Sara White, FASP, has enjoyed a remarkable 30-plus year pharmacy career. A distinguished past president of ASHP, Sara is currently Director of Pharmacy at Stanford University Hospitals and Clinics, overseeing a staff of 30 pharmacists. Widely known throughout the profession for her effective management style, Sara is also a mentor of mentors. She enjoys golf, movies, art and music and recommends: Don't Sweat the Small Stuff and It’s All Small Stuff by Carlson. PharmacyNOW caught up with her recently to share some of her insights on mentoring, placing and retaining pharmacists.

PharmacyNow: What advice would you give to a young pharmacist with professional aspirations?
SW: I’d partake in all opportunities to present ideas and to share professionally. All of those things pay you back far more than the time it takes for you to do them. They are not that difficult; you just need to know how to get started and have the strength to risk it a little.

PNOW: Who have been your mentors?
SW: Clifton J. Latiolais, Director of Pharmacy at Ohio State and Harold Godwin, who was Director of Pharmacy at the University of Kansas for the 20 years that I worked there. But there have been numerous people that have been helpful to me throughout my career, as mentors.

PNOW: Have these relationships been sustaining throughout your career?

SW: Yes definitely. I think that’s a key point. Maintaining these relationships over time is very important and can be done easily at meetings, over the phone, or over the internet.

PNOW: What do you think is essential in the early stages of a mentoring relationship?

SW: I think early on in one’s career, the more contact you can have with your mentor the better. You can develop a friendship so that you can be candid about what you want to get into. Your mentor can help you with those opportunities.

What are some benefits derived from a mentor /mentee relationship?

SW: I think in this dynamic state of healthcare, it’s bouncing ideas off people. It’s testing the reality you think you’re living, and asking if there is a broader approach. We get so involved in our jobs, that it can sometimes be very limiting. We think we are the only ones that can’t resolve a problem. Being able to talk to others and find out that they are in fact having similar problems, and then sharing strategies is important. It’s about networking, as well as mentoring. Because of the shortage of pharmacists, we are needing to rethink things. We’ve had to do that all along, I think. It’s being able to bounce ideas off people.

PNOW: Is there a connection between mentoring and networking?

SW: Yes, as you move along in your career it probably becomes more about networking because you have a broader number of people you have contact with. Early on, it may be just one or two people. While the networking is a give and take, the mentor/mentee relationship starts out with the mentor doing more for the mentee. However, that progresses and develops into networking.

PNOW: How much has e-mail impacted your ability to mentor?

SW: I think it definitely helps. Especially when you are in different parts of the country. The ability to communicate whenever you have the time really helps. I think what you do lose on the e-mail side is the synergistic brainstorming of an idea. It takes time for that to happen. I think most people would prefer to talk to someone via the phone, or at professional meetings. I think a lot of people who maintain networks will set up face-to-face time - let’s have breakfast, let’s meet for lunch, let’s go for a drink - and explore things at that point. They’ll benefit from that dialogue, wherever it might go.

PNOW: What ideas have you specifically brainstormed?

SW: When I was involved with ASHP, I had conversations with people interested in being president or on the board. I am still actually a mentor for a number of people, and we have conversations about the nominations process and what they need to do. There’s obviously the published way things work, and the real way things work. That’s one of the things a mentor can be helpful about - here’s how it generally happens and what you need to do if this is one of your goals.

PNOW: Can you name another benefit?

SW: Sure. Dialogue could be about how to be successful in your practice site or how to be successful with the non-pharmacists you work with - the nurses and physicians. There’s a lot of things to discuss. You can read all the books, but it’s about how do things really work.

PNOW: What makes for a good mentee, if we can use the word?

SW: The biggest thing a young pharmacist can do is seek out people. There used to be more time to spend seeking out potential mentees, but now the mentees need to seek out the mentor. If they don’t take the initiative, it’s hard for the mentor to know what the mentee is thinking. I think it’s the rare pharmacist that won’t help if someone asks... but it’s got to be initiated by the mentee today.

PNOW: What are some challenges that younger pharmacists are facing today?

SW: I think the young pharmacist today has to really think about balancing personal and professional life. Trying to do everything at the same time is going to exhaust them. It may be that they want to focus initially on a spouse and family, and later do things like teaching or publishing. Work is going to be very busy. Balance, given the preponderance of two-career couples, has to be charted out. You want to enjoy each area of your life, and not bite off, at any given time, more than you can handle.

PNOW: Are younger members of your staff running into balancing problems?

SW: Very definitely. They are two-career couples, with commutes, rotating schedules and daycare. They want to be a part of their child’s life, a time that goes very fast. How to balance that just takes conscious decisions on their part. All of these opportunities will be there the rest of their career. They just need to know how to access the opportunities when they are ready for them.

PNOW: Did you give yourself this same advice?

SW: Yes. I was always very conscious of the fact that anything I did outside was in addition to my staff and the work that I was doing. I was willing to give up personal time to do these things. Those were very conscious decisions along the way.

PNOW: Is there a connection between effective mentoring and staff retention?

SW: Very definitely. People work for more than just money and the challenge of the job. It’s about the growth, feeling like they are learning and a part of a bigger goal that’s important. The challenge that the manager has today is making time for mentoring. The mentee needs to be on the doorstep saying “I’d like to know about these things.”

PNOW: What might go into a philosophical social contract between managers and staff?

SW: I think the key is to ask what are the things you have had experience with as a mentor. Does your staff know what you have done and have experience in? Likewise, the mentee must discuss what they would like to get experience in. Also, you must be creative about finding some uninterrupted contact time. If the workplace is hectic, can you meet for lunch? People are often willing to devote some early time in the morning or after work. There are avenues for uninterrupted contact time; it just has to be creative. The contract is two-way: I’m available to you, but you need to help with that. What do you expect, and what can I give? It’s just good honest communication.

PNOW: How much of your day involves mentoring moments?

PNOW: Any secrets to how this works?

With mentoring, there is this sort of personal chemistry. Your styles have to be the same. The mentor doesn’t have to be the director, just someone you are comfortable with because you are similar. There are differences in people. You want it to be a really comfortable relationship for it to be as effective as it can be.

PNOW: Do you work with your management staff on building relationships?

SW: Sure. We have taken retreats. We are very participative in our management style as to involve the staff. They know what’s going on. As we build, develop and keep the pharmacy services running here at Stanford, it’s important that the staff participate in where they want their future to be.

PNOW: What advice can you offer pharmacies that are struggling to place and retain staff?

SW: I think you have to be as creative as you can. We have a program in place to repay student loans. I know there are some departments that have officially set up the mentor/mentee relationships. I think you have to find out what’s important to the staff. I don’t think you can assume that you know what a 25-year old pharmacist really wants. You have to ask that questions. We are struggling with the lifestyle issue. A lot of pharmacists, especially with young children, want an 8-5 job so they can juggle daycare, etc. What we have done is let staff make out their own schedule so it can meld as successfully as possible with daycare or other activities that occur. Then we review it to make sure all the shifts are covered.

PNOW: Is this the tightest market you have ever seen?

Yes. No question.

PNOW: That’s a strong statement. What are the possibilities of bringing in pharmacists from outside the US?

SW: Interestingly, our nursing department has started a program for bringing in nurses from England. In California you have to take the California Board of Pharmacy Exam. You cannot reciprocate, which is an additional hurdle if you are not already licensed. I think, if we continue in the situation we’re in, the time may come where we may have to look outside the box and recruit internationally.

PNOW: What parting words of wisdom would you like to pass along to others in the pharmacy profession?

SW: Try to make sure you can, if at all possible, have residency programs and teach clerkship students. That keeps young folks around and has been a tremendous recruitment avenue for us. At some point, get involved in professional organizations. When you meet people from other practice settings, you learn and develop your own skills which will help you for the rest of your career. Also, present at meetings when you have the time to do it. When I came to California, it helped me a lot to be involved. I knew people I would not have known if I had not been involved in my state and national organizations. Things pay off for you that you have no idea how they are going to pay off for you. Pharmacy is a great profession. It's just a matter of trying to find out what you're most satisfied and challenged by doing, getting into that practice setting, and continuing to grow and develop throughout your career.

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