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Student Profile: Yousuf Rahyab

Yousuf Rahyab has always been fascinated by how things work. This curiosity led him, as a student pharmacist at the University of Southern California (USC), to join the Partners in D project, learn about the complexities of the Medicare Part D benefit, and how best to prepare his peers in other health professions for the Part D challenges they will face in their careers.

Yousuf's interest in pharmacy began with a high school chemistry project on caffeine. "I'm anti-caffeine. It gives me a huge stomachache. I can't deal with it," he explains. "But I loved learning how it affects people. That project in high school got the ball rolling on my fascination with pharmacy -- and the powerful ways in which drugs can affect us. That interest has stayed with me ever since."

As an undergraduate student in Los Angeles, Yousuf saw the potential for putting that understanding to work for the people who need it the most. "I grew up in Irvine. My life was school and sports -- a typical suburban life. As an undergrad at USC it was eye opening to be in the big city and see how great a need there is for health care in low-income communities. That's what solidified my decision to be a pharmacist," he says.

When he got to pharmacy school he saw just how complex Medicare Part D decisions can be. "Before joining Partners in D, I worked at a CVS pharmacy. A lot of times during open enrollment the pharmacists would stay late to help people find the right Part D plan," Yousuf recalls. "It was difficult for everyone involved. I thought the Partners in D training would be a very good experience."

For Yousuf, it was a great way to give back to the community and start using his knowledge for the benefit of others. With fellow Partners in D student pharmacists, he conducted free Medicare Part D outreach events in locations such as churches and housing complexes to help seniors identify and enroll in the plans best for their individual circumstances.

Yousuf quickly learned that many of the patients he saw were unable or barely able to afford their medications. As a result, he started getting involved in the peer-to-peer education component of Partners in D.

Through classroom presentations, student pharmacists help future and current prescribers, such as physicians and nurse practitioners, understand that the high cost of drugs and the intricate nature of Medicare Part D often mean that patients can not afford to take their prescribed medications. They explain the benefit from the perspective of various stakeholders including patients, providers, and payers.

"Our job is to help our peers understand how prescribing a generic can help their patients save up to $1,000 over the course of a year," Yousuf says. "We can tell them from experience that many of the patients we counsel are prescribed branded medications instead of cheaper generics. We also encourage them to help their patients find a plan that suits them. So many patients are in really bad plans."

As he approaches graduation, Yousuf hopes to own a pharmacy. He also hopes to push pharmacy into the direction of advocacy to help ensure that all patients have access to the medications they need. "There is so much we as pharmacists can do to help the community and the health care system in general," he says.