In an all-new episode of Framework Focus, the podcast dedicated to Long-Term Care Pharmacy, host Dr. Mark Fulton explores high-tech pharmacy in America's heartland with Dr. Dakin Updegraff from LifeSpan Pharmacy. In this conversation, Dr. Updegraff discusses his pharmacy journey starting with his time at Butler University before launching into the pharmacy industry during the COVID-19 era.

”Pharmacy was kind of an afterthought for me. I am a first-generation college grad. I thought I would be a lawyer or a doctor,” Dakin explained. “(After visiting Butler), I fell in love with the campus and the people… which led to applying to the pharmacy school.”

Dakin graduated from pharmacy school in 2020 finishing up his clinical rotations just as the pandemic was getting underway. This caused several complications in his testing, graduating, and job hunting in the months following. After conquering those hurdles, Dakin started as a staff pharmacist with LifeSpan before transitioning into more of an operational role in October 2022.

The discussion between Mark and Dakin includes a detailed look at what it means to be an informatics pharmacist. They also explored LifeSpan Pharmacy’s innovative approach to Long-Term Care Pharmacy, including their Robotic Processing Automation team. LifeSpan currently serves approximately 2,300 beds in the Indianapolis area.

“(An informatics pharmacist) is such an undefined, new role that we’re starting to see pop up in different places.,” Dakin noted. “To me — it’s somebody that can gather, provide, refine data, and present it to make financial and clinical-based decisions… something that you can understand in a 30-minute meeting.”

Dakin later shares insights into emerging technologies shaping the profession and addresses key issues impacting long-term care pharmacy's future. Listen now for a deep dive into the intersection of pharmacy, informatics, and cutting-edge technology.

In addition to the player above, you can also listen to the full episode using one of the links below:

• Listen on Spotify

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• Listen on Apple Podcasts

Framework Focus is focused exclusively on Long-Term Care Pharmacy. We release a new episode on the second Wednesday of every month that addresses the hottest topics in LTC pharmacy through timely interviews with industry trailblazers, thought leaders, and LTC pharmacists. Follow and subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen so you do not miss an upcoming episode.