FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 17, 2017
Media Contacts:
Chad Clinton
Associate Director, Public Relations
American Pharmacists Association
(202) 429-7558
WASHINGTON, DC – The Montana Pharmacy Association (MPA) has selected Matthew R. Bowman, RPh, as the recipient of the 2017 Bowl of Hygeia Award for outstanding community service. Bowman was presented the award at the 2017 MPA Winter CE & Ski Meeting on Friday, January 6. The Bowl of Hygeia is sponsored by the American Pharmacists Association Foundation, the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations, and the American Pharmacists Association, with support from Boehringer Ingelheim.
Bowman has contributed to his community since graduating from the University of Montana in 1992 and works in the Barrett Hospital and Healthcare in Dillon, MT. Throughout Bowman's career he has held memberships in MSHP, ASHP, and MPA. He attended many meetings held by these organizations to keep current in his field and to learn about changes in pharmacy, focusing on rural hospital pharmacy practice in order to best serve the community in which he lives and works.
Bowman serves the community as a First Responder for structure fires, wildland fires, auto accidents, downed power lines, and other emergencies. He has led Fire Prevention programs for the local elementary school and for the local Girl Scout organization. He also served on the Southwest Montana YMCA Board of Directors in 2011 and 2012, working to develop a healthy environment for the community and to provide fantastic summer kids programming. The YMCA plays a huge role in promoting healthy lifestyles throughout the community.
Bowman has been a registered preceptor for the University of Montana School of Pharmacy since he began practicing pharmacy. He enjoys the interaction and opportunity to give the students a real world perspective on rural pharmacy practice.
Established in 1958, the Bowl of Hygeia Award recognizes pharmacists who possess outstanding records of civic leadership in their communities and encourages pharmacists to take an active role in the affairs of their respective communities. The award is presented annually by participating state pharmacist associations, including those in the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. In addition to service through their local, state and national pharmacy associations, award recipients have devoted their time, talent and resources to a wide variety of causes and community service.
The Bowl of Hygeia is the most widely recognized international symbol for the pharmacy profession and is considered one of the profession’s most prestigious awards. The Bowl of Hygeia has been associated with the pharmacy profession since as early as 1796 when the symbol was used on a coin minted for the Parisian Society of Pharmacy. The bowl represents a medicinal potion and the snake represents healing. Healing through medicine is precisely why the pharmacy profession has adopted the Bowl of Hygeia symbol.
About the American Pharmacists Association Foundation
The APhA Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., is a trusted source of research demonstrating how pharmacists can improve health care. The APhA Foundation’s mission is to improve people’s health through pharmacists’ patient care services. The APhA Foundation is affiliated with the American Pharmacists Association, the national professional society of pharmacists in the U.S. For more information, please visit the APhA Foundation website www.aphafoundation.org. Follow the APhA Foundation on Twitter and Facebook for the latest updates.
About the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations
The National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations (NASPA) promotes leadership, sharing, learning, and policy exchange among pharmacy leaders in all 50 states and Washington, DC, and provides education and advocacy to support pharmacists, patients, and communities working together to improve public health. NASPA was founded in 1927 as the National Council of State Pharmacy Association Executives (NCSPAE). For more information, please visit the NASPA website www.naspa.us.