Oklahoma Business Owner James Spoon Honored With 2018 Willard B. Simmons Independent Pharmacist Of The Year Award

NCPA Award Sponsored by Upsher-Smith for Tenth Consecutive Year

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Oct 11, 2018, 09:30 ET

MAPLE GROVE, Minn., Oct. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Upsher-Smith Laboratories, LLC (Upsher-Smith) is pleased to announce that James "Jim" Spoon DPh, an independent pharmacist with deep roots in his Sand Springs, Oklahoma community, is the winner of the 2018 National Community Pharmacist Association's (NCPA) Independent Pharmacist of the Year award. Dr. Spoon received the award on Monday, October 8 at the General Session of the NCPA 2018 Annual Convention in Boston, Massachusetts.

NCPA’s 2018 Willard B. Simmons Independent Pharmacist of the Year Award Presentation (Left to Right: NCPA President, David Smith, RPh; Jim Spoon, DPh; and Mike McBride of Upsher-Smith)

This annual award, which was first awarded in 2008, is given to a pharmacist who exhibits exemplary professional leadership, service to community and commitment to independent pharmacy. Upsher-Smith has sponsored the award in conjunction with NCPA for the past ten years.

Dr. Spoon, who opened his first pharmacy in Sand Springs in 1979, has a decades-long history of professional leadership and community service. He was a member of the Oklahoma State Board of Pharmacy for almost twenty years and has held every leadership position at the Oklahoma Pharmacists Association, including President. As an active member of NCPA, he has served diligently on the Long Term Care and Legislative Affairs Committees, among others. In addition to his exceptional professional leadership, Dr. Spoon dedicated himself to strengthening his community as a twenty-year member of the Sand Springs Board of Education and as a current member of the Sand Springs City Council. He is also involved with his local Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club and community theater.

"Upsher-Smith is delighted to join with NCPA in recognizing Dr. Spoon, an outstanding independent pharmacist who has served his community, his patients and his profession tirelessly for almost four decades," said Rusty Field, President and CEO, Upsher-Smith. "We are proud to honor Dr. Spoon for his exemplary service to his community, a quality shared by our nation's community pharmacists, and for exhibiting outstanding leadership in all of his endeavors."

Added NCPA CEO B. Douglas Hoey, Pharmacist, MBA, "Thanks to Upsher-Smith's ongoing commitment to the Willard B. Simmons award, we are able to recognize individuals such as Dr. Spoon, whose leadership and service represent the ideal for independent community pharmacists."

About Upsher-Smith
Upsher-Smith Laboratories, LLC is a trusted U.S. pharmaceutical company that strives to improve the health and lives of patients through an unwavering commitment to high-quality products and sustainable growth. As we approach our 100^th year in business, we enter a new ambitious era that has been accelerated by our 2017 acquisition by Sawai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Together, we seek to deliver the best value for our stakeholders, and most importantly, do more good for the patients we serve. For more information, visit www.upsher-smith.com.

About the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA^®)
Founded in 1898, the National Community Pharmacists Association is the voice for the community pharmacist, representing 22,000 pharmacies that employ 250,000 individuals nationwide. Community pharmacies are rooted in the communities where they are located and are among America's most accessible health care providers. To learn more, visit www.ncpanet.org.

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SOURCE Upsher-Smith Laboratories, LLC