September 2026
Dear Colleagues,
I hope everyone has had a chance to enjoy some of the summer and find a little time away from the pace of our day-to-day work. As we start a new volunteer year, I have been thinking about how fortunate I have been to be part of ASHP and the Section of Specialty Pharmacy Practitioners for many years. I have met wonderful colleagues and friends, learned from practitioners across the country, and had opportunities that have shaped my own practice and career. I continue to be impressed by the expertise, creativity, and generosity of the people who make this community what it is, and I am grateful for the opportunity to serve alongside all of you this year.
There is certainly plenty for us to talk about. Specialty pharmacy continues to grow in size, scope, and complexity, while the marketplace around us seems to change just as quickly. Medication access, regulatory changes, payer mandates, a changing workforce, and the growing role of technology and artificial intelligence are just a few of the issues our teams are navigating every day.
For me, these challenges reinforce the value of having a community like SSPP. Health-system specialty pharmacy is uniquely positioned at the intersection of patients, providers, payers, manufacturers, and health systems. We see firsthand the barriers patients encounter when accessing complex therapies, and our teams have developed innovative ways to overcome them. As the specialty pharmacy landscape continues to evolve, we have an opportunity not only to respond to change, but to help shape what comes next.
One of the greatest strengths of SSPP is that we do not have to tackle these challenges alone. Our members represent health systems across the country, from developing specialty pharmacy programs to mature enterprises, and bring a tremendous amount of collective experience to the table.
I know personally that one of the most valuable aspects of participating in Section work is the networking and sharing of best practices that happens within our individual Section Advisory Groups. Some of the best conversations happen when colleagues have the opportunity to talk openly about what they are seeing in their own practices, share what has worked, and learn from the experiences of others. This year, we hope to broaden those conversations and create more opportunities for members across our groups to connect with and learn from one another.
One way we will do that is through the new SSPP Virtual Roundtable Series. Throughout the 2026-2027 volunteer year, our Section Advisory Groups and Committees will host virtual sessions designed to bring volunteers together across groups for networking, relationship-building, and discussion of timely issues facing specialty pharmacy. We will kick off the series this August by bringing our volunteers together to celebrate the accomplishments of the past year, meet colleagues from across the Section, and start building connections for the year ahead.
Our Section is also continuing to evolve alongside specialty pharmacy practice. This year marks the launch of a new Infusion Services Section Advisory Group, building upon the work of the previous Infusion Services Strategy Committee. The group will explore areas including expansion of health-system infusion services, collaboration across pharmacy service lines, and opportunities surrounding intravenous-to-subcutaneous therapy conversions. This new SAG reflects the increasingly interconnected nature of specialty pharmacy and infusion services and gives our members another place to share expertise and develop resources that can help move our practices forward.
None of this work would be possible without the more than 100 volunteers who contribute their time and expertise to our Section each year. I am incredibly grateful to our SAG and Committee leaders and members, our Executive Committee, and the ASHP staff who support this work. The resources, educational programming, networking opportunities, and advocacy efforts of SSPP are ultimately the product of this community and its willingness to share expertise with one another.
As we begin the year, I encourage you to engage with that community. Join the conversation on ASHP Connect, participate in educational and networking opportunities, seek out colleagues at the Midyear Clinical Meeting and Pharmacy Futures, and share your own experiences and expertise. There is something each of us can learn and something each of us can contribute.
I look forward to seeing what we accomplish together this year, and I am grateful for the opportunity to serve this community.
Sincerely,
Thom L. Platt