Richard Bertin
Pharmacist Leader in Board Certification
Sept. 16, 2011
12:15-1:15 p.m.
7-135 Weaver-Densford Hall on the Twin Cities campus (Simulcast to Duluth Campus)
Please RSVP to pamela@umn.edu
Richard Bertin received a bachelor of science in pharmacy degree from the University of Pittsburgh, and a master's and PhD from the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy.
Bertin is currently a consultant in private practice on certification and credentialing topics and an assessor for the Accreditation Program for Personnel Certification Bodies of the American National Standards Institute. In December 2010, he retired as Executive Director of the Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS). He had held this position since February 1997, when he left the United States Public Health Service after more than 30 years in a variety of clinical and administrative positions.
While in the Public Health Service, he served as Chief Pharmacist Officer (as an Assistant Surgeon General at the grade of Rear Admiral) as well as in the National Institute of Mental Health, the Bureau of Medical Services, the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, the Office of the Surgeon General, and the Food and Drug Administration. His responsibilities ranged from clinical pharmacy practice to advising the Surgeon General, the Assistant Secretary for Health, and other Federal and non-Federal leaders on national pharmacy issues.
BPS was established in 1976 by the American Pharmacists Association to recognize specialties and to certify pharmacists’ knowledge and skills in specialized areas of pharmacy practice. Six specialties are currently recognized by BPS: ambulatory care pharmacy, nuclear pharmacy, nutrition support pharmacy, oncology pharmacy, pharmacotherapy, and psychiatric pharmacy. More than 10,000 pharmacists are currently certified by BPS in one or more of these specialties. As the Board’s first Executive Director, Bertin was responsible for the overall management and growth of the BPS specialty certification program and for securing its national accreditation. During his tenure, the number of BPS certificants, staff size, and budget nearly tripled. In that position, he worked with several national membership organizations and educational institutions on a wide variety of credentialing activities across pharmacy and other professions.