FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 20, 2017
Media Contacts:
Chad Clinton
Associate Director, Public Relations
American Pharmacists Association
(202) 429-7558
WASHINGTON, DC – The Kansas Pharmacists Association (KPhA) has selected Merlin McFarland, RPh, as the recipient of the 2017 Bowl of Hygeia Award for outstanding community service. McFarland was presented the award at the 2017 Annual Meeting on Saturday, September 30. 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.
McFarland has contributed to his community since graduating from the KU School of Pharmacy in 1971. He is the independent community pharmacy owner of Kingman Drug and has been a huge part of his community in Kingman for many years. McFarland is currently serving as Mayor of Kingman, sits on the Kansas Pharmacy Foundation Board as Past President of the Kansas Pharmacists Association, and has served as past President of the Kansas Board of Pharmacy for two six-year terms and past President of the Kansas Independent Pharmacy Service Corporation.
McFarland has served as City Commissioner twice, has been a member of the Lion's Club for 40 years, and is associated with the Kingman Airport Board, Kingman Planning and Zoning Board, Kingman County Economic Development Commission, Recreation Commission. He is the past President of the Chamber of Commerce, having served 43 years. While on the Recreation Commission, McFarland helped coach little league ball teams and has sponsored several teams over the years.
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.