Women CEO Deans of US Schools and Colleges of Pharmacy.

Objective. Seventy-four women served as chief executive officer (CEO) deans of US schools and colleges of pharmacy from January 1988-December 2020. This study examined the characteristics of those women with the objective of providing information useful for preparing future women deans.Methods. Public domain resources were accessed to obtain information about women pharmacy CEO deans, including names of institution(s) where individuals had served or were serving, dates of service, academic background, whether they were a founding dean, and whether they had served or were serving in other academic higher education positions. Descriptive statistics (means, medians, standard deviations, and percentages) were used for data comparisons (quantitative research). Finally, three early women CEO deans provided perspectives about their deanships (qualitative research).Results. The median length of service was six years for women in office as of December 31, 2020, and eight years for women who had completed deanships. The percentage of deans holding a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) declined to 32.4%, while there was a concurrent rise in deans having a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree (58.8%); 79.4% of deans in office and 77% of all women deans had a professional pharmacy degree (BSPharm, PharmD, or both). Women had served or were currently serving as CEO deans at a wide variety of pharmacy schools. The percentage of schools with women deans has declined in recent years to 24%.Conclusion. Recommendations are put forward to prepare future women deans including increased mentoring and creation of an advanced leadership program aimed at potential deans.

Pharmacogenomics education, research and clinical implementation in the state of Minnesota.

Several healthcare organizations across Minnesota have developed formal pharmacogenomic (PGx) clinical programs to increase drug safety and effectiveness. Healthcare professional and student education is strong and there are multiple opportunities in the state for learners to gain workforce skills and develop advanced competency in PGx. Implementation planning is occurring at several organizations and others have incorporated structured utilization of PGx into routine workflows. Laboratory-based and translational PGx research in Minnesota has driven important discoveries in several therapeutic areas. This article reviews the state of PGx activities in Minnesota including educational programs, research, national consortia involvement, technology, clinical implementation and utilization and reimbursement, and outlines the challenges and opportunities in equitable implementation of these advances.

The Impact of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology and Education on Academic Research.

Surveys of institutional representatives of member institutions and faculty members engaged in the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology and Education (NIPTE) revealed that NIPTE is having a positive impact on academic research in the area of pharmaceutical technology by aligning research directions with FDA needs, by providing funding that may not be available elsewhere, and by creating a collegial and collaborative relationship among researchers in this area from various institutions. NIPTE is contributing to the viability of pharmaceutics and pharmaceutical engineering research in academic settings. Some responders cite the fluctuations in funding and relative low levels of funding received as a problem in maintaining programs, but most perceived a positive impact.

A consistent professional brand for pharmacy-the need and a path forward.

OBJECTIVE: The authors draw on their broad experiences in the profession to put forth their assessment of the critical need for all elements of the pharmacy profession to agree upon its core services, and to deliver those services in all pharmacies. And also the need to promote the value of those services to patients, payers, and other providers. SUMMARY: Since the advent of pharmaceutical care, the profession has changed its curricula and its regulations to reflect the value of direct patient care. For many reasons, the practice has not been unified in delivering these services-lack of definition of what constitutes the service, principally. This has led to the "tower of babel" that exists because of the many names given to these patient-care services by various professional organizations, colleges, payers, and government agencies. Lack of inclusion in benefit design with value-based compensation is also recognized as an important barrier for a pharmacist wishing to provide direct patient-care services. CONCLUSION: The authors believe this issue to be critical for the profession, and appeal to JCPP and its member organizations to provide leadership to the various pharmacy associations and colleges to put immediate energy and resources into the definitions, labels, and branding of pharmacy practice. This leadership is essential if the profession's organizations and colleges are to promote the whole of practice and payment for the entirety of services pharmacists provide.

Recommendations for the successful pursuit of scholarship by pharmacy practice faculty members.

Scholarship has long been a basic expectation of faculty members at institutions of higher learning in the United States and elsewhere. This expectation is no less assumed in academic pharmacy. A number of organizations have verbalized and enforced this precept over the years.(1-3) For example, this expectation is spoken to directly in the American Council for Pharmacy Education's Accreditation Standards and Guidelines.(4) This expectation is further emphasized in the draft document of the accreditation standards to be implemented in 2016, in Standard 20. Specifically, Element 20.2 states: "The college or school must create an environment that both requires and promotes scholarship, and must also develop mechanisms to assess both the quantity and quality of faculty scholarly productivity."(5) The successful pursuit of scholarship by clinical faculty members (those engaged in both clinical practice and teaching, without regard to tenure or clinical track status) is challenging. (6-10) Thus, faculty member job descriptions or models should be designed so clinical faculty members can successfully meet all academic job expectations, including productive and meaningful scholarship. In 2012, an AACP Section of Teachers of Pharmacy Practice task force was charged with examining this issue and providing recommendations for models for clinical faculty members that would allow the successful pursuit of scholarship. The task force gathered information relating to the current state of affairs at a number of colleges and reviewed relevant literature. This information, along with personal experiences and much discussion and contemplation, led to some general observations as well as specific recommendations. This paper reiterates the task force's observations and recommendations and provides further detail regarding our interpretation of the findings and basis for the eventual recommendations to the section.