PharnacyNOW: Please give us a synopsis of what you do at AJHP.

Jill Sellers: My primary activities include coordinating activities of the manuscript development group, which is made up of four other pharmacist editors. I manage them and make sure we have high priority content for the journal that it is perused and published in a timely and contemporary manner. I act, also, as a corresponding editor for select manuscripts and columns in the journal. I also maintain a status list, which is a list of papers that are ready to go into production, and I prepare each issue’s tentative plan from that list. I put each issue together and work with our advertising placement manager to lay it out. Making sure we have the right ratio of advertising to editorial content and that the issue is reader-friendly and center section content is prominent. I coordinate and prepare multiple reports and assist in the preparation of the AJHP budget. I also reconcile a lot of inquiries that ASHP gets regarding manuscript submission, journal publication, and drug information.

What attracted you to publishing and how did you get started on this particular career path?

I have to say that I didn’t plan this career path and there is no secret formula! As a student I had gotten involved with pharmacy organizations and I learned that there was a lot more to being a pharmacy professional than just having a degree and working in a pharmacy. It was at that time that I decided I wanted to make a difference in the profession. I found that pharmacy associations were a way to do just that so I applied for and got the ASHP Executive Residency. It was one of the best years of my life and the experience, education and training I received in association management was beyond words. I learned, during that year, how unique pharmacy associations are to the profession and the different ways that you can get involved. That is really when I was introduced to pharmacy publishing even though I wasn’t expecting to be working for AJHP anytime soon at this point. The residency opened up a whole new world of opportunities.

What led you to this specific job?

I had gone into practice after the residency and after a few years felt I needed a change. I was speaking to my former residency preceptor one day and told her that I needed a new challenge and I missed having that bigger impact on pharmacy. She told me about this job, and since I had always had an affinity for writing and editing in college it seemed like an interesting proposition to consider. However, if you had told me 10 years ago that I would be working for AJHP, I would have said you were wrong because it seemed very intimidating to work for a well read, much respected, peer-reviewed scientific journal.

What advice would you give to a pharmacist who is interested in being published in AJHP?

Don’t be intimidated by the process. So many people I speak with say, “I can’t publish. There are so many steps in the process and I don’t know what I am doing.” What people don’t know is that we are here to help. Call us if you have an idea, if you need an idea, or just have questions about putting your manuscript together. We will be glad to spend time with you and walk you through the process. We want you to be comfortable and will work with you along the way. For example, once a manuscript is submitted, one of the editors is assigned to work with the corresponding author and their manuscript until it is final -- if we publish it or we don’t publish it. We are only a phone call or e-mail away, so feel free. We want it to be a win-win situation for both of us.

Who would you say has been the most influential person in your life and why?

My father. Absolutely. He has always encouraged me at just the right time. If it weren’t for his suggestion, I probably would have never looked into pharmacy. He also taught me a lot of life skills in general. He taught me that hard work pays off and that you must work hard to be successful. He instilled a very positive work ethic in me and that has made a difference in my life. He has taught me to be confident in my abilities and be true to myself.

You have a 19-month-old daughter, Samantha Grace. Can you talk a bit about how you balance being a new mother with your professional life?

Well, it’s not easy. I struggled when I had her because I was feeling like maybe I should stay at home with her. At the same time I really couldn’t and wasn’t sure that I would be happy being a stay-at-home mom. Before I had her, I found it very easy to spend a lot of time at work and didn’t worry about it. Even though there is so much more to life and you need to renew yourself outside of your job and your career to be effective, I still spent a lot of time at work. She actually has helped me balance my life. I believe God gave us Samantha at just the right time because she showed me that I was way off balance. She taught me that there are other things to life than just work. I have this beautiful little person who totally depends on her daddy and me. We have all these new responsibilities and they are actually the most important life responsibilities because I am raising a child, a future contributor to society and a citizen of this country. Once you establish your priorities, everything is a lot easier to juggle. You find that balance. Sometimes I measure my balance on what I envision would be on my tombstone. I don’t want it to say “Jill always kept her in-box clean.” I’d rather it read “Jill was a good wife, mother, friend and just happened to be a pharmacist.”

Was it difficult to transition back to work after you had Samantha?

It was, but ASHP is a wonderful employer and they worked with me. I had my three months of maternity leave and then worked at home until Samantha was five months old. The transition plan was such that I started working from home, then she transitioned to daycare - and then I went back into the office.

Your husband, Mark, is a pharmacy student. What kind of dynamics does that create in your relationship?

God has truly blessed me with a wonderful spouse and I am thankful everyday for him. The toughest dynamic of him being a student was going from two incomes to one and readjusting our standard of living. When you are accustomed to a certain lifestyle, it was and is a challenge to constantly watch the budget. But we have a goal and we are committed to achieving it. It’s really been wonderful to share his pharmacy school experience with him.

What do you believe is most important for a successful marriage?

Commitment, communication and some flexibility. I think being on the same plane -- spiritually, physically, emotionally, mentally -- is very important. But I think that if you are committed to the relationship, you can withstand anything -- good or bad. If you are committed, you want each other to be successful and to be happy, no matter what it is. If you communicate your feelings, dreams, needs and wants I think that only strengthens the bond between you and your spouse.

What do you do to relieve stress?

I go to the gym three to four times a week and exercise. Sometimes more if it’s a good week. I also love to play volleyball, basketball and tennis, but I don’t get to do that as much as I would like. I also love taking pictures and I parlay that into some of my other hobbies. I do scrapbooking and digital film editing which allow me to be creative and preserve my family’s history.

How important do you feel it is for you to take time for yourself?

I think it is very important to take time for yourself. Read a book, relax, do something for yourself; renew in some way because it will make you a better person later on. Too many times we allow stress to overtake our lives, but if you take time out for yourself, the stress is much easier to manage.

What issues do you think are of highest priority in pharmacy today?

I think that pharmacist education and training should always be a top priority. It may not be a contemporary issue, but I think that it is an ongoing issue that we need to pay attention to and work to continue to improve and enhance pharmacy school curriculums and expand post-graduate training. We need to encourage students and residents to get involved with the profession and become future leaders. The profession of pharmacy is facing a future leader drought that can be addressed and alleviated through our pharmacy schools via mentoring and involvement in professional organizations. I think the second issue would be pharmacists’ role in public health issues such as vaccinations and bio-terrorism. Pharmacists are some of the most qualified individuals to be involved in these issues, yet sometimes we sit back and let other professions take the lead. The third is probably the most important issue and that is medication error prevention and patient safety. One of the reasons I chose pharmacy is to help people use their medications properly. Pharmacists have the education, training, and expertise to play a huge role in medication error prevention and patient safety. We need to focus on this and use our knowledge to be patient safety champions. Pharmacists are in a perfect position to lead the movement in making sure that all the systems are in place and that we’re doing everything we can to make sure that our patients are taken care of appropriately.

Do you have any final words of wisdom for your fellow pharmacists?

I believe pharmacists can make a difference in the lives of their patients. I really believe that pharmacists have an opportunity and we need to take advantage of it - not only taking care of our patients but by working with the other health care professionals to show our worth. To the women pharmacists, I want to say you can balance a career with motherhood. It takes commitment, establishing your priorities, and doing your best to work within those parameters. It also helps to find an employer who feels the way you do about having a career and a family. The right employer can make all the difference.

Click here for information on publishing in 
American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy

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