from the practice of medicine. It’s no mere bit of trivia to this health care leader: It’s a reminder of the continued push-pull between the professions – a reminder that drives Dr. Knoer, as the CEO of the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), to unify the two healing professions for the good of all patients.

Dr. Knoer was the speaker for the Jan. 13 presentation of VITALS, the NEOMED series featuring innovative leaders in health care.

From 2011-2020, as the chief pharmacy officer at Cleveland Clinic, Dr. Knoer’s role was to lead pharmacists in supporting physicians and patients alike. Today, we see expanding knowledge in pharmacy and a continued shortage of primary care physicians, he told VITALS listeners. As APhA’s executive vice president and CEO, Dr. Knoer sees a solution: He advocates for pharmacists to be given provider status.

During his presentation at the noontime webinar, Dr. Knoer cited research to support his arguments, whether he was discussing the need he sees for pharmacy benefit management (PBM) reform, to reduce racial disparities in health care, or to restore joy to a profession where burnout has taken a toll.

Following Dr. Knoer’s webinar presentation, Dr. Knoer answered audience questions moderated by Betty Lin-Fisher, medical reporter and consumer columnist of the Akron Beacon Journal. He encouraged students watching the webinar to get involved as advocates for their profession – for example, by attending Student Legislative Day in Columbus.

If you step up to ask, he said, APhA will teach you how.

 Listen to Scott Knoer, Pharm.D., Jan. 17, 2022

MORE

• Register for VITALS Feb. 3 with Ezekiel Emanuel, M.D., Vice Provost of Global Initiatives, the University of Pennsylvania.
• NEOMED’s College of Pharmacy
• How to become a pharmacist