Dennison Lim

His Story

Dennison Lim is an informatics pharmacist at Mayo Clinic, working remotely out of Seattle, WA. He completed his undergraduate and Doctor of Pharmacy degrees from the University of Florida in 2013. He completed his PGY-1 Pharmacy Residency at Indiana University Health and his PGY-2 Pharmacy Informatics Residency at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, where he was the inaugural resident. He has been a member of ASHP since 2011, during which he has served as workgroup lead, Vice-Chair, and Chair of the Section Advisory Group on Operations and Automation. His interests are in leveraging automation technologies to streamline pharmacy operations and improve patient safety. He is currently pursuing his Master’s in Business Administration at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, expected in 2021.

Overview of Facility/Health System

Mayo Clinic is a non-profit academic health system operating across five states, with major campuses in Rochester, MN, Phoenix, AZ, and Jacksonville, FL. Mayo Clinic treats over 1.2 million people from more than 135 countries and employs approximately 70,000 people. U.S. News and World Report consistently ranks Mayo Clinic at or near the top of the Best Hospitals Honor Roll.

Significant Projects

At Mayo Clinic, Dennison has been involved in numerous large-scale enterprise projects as the implementation and technical lead. He previously led automated dispensing cabinet hardware upgrades and has been responsible for all subsequent software upgrades. He played a pivotal role across Mayo Clinic’s four electronic health record upgrades, responsible for both technical build and cutover procedures. In engaging across functional teams, Dennis gained experience working at the intersection of IT, informatics, and clinical practice. Today, he is responsible for the strategy and implementation of inventory management, IV robotic, and IV workflows systems across the Mayo Clinic pharmacy enterprise.

Initial Involvement in ASHP

Dennison is the immediate past Chair of the Section Advisory Group on Operations and Automation. He is currently the lead for the workgroup developing the guidelines for the selection and utilization of IV robotic and workflow technologies. He is also the co-chair for the annual ‘I Want That! – Technology Innovation’ presentation at ASHP Midyear that focuses on the bleeding edge technologies used by member organizations.

Advice for Someone New to Your Specialty Area

The impact of pharmacy informatics on the clinical and operational practice of an organization cannot be overstated. If you’re new to the informatics specialty, take time to understand all the organizations and areas in which pharmacy informatics has a role. This can be done by reviewing the ASHP Section of Pharmacy Informatics resources and networking with active practitioners on ASHP Connect, LinkedIn, and other social media platforms. ASHP also holds their annual Integrated Informatics Institute during Summer Meeting and a range of informatics programming is available at Midyear. While the specialty of pharmacy informatics is relatively small, the range of careers and responsibilities is large and diverse.

Why did you become involved in ASHP? 

ASHP has been important to me both personally and professionally. Early in my education, I joined ASHP as a student member to learn more about residency programs and career options available upon graduation. I continued my membership through residency and into my professional career as ASHP continued to bring me value through personal connections, professional education, and promote the role of the pharmacist in patient care.

How would you explain the value of ASHP to a friend or colleague?

 For me, ASHP provides value through its educational content, professional resources, networking opportunities, and political advocacy for the pharmacy profession. Continuing education available through ASHP represents some of the most up-to-date and relevant content available for pharmacists, on top of the existing library of guidelines and statements. ASHP Midyear is one of the most important events in the pharmacy profession, representing a unique confluence of educational, networking, and recruitment opportunities.

What is the value of ASHP for the profession?

More than ever, the profession of pharmacy needs strong advocates for pharmacists practicing at the top of their license. ASHP is one of those strong advocates for the profession, supporting provider status, privileging and credentialing, and expanding the pharmacist scope of practice. As a result of their support and those of many allied organizations, we have seen varying degrees of movement among state legislatures towards reimbursement of pharmacist services and provider status.