Pharmacy Matters, Family Matters:

Alumna advocates interprofessional care

Sallye Wilcox

retired psychiatric nurse and hospital administrator, Sallye Wilcox first graduated from the University of Mississippi with a bachelor’s degree in nursing in 1961. After earning a master’s degree in psychiatric and mental health nursing from Case Western Reserve University in 1967, the Jackson native sought to diversify her skills. She entered the University of Mississippi’s pharmacy/health care administration doctoral program with the goal of pursuing a career in hospital administration. Since graduating from the program in 1984, Wilcox has served in numerous roles from vice president of patient services for Le Bonheur Children’s Medical Center to executive director of the Mississippi Hospital for Restorative Care. Throughout her career, she has championed interprofessional care.

Q: As an individual with a nursing background, what did you learn through the pharmacy/health care administration program?
A: It gave me a picture of the health care delivery system that nursing alone did not provide. I learned about the delivery system itself and how it impacted the practice and profession of nursing. I began to understand how the complete system worked and why it was the way that it was. So it really changed my whole career in terms of what I did with my leadership roles.

Q: Specifically, what did you learn about pharmacy through the program?
A: Pharmacy has taken such a leadership position in health care. When I was in the program, Mickey Smith was chair of the department. Mickey was doing a lot of research in the community and trying to change the role of the pharmacist to more than being a “pill pusher,” to being a complete health care specialist. Pharmacists do more than just handing out pills. Mickey did a spectacular job in that area, and it was interesting and fun to work with him.

Q: How did your career evolve after graduating from the program?
A: Earning my Ph.D. opened a lot of doors in hospital administration, and I served in many different positions over the years. I worked as director of nursing and later became vice president for patient care services at Baptist Medical Center in Jackson, and also worked as vice president of patient services at Le Bonheur Children’s Medical Center in Memphis. Ultimately, I served as executive director at the Mississippi Hospital for Restorative Care in Jackson before retiring in 2005.

Q: Why is interprofessional care so important to you?
A: I think working at Le Bonheur was a real eye-opener for me in terms of interprofessional practice. In a children’s hospital, the whole concept is family and team. I wanted to create that atmosphere in an adult hospital – that same type of camaraderie, respect and appreciation for every profession in the delivery of health care. The vision was to build a regular hospital’s workforce into a team focused on family, communicating with family and making them a part of the treatment team.

Q: How did the University of Mississippi change your perception of health care?
A: When I was in school, we would always talk about the wellness model, meaning the only way we were going to change illness and disease in this country was to encourage people to change their lifestyles. This was in ’78, ’80, and we talked about how impossible that seemed at the time. Now those changes are beginning to have an effect. You hear people talking about how they should take care of themselves, how to diet. Those standards were taught to me and challenged me years ago at Ole Miss.