Thursday, March 31, 2011
Generosity
You see so much about human character and how important our efforts to find cures and raise money for patient support really are. Many people will not look at you in the eyes, and others will completely ignore you. Don't despair, and don't judge. The economy isn't great and people in Ann Arbor are constantly asked for money on the street by other Relay for Lifers, the homeless, and countless other organizations.
The next group of people are the ones that acknowledge you and either say good luck or explain that they don't carry cash. You thank them anyways, and always have a smile, because they might remember you and give in the future to somebody.
Last, there are those who actually donate. Nobody does this wanting anything other than a thank you, and some are even embarrassed when you express your gratitude. Many just walk by and put a dollar or some change into your purple bucket. Others put in a few dollars since they just got out of a store or feel extra gracious that day. Then there are others who "make you work for it". They ask who you are and what you are doing, to ensure their money is going towards a noble cause. When I say, "We're raising money for cancer research.", I have never had anybody close their wallet. The last group is the people who had, or have, or lost somebody to cancer. This group is so gracious for what we are doing. These people put a face to the efforts we are putting forth, and encourage us, as our efforts also give them hope.
So, if you've never bucketed, do so. Run a little psychology experiment of your own design. Go out and talk to strangers for a cause. Get to see and actually meet some of the people that we are doing this for.
Matthew Lewis
PharmD Candidate Class of 2012
Saturday, March 26, 2011
14 Days To Go: Makin' Some Moves!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Unity
In my previous post, I said cancer can seriously harm a family. That certainly is true in terms of the cost of money and quality of life, even if the person goes into remission. However, many times a family will rally around the cancer patient; estranged family members put aside differences, families tighten their belts to ensure treatment is an option, the cancer, and the possible loss of a life supersedes all petty things (most of the time). Then, if the time comes where nothing more can be done, like it did for my grandmother, who died a few years ago on Good Friday from metastasized breast cancer, the family is united in grief to try to fill that void the cancer carved out.
Relay for Life does not just help fund all varieties of cancer research, it helps families cope with the cost of care. This organization helps survivors, like my Uncle who is in remission from Hodgkin's lymphoma, live a little better life as they grow stronger day by day. Our team effort put forth by the Pill Pushers helps those family "teams" to have access to care support and grief groups. This is why I Relay.
Matthew Lewis
PharmD Candidate Class of 2012
related links:
Peer Support Network- one of many help groups for caregivers, patients, and survivors. You can also find groups using the American Cancer Society webpages, Livestrong, and from Google searches (http://peersupportnetwork.org/)
Here's a page highlighting breast cancer support groups in particular all around Michigan. (http://www.karmanos.org/detroitraceforthecure/support.asp)
A news story about one boy and his "team". Link not posted to avoid spoilers.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Networking Auction - Live Blogging!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Why We're Here and A Little Bit About Us.
Welcome to the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy Relay for Life blog.
To make it easier on all of us, I’ll just use our Relay for Life team nickname, The Pill Pushers, when referring to our team. We are University of Michigan pharmacy students and our Relay for Life team is committed to raising money to advance cancer research. So … What do pharmacists know about cancer? We don’t diagnose it. We don’t run tests for it. We can’t possibly understand how complicated it is, right?
Wrong.
Pharmacists contribute greatly to cancer research and all forms of cancer care. Some of us even specialize in cancer treatment and management. Most large and many medium-sized hospitals have a hematology/oncology pharmacist specialist (or two) on staff to help the oncologist select the best cancer-fighting medications. We remain current with all the new treatments; and special order, prepare, and dispense these medications. But that’s not all. We also help patients manage any side effects of chemotherapy medications.
As the public’s most accessible health care professional, community pharmacists are first line care providers. If a patient fills a prescription at the same pharmacy every month (or more often), chances are very good that the patient and the pharmacist(s) know each other well. So if a pharmacist notices something about the patient — a sudden unexplained loss of weight, a chronic cough, a sore that won’t heal, or many other symptoms — the pharmacist is ideally placed to refer his patient to an oncologist. That’s important, because early detection is key to treatment.
Cancer is a scary disease. It kills individuals, often runs in families, and often inflicts deep emotional and physical trauma on everybody involved with a patient. Even the medications used to treat cancer have toxic side effects due to the nature of them.
But we can beat this complex set of diseases by working together — and that’s what the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life is all about.
There are an estimated 11.7 million people in the U.S. with cancer. If our fundraising efforts can help medical science find a cure or prevention for cancer, or even contribute to the development of better medications, we will have helped some of those 11.7 million people live longer, better lives.
So please join us in the fight against cancer. Donate to our Michigan Pharmacy team. You’ve already taken an important step in that direction by reading this blog. Take the next step: Support the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy Pill Pushers. Whatever you can give. If you can't give money, that's okay, just donate some of your time to learn about the disease for now and continue coming back for more insight and to see how we are doing. Help keep our momentum going.
Every gift counts. Help us put the Big Chill on the Big C.
Matthew Lewis
PharmD Candidate Class of 2012
Related links:
• Relay for Life Homepage (http://college.relayforlife.org/)
• American Cancer Society (http://www.cancer.org/index)
• Livestrong: Established by cancer survivor and seven-time winner of the Tour de France, Lance Armstrong (http://www.livestrong.org/)
Monday, March 7, 2011
Relay for Life: 33 Days To Go!
- Relay for Life: April 9 - 10
- Goal: $15,000 (Currently raised $2,815 - 19%)
- P4 Relayers: 1
- P3 Relayers: 17
- P2 Relayers: 6
- P1 Relayers: 8
- Bucketing: Taking place NOW until April 7. There are still lots of spots available!
- Networking Auction: Monday, March 14 at 5:30pm. Bid on 14 different COP faculty auctioning off different events with them such as dinner, a home cooked meal, and even a fishing trip!
- Mongolian BBQ Fundraiser: Tuesday, March 15 from 6-9pm. $20 (one bowl) or $25 (unlimited) along with one nonalcoholic drink, unlimited soup/salad, tax, and tip. See your class representative.
- PDC: Dominick Rutherford, Rachel Lebovic, Liz Kelly
- APhA: Matt Lewis, Jackie O'Connor
- HSP: Jessica Fong, Erin Gulbranson
- ISPOR: Tony Lin, Krystal Sheerer, Macey Edson
- PSGC: Jordan Smith, Bernie Marini
- SNPhA: Tanvi Khanpara, Jessica Chen