The University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy is adding its 11th affiliated pharmacy residency program through its partnership with The Medical Center at Bowling Green.
Cindy Stowe (BS ’91, PharmD ’91, R201), Dean at the University of Arkansas for Medical Science College of Pharmacy, has been named the 2020 recipient of the Paul F. Parker Award. She will receive the award during the 2020 American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Midyear Meeting.
Jon Thorson, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and director of the Center of Biomedical Research Excellence in Pharmaceutical Research and Innovation (CPRI), has been named chief scientific officer and associate dean for research at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy.
In August 2020, Dr. Deng joined the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy as a Research Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Dr. Deng’s research focuses on exploring disease mechanisms and developing new treatments for neonatal abstinence syndrome.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been ravaging our country, exposing many weak points in a country many once believed was impenetrable. Beyond the teetering economy, healthcare workers endangering themselves, and an overall lack of resources; COVID-19 has shown the many what the few have already known: the United States healthcare system disproportionately favors white people.
While COVID-19 has forced many Americans from the workplace and into their homes, a select group of people is still on the front lines. We celebrate essential workers like physicians, nurses, paramedics, firefighters, and other hospital staff. However, we often overlook one key player: the pharmacist. Whether in a hospital, working in a long-term care facility, or behind a counter at your local pharmacy, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are essential front lines workers. Pharmacists are the go-to medication experts at a time when misinformation can prove lethal.
The spread of COVID-19 has completely changed our way of life. Daily routines have been completely altered, and this is especially true for students at the University of Kentucky's healthcare colleges. Many students are working tirelessly to combat the ongoing pandemic and working alongside mentors and colleagues to provide COVID-19 testing, answer public health questions, and serve however they can. Students at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy (UKCOP) have found yet another way to help, which includes increasing access to sanitizing products.
In keeping with the college’s commitment to community pharmacists, the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy recently announced the hiring of Brooke Hudspeth, PharmD, as new Chief Practice Officer (CPO). Hudspeth, the acting secretary for the Kentucky Pharmacist Association (KphA), will oversee all community pharmacy efforts for the college while working to elevate the care available to those in the Commonwealth.
To be a person of color in the workforce is to live a reality surrounded by good intentions while navigating a world that wasn't created with you in mind. The metaphorical “seat at the table” comes with hundreds of years of racial history that differentiate marginalized people from their white coworkers. With the feeling of being “other” constantly looming overhead, it can be difficult for people of color (POC) to be their true selves while working in predominantly white environments.
I want to comment upon recent press coverage concerning the pharmacy profession, including the articles below.