October an important month for Pharmacy Practice faculty

• By Mark Hendricks
• October 26, 2017

October was a noteworthy month for several Department of Pharmacy Practice faculty members from TTUHSC’s School of Pharmacy.

Brian Irons, Pharm.D., a professor on the Lubbock campus who also heads the department’s ambulatory care division, received the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) 2017 Ambulatory Care Practice and Research Network (PRN) Achievement Award. According to the ACCP website, PRNs were established by ACCP to connect focused groups of clinical pharmacists to enhance professional support and collaboration. They each maintain an e-mail list for members to discuss key information in their fields, and their leadership prepares educational sessions to be delivered each year at the ACCP Annual Meeting. The PRNs amplify the voices of their members, allowing them to inform and guide ACCP policy from the clinician level. The Ambulatory Care PRN is composed of pharmacists from a diverse array of outpatient settings with a particular emphasis on the provision of primary care for chronic diseases. It was one of the first two PRNs established in 1992 and has grown to be one of the largest PRNs each year. 

 

Amie Blaszczyk, Pharm.D., an associate professor at the Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) campus and geriatric division head, delivered an invited presentation Oct. 14 at the Parkinson Voice Project in Richardson, Texas. The Parkinson Voice Project mission is to preserve the voices of individuals with Parkinson’s and related neurological disorders through intensive speech therapy, follow-up support, research, education and community awareness. Blaszczyk’s presentation was titled, “Pharmacological Management of Parkinson’s.”

 

Ronald Hall, Pharm.D., and Winter Smith, Pharm.D., associate professors on the DFW campus, received administrative appointments that took effect Oct. 1.

 

Hall was named the clinical and translational research division head. He was also selected to serve as vice chair for research within the Department of Pharmacy Practice. In his new vice chair role, Hall will mentor, support and train department faculty and residents who are conducting research and scholarship. He will also provide input and strategic direction regarding research and scholarship endeavors within the department and will work with the chair, the department advisory council the associate dean of sciences.

 

Smith was named vice chair for residency programs for the Department of Pharmacy Practice. She is replacing Steven Pass, Pharm.D., who is the new regional dean for the DFW campus. Smith, who joined TTUHSC and the School of Pharmacy in 2016, will provide strategic direction and oversight of the pharmacy practice residency programs. She previously served in a similar position at the University of Oklahoma College of Pharmacy.