SPRING 2022

This fall, ACPE will visit the College of Pharmacy for reaccreditation. Our faculty and staff are working diligently to complete the self-study and to prepare for the upcoming visit. We are excited to showcase our accomplishments to ACPE, and we anticipate regaining a full 8-year accreditation. As you will see in the excerpts below, our students, faculty, and alumni have achieved many successes, and are representing the College well. I invite you to visit, like, and follow us on social media to see all of our activities and accomplishments.

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Michelle A. Clark, Ph.D.

NSU College of Pharmacy spent the 2020 calendar year working to develop the vision and mission of the College. Faculty drafted, discussed, and on January 28, 2021 voted to approve the revised vision and mission for the College.

Vision Statement: To be a preeminent College of Pharmacy that cultivates leadership, innovation, and diversity in education, practice, research, and service to advance the health and well-being of our communities.

Mission Statement: To educate and develop inclusive leaders in the science and practice of pharmacy who will improve health through discovery, innovation, advocacy, and the delivery of optimal patient care.

Once the vision and mission were established, an ad-hoc committee comprised of faculty, staff, and administrators began building a new strategic plan that would meet the goals and priorities of the newly defined vision and mission. This group continued to engage in smaller sub-committees to further refine the strategic plan and name each strategic pillar. Once the five strategic pillars were identified and the foundation of the strategic plan was created, the sub-committees determined the strategic priorities within each pillar.

Your input is needed to have a holistic futuristic perspective involving all stakeholders.

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NSU College of Pharmacy launched its first community relations and strategic planning board, the NSU College of Pharmacy Community Leadership Council (CLC).

The Mission of the CLC is to fully support and promote the College of Pharmacy through outstanding community engagement and strategic planning, to meet the critical, ongoing philanthropic and educational needs of the College.

The CLC consists of community leaders, including College of Pharmacy alumni, who subscribe to the mission of the College and meet the responsibilities and duties of Council membership. The founding chair of the CLC is Richard K. Brook, President & CEO of Richard Klein Brook & Associates Inc. More to come about the work of the CLC!

Anshar Saud, M.Farm., is an experienced lecturer with a demonstrated history of working in the social and administrative pharmacy at the College of Pharmacy, Universitas Hasanuddin in Makassar, Indonesia. He joins the College for a three-month period from January 2022. Saud was awarded a grant from his university to support his visit.

He is skilled in pharmacy, pharmacy education, and pharmaceutical policy research. During his time at NSU, he will work alongside faculty members in the Sociobehavioral and Administrative Pharmacy Department, honing research techniques and methodologies. He will be working on a research project determining the economic cost of drug counterfeiting in selected areas in Asia and continue his research on his return to Indonesia. Saud is also a FIP-Pharmabridge 2018 Fellow.

NSU College of Pharmacy faculty members Yarelis Alvarado, Pharm.D. (‘09), Tina Joseph, Pharm.D., and Jennifer Steinberg, Pharm.D. are making a huge impact in the post-graduate training realm. These accomplishments show our faculty's commitment to provide unique opportunities within the profession for graduates.

Alvarado was granted an initial one-year approval by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) in conjunction with HIMA San Pablo Hospital for a post-graduate year one (PGY-1) Pharmacy Practice Residency. This program is one of only four programs approved in Puerto Rico.

Joseph’s post-graduate year two (PGY-2) Pharmacy Practice Residency has been granted reaccreditation for six years, the most a program can receive. This program remains one of the first ambulatory care accredited program(s) in South Florida.

The ASHP Commission on Credentialing extended accreditation of the PGY-1 Walgreens and Nova Southeastern University College of Pharmacy Community Residency Program in Miami, Florida, for the remainder of its current eight-year cycle (2027). Steinberg, along with the residency team, including Residency Program Director Andrea Montealegre, Pharm.D. (‘08), worked to bring the first Walgreens-based community residency to Florida. The program also has specialty pharmacy sites as another unique feature within the residency.

NSU College of Pharmacy continues to be at the forefront for Continuing Pharmacy Education with the offering of two new programs designed to transform the pharmacy profession by raising the level of practice.

Both programs have three components, self-study modules and self-assessments; live virtual seminar; and post-workshop assessment and program evaluation. These programs are approved by the Florida Board of Pharmacy to meet the respective requirements to be eligible for Provider Approval by the Board of Pharmacy.

• Initial Test and Treat Certification prepares pharmacists to test, screen, and treat non-chronic, minor health conditions in their patients within the context of a written protocol established with a physician in accordance with Florida Statutes.
• Initial Collaborative Practices Agreement program provides pharmacists with the comprehensive knowledge, skills, and resources necessary to engage in Collaborative Practices.

For more information on programs offered at NSU College of Pharmacy contact the Office of Continuing Education at PharmCE@nova.edu and register at https://pharmacy.nova.edu/ce/schedule.html.

NSU College of Pharmacy had the pleasure of receiving Scott Knoer, Pharm.D., Executive Vice President and CEO of the American Pharmacist Association (APhA). Knoer met with the students in an open discussion format to discuss the role of APhA in supporting students and the profession of pharmacy.
“It was very inspiring to hear how possible it is for a pharmacist to lead a national organization and make changes in the profession.” - Camille Mercado ('24), Class President and APhA-ASP President-Elect.

NSU College of Pharmacy was thrilled to receive scholarship funds from an anonymous donor for the winter 2022 semester.

Students completed an online application and were selected based on their awards, honors, scholarships, positions held within professional organizations during the last three years, pharmacy or health-related research engagements within the NSU College of Pharmacy, engagement in community service, and a personal statement about why they should receive the scholarship.

Fourteen students were awarded $5,000 each towards tuition expenses.

For information on how you can contribute to help the next generation of pharmacists in perpetuity, contact Carla Luque, Pharm.D., assistant dean, student services.

NSU Global Day of Service

Palm Beach Campus Students Participate in a Community Outreach Event

Puerto Rico Students at Community Service Event

Student Achievements

• Gabriela Marrerro (‘24) was selected for the JR Commissioned Officer Student Training Extern Program (JRCOSTEP) Internship with the Unites States Public Health Service (USPHS). She will travel to Sisseston, South Dakota to complete her training this summer.
• Maria Citron Lugo (‘24) was awarded the 2021 National Hispanic Health Foundation (NHHF), Hispanic Health Professional Student Scholarship award.
• Pegah Manesh (‘23) was appointed to the 2021-2022 Florida Society of Health-System Pharmacist Membership Council.
• Jeremy Espeut ('23) was appointed to the 2021-2022 Florida Society of Health-System Pharmacist Board of Directors.

Men’s Team Reach Playoffs

The College of Pharmacy students won two of three regular season games in the NSU 5x5 men’s basketball intramural competition. Congratulations!
Go SharksRx!

Karen Berger, Pharm.D., Assistant Professor

Karen Berger joins the College with a practice specialty in neurocritical care. Berger received her Pharm.D. from the University of Florida and went on to complete her PGY-1 pharmacy residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital and her PGY-2 critical care residency at the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago, where she was chief resident. Prior to joining NSU, Berger practiced at New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical Center as a neurocritical care clinical pharmacy manager.

Meredith Brook, Pharm.D. (‘15), Clinical Assistant Professor

Rodney Colón, Pharm.D. (‘20), Clinical Assistant Professor

After graduating, Colón completed a PGY-1 residency at Brookdale Hospital Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York. Following residency, he joined NSU as a Clinical Assistant Professor, where he will teach in the Integrated Disease Management and the Foundations of Pharmacy series. His practice site is at Auxilio Mutuo, Puerto Rico, where he focuses on Internal Medicine.

Wilfredo Cruz Vélez, Pharm.D. (‘20), Instructor/Academic Facilitator

Wilfredo J. Cruz Vélez joined NSU College of Pharmacy as Academic Facilitator/Instructor. Before joining NSU in his current position, Cruz worked as an adjunct faculty for the College. Cruz facilitates courses, and he teaches in the Pharmacy Skills Development Laboratory series and the Sterile Products Laboratory.

Genevieve Hale, Pharm.D. (‘13), was recognized in the winter newsletter of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Pharmacy Practice Section for her advocacy efforts as the faculty advisor for the student led NSU College of Pharmacy Legislative Task Force. Under her guidance, this group collaborates with a state-wide student advocacy outreach team to organize meetings, participate in legislative visits, and educate and build relationships with state legislators.

The efforts of this group shine bright during Legislative Days, an annual event at the state capitol, that brings pharmacy students, faculty, and other pharmacists from the Florida Pharmacy Association (FPA) and Florida Society of Health System Pharmacists (FSHP) to meet with state legislators to discuss support or opposition to pharmacy-related bills. Advocacy for the pharmacy profession is more important than ever given the current pandemic and other emerging opportunities for pharmacists within health care.

Mansour Almuqbil, Pharm.D., Ph.D. (’16) was named Dean, College of Pharmacy, Almaarefa University in Saudi Arabia. Almuqbil graduated with a Pharmaceutical Sciences degree with a concentration in social and administrative pharmacy.

Hoda Askari (Masmouei), Pharm.D. (‘14) was promoted to Associate Vice President of Operations at Jackson Health System, Miami.

Emmanuel Escobar, Pharm.D. (‘21) was appointed President of the Dade County Pharmacy Association.

Jorge Garcia, Pharm.D. ('10) was awarded "40 under 40 in Cancer" by the Lynx Group. Garcia was a winner in the Clinical and Patient Care Professional category.

Shannon Koch, Pharm.D. (’14) was promoted to Pharmacy Revenue Cycle Manager at UChicago Medicine.

Kirk D. Latibeaudiere, Pharm.D. (‘11) started a new position as Field Medical Outcome and Analytics director – Rare Diseases at Pfizer.

Irvin Molina, Pharm.D. (‘11) started a new position with IPD Analytics in Aventura, Florida as Associate Director of Clinical Pharmacy.

Antonia “Toni” Pasvantis (Zapantis), Pharm.D. (’01) started a new position as Director of Pharmacy at St. Mary’s Medical Center & Palm Beach Children’s Hospital.

Rishi Patel, M.B.A. Pharm.D. (‘07) was appointed President and CEO of CAN Community Health.

Carlos Esteban Colón Rodríguez, Pharm.D. ('20), Jann C. Colón Rodríguez, Pharm.D. ('20), and Adriel Martínez Varela, Pharm.D. ('20) created “Med-Fly” - an innovative vending machine that dispenses health products to the public.

The SharksRx Alumni Society created the legacy fund to support the College through the knowledge, skills, and financial resources needed to invest in the future of pharmacy education. The Society's goal is to grow student scholarship opportunities. You can help meet this goal by supporting the SharksRx Alumni Legacy Fund. Your contributions help the next generation of pharmacists in perpetuity. For more information on the Legacy Tree contact Carla Luque, Pharm.D., assistant dean, student services. To purchase an engraved leaf with your inscription click here.

Email your updates and stories to copalumni@nova.edu.
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