BANGOR, Maine — Chances are that if you work as a pharmacist, you or a colleague will experience a robbery.
That is why Husson University has for the last three years presented a three-part seminar that gives future pharmacists information on the preventive, legal and emotional aspects of a crime they may encounter during the course of their careers.
Joshua Lawrence, director of the Husson Counseling Services Center, covered victim support and mental health counseling services during the third and final installment of the series on Monday. The idea was to help students better understand the traumatic nature of robberies, the kind of services available to victims and when to seek help for the emotional after-effects.
“I think they’ll be able to recognize their own response as appropriate and also to understand that there are resources for them and if things feel like they’re not making progress or not bouncing back, that they’ll be able to reach out and get what they need,” Lawrence said after his talk.
Pharmacy robberies are a significant problem for U.S. law enforcement and professional pharmacists. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Drug Enforcement Administration, 214 independent retail pharmacies reported armed robberies in 2012. In addition, chain pharmacies reported 56 armed robberies.
In Maine, there have been 19 pharmacy robberies so far this year, up slightly from the 13 that occurred in 2013, Maine Department of Public Safety spokesman Stephen McCausland said Monday. The state’s record of 56 pharmacy robberies was set in 2012, he said.
Recognizing the need for training, Husson University’s School of Pharmacy and School of Legal Studies joined forces this month to offer their third annual Interprofessional Pharmacy Robbery Prevention Seminar.
“This was started three years ago in reaction to all the robberies that started happening around the state,” Frank McGrady, director of the School of Pharmacy’s Office of Experiential Education and an assistant professor of pharmacy practice, said Monday afternoon as the seminar wrapped up.
“A graduate of ours who’s now a working pharmacist, he saw this as a great project. So he put this all together and he invited different people to come in — police officers, some lawyers, people from this university — and he put this program together,” McGrady said. “And it keeps evolving every year.”
The first installment of the three-part series took place on Nov. 3 and featured presentations by John Michaud, director of Husson’s School of Legal Studies, and Marie Hansen, dean of Husson University’s College of Business.
Michaud and Hansen discussed the legal aspects of pharmacy robbery crimes. This included in-depth examinations of the types of criminal charges, witness statements and the importance of preserving evidence.
On Nov. 10, Husson graduate Sgt. John O’Malley of the Scarborough Police Department spoke to the group about robbery prevention and safety.
Increased demand for prescription medications will lead to more demand for pharmaceutical services and the Maine Department of Labor projects a significant increase in pharmacy related careers in the state, Husson officials noted.