Topeka: An engraved plaque pledging to “Never Stop Improving” hangs in the owner’s office. Clearly it sums up Michael K. Conlin’s philosophy about his work, his patients and his business—Jayhawk Pharmacy and Patient Supply. There’s no question that his commitment to quality improvement has been instrumental in helping him achieve recent recognition of national significance and local notoriety.
For more than 20 years, Conlin, R.Ph., F.A.C.A., F.I.A.C.P., has been delivering personalized cu stomer service from behind the counter of Jayhawk Pharmacy. As a boy he sat in the original store and watched Pharmacist Bob Drumm deliver prescriptions to the folks in the Brookwood neighborhood. After graduating from the University of Kansas School of Pharmacy in 1978, Conlin returned to the community to work and later buy the Topeka company.
Jayhawk Pharmacy took the spotlight this summer in achieving the Award of Accreditation from the Health Care Quality Association. This recognition means the pharmacy successfully completed a yearlong process documenting their high level of consistent patient care. Beginning September 30, 2009, suppliers of durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies (DMEPOS) must be accredited to continue to serve and bill Medicare Part B patients. The accreditation process included a three-day site visit during which credentialing staff held in-depth interviews with patients and medical providers regarding the quality of care provided by Jayhawk Pharmacy and Patient Supply.
The purpose of national accreditation is to ensure the highest quality of patient care is provided as well as state of the art medical and oxygen equipment to address all aspects of patient home care. In order to retain Medicare billing privileges, all DMEPOS suppliers must comply with the Medicare program's supplier standards and quality standards to become accredited. Nationally, the accreditation requirement applies to suppliers of durable medical equipment, medical supplies, home dialysis supplies and equipment, therapeutic shoes, parenteral/enteral nutrition, transfusion medicine and prosthetic devices, and prosthetics and orthotics.
“At Jayhawk Pharmacy, our commitment has always been to our patients. We compete with mass merchandising, by doing what’s best for our individual patients,” Conlin said. “I saw the “never stop improving” phrase in a manufacturing plant in China. It stuck with me. I am dedicated to improving our business, our community. This national accreditation is improving service to our patients.”
The accreditation is only one of two national awards garnered by Jayhawk Pharmacy and Patient Supply and Conlin.
Last year, specialized credentials and outstanding customer service earned Conlin
The National Award for Innovative Pharmacy Practice in 2008 presented by the Kansas Pharmacist Association on behalf of the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations. The award is made to an association member who consistently demonstrates innovative pharmacy practices resulting in improved patient care.
Conlin’s nomination by pharmacists from throughout the state of Kansas noted his efforts in improving, broadening and diversifying the services that are provided by all Kansas community pharmacies providing individualized patient care. In addition to owning and operating Jayhawk Pharmacy, Conlin has been instrumental in providing durable medical equipment training to his community pharmacy colleagues throughout the Midwest. He also is nationally recognized as a Certified Menopause Educator by the North American Menopause Society and provides individualized patient hormone consultation to menopausal women throughout the Midwest.
Conlin is a Fellow of the American College of Apothecaries (F.A.C.A.) as well as a Fellow of the International Academy of Compounding Pharmacists (F.IA.C.P.).
Jayhawk Pharmacy and Patient Supply has three locations in Topeka: 2860 SW Mission Woods—Clinical Pharmacy and Patient Supply; 6730 SW 29th—Custom Prescription Compounding; and 2620 SW 6th-- Medical Equipment and Patient Supplies.
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