Emily Messing

Her Story
Emily Messing, PharmD, BCPS, received her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Touro College of Pharmacy, New York, in 2017. She then went on to complete a PGY1 Pharmacy Practice Residency at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, NY, and a PGY2 in Medication-Use Safety at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, NY. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Biology degree from Colgate University in Hamilton, NY. Emily previously worked as a clinical pharmacy manager in informatics at Montefiore Medical Center and is now a Medication Safety Officer at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA. Emily is a certified Just Culture trainer and serves as a preceptor for Dana-Farber’s Medication-Use Safety and Policy and Oncology pharmacy PGY2 residencies.

Describe the facility where you work (eg. Is it a teaching hospital? Health Center?)
The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) is a National Cancer Institute designated Comprehensive Cancer Center based in Boston, MA. Founded in 1947, DFCI is a globally recognized leader in cancer treatment and research, dedicated to making a profound impact on the lives of children and adults affected by cancer. With a main campus located in the heart of Boston and regional satellite clinics extending their reach, Dana-Farber serves patients from all corners of the world. The Pharmacy Department maintains programs and practices to ensure safe, optimal, and cost-effective drug therapy for DFCI patients, while also supporting patient and provider drug education and patient care-oriented research.

Recent Significant Projects
As a member of the DFCI Medication Safety team, Dr. Messing is involved with the review of safety event reports for patients receiving standard of care and research-based chemotherapy. Recently, she has helped identify improvements to several different research protocols. In one project, Emily helped lead a team who was trying to improve the way drug dosing guidance is presented in research protocol documents. In another, she worked with clinical informatics colleagues to identify improvements to the electronic health record protocol build to ensure patients enrolled on a clinical trial received the correct number of cycles of therapy in a complicated, multi-arm research trial. In each case, Dr. Messing’s approach is to unite different members of the patient care team around the goal implementing safety improvements for patients on clinical trials.

Beyond her work with different research teams, Dr. Messing has also contributed to broader medication safety work by helping to develop a medication safety newsletter that’s shared with Dana-Farber pharmacy and nursing staff bi-weekly. The newsletter includes sections such as a great catch, reports at work, and a safety corner.

Initial Involvement in ASHP
Dr. Messing is currently a member of the Section of Inpatient Care Practitioners Educational Steering Committee and a member of Massachusetts’ Residency Committee.

Why did you become involved in ASHP?
Dr. Messing became involved in ASHP for the networking opportunities and chance to positively contribute to the growing profession of pharmacy on a national level. She has been involved at the state affiliate level for several years, serving in various leadership roles including New Practitioner Committee Co-Chair, Director-At-Large for Membership, Industry Relations and Installation and most recently as Treasurer in the New York City Society of Health-system Pharmacists (NYCSHP) and New Practitioner Committee Co-Chair and Communications Committee Chair for the New York State Council of Health-system Pharmacists (NYSCHP). She has also taken advantage of the many resources that ASHP offers, including webinars and certificate programs, connecting with others through ASHP Connect, and meeting colleagues in a variety of practice areas at ASHP conferences. Dr. Messing is looking forward to contributing to those resources as a new member on the ASHP Section of Inpatient Care Practitioners Educational Steering Committee.

Advice for Someone New to Specialty Area
Don’t be afraid to try something new! There are so many resources out there to help continue your education post pharmacy school and/or post graduate training such as certificates in medication safety, quality and process improvement, and informatics that can help make you a more well-rounded medication safety pharmacist.

How would you explain the value of ASHP to a friend or colleague?
ASHP provides the opportunity to connect with colleagues within and outside of your specialty across the country. Being able to post a question on ASHP Connect and get responses from a variety of specialty areas is an invaluable resource! Additionally, ASHP allows you to keep up to date clinically and professionally.

What is the value of ASHP for the profession?
ASHP plays a key role in advancing the profession of pharmacy through the sharing of ideas and advocating for the profession.