Faculty and students made an indelible mark at the American College of Clinical Pharmacy’s Global Conference recently held in San Francisco. Numerous student and faculty research posters were displayed, honors were awarded, leadership roles were recognized, and presentations were made by many PharmDawgs in attendance.

“Our stellar showing at the ACCP conference is underscored by the partnerships our faculty forge with our students,” said Dean Kelly Smith. “Because of their dedication and commitment to student success, we made a lasting impression at this important conference. I am immensely proud.”

Edith Ford

A major highlight for the College of Pharmacy was Edith Ford, a 2023 PharmD candidate on the Augusta campus, who was one of three finalists for the Best Student Research Award competition. Edith performed laboratory research under the supervision of Dr. Priya Narayanan and studied the effect of triciribine on reducing neurovascular damage in diabetic retinopathy. This year-long study was a collaboration between Dr. Narayanan and Dr. Somanath Shenoy along with other investigators Dr. Fang Liu and Dr. Shengshuai Shan. In addition to her poster, Edith gave an oral presentation. “Edith is an exemplary student,” said Dean Smith. “Her commitment to research and the betterment of the health and wellbeing of our communities is worthy of this outstanding recognition.”

Edith’s finalist award carries great significance in the PharmDawg community. UGA has had student finalists for the Best Student Research Award for the past three of four years.

Other major awards included:

• Andrea Sikora received the Critical Care PRN Publication of the Year Award.
• Natt Patimavirujh (P4), Mentor: Chris Bland, received the Infectious Diseases PRN Student Travel Award. 
• Monica Achraya and Megha Patel, Mentor: Rebecca Stone, received the Women’s Health PRN Travel Award.
• Diana Dang , Mentor: Susan Smith, and Kaitlin Blotske, Mentor: Andrea Sikora, were presented Critical Care PRN Student Travel Awards. They received $1000 each and were recognized at the Critical Care PRN Business Meeting. 

Student research posters presented at the ACCP conference included:

• Daniel Rogers (P4), Mentor: Daniel Chastain. Impact of Substance Use Disorders on Outcomes of Persons Receiving Multi-week Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy. 
• Dayana Pimentel-Dominguez (P3), Mentor: Sharmon Osae, Johnson B, Lavender D, Phillips BB, Palmer R, Young H, Stone RH. Impact of PYG2 Residency Training on Pharmacist-Led Collaborative Drug Therapy Modification (CDTM) Implementation in Georgia. 
• Dayana Pimentel-Dominguez (P3), Mentor: Rebecca Stone, presented research, Identifying Facilitators, Barriers, and Perceptions of Pharmacist-Led Collaborative Drug Therapy Modification (CDTM) Implementation in Georgia.
• Diana Dang (P4) and Mark Molinaro (P4), Mentors: Susan Smith, Trisha Branan. Effectiveness of Sedation Practices in Pharmacologically Paralyzed Patients: A Retrospective Study.
• Kaitlin Blotske (P4) and Stephen Wu (P4), Relationship to Medication Regimen Complexity to Medication Errors in Critically Ill Patients.
• Logan Smith (P4), Mentors/Co-authors: Anthony Hawkins, Andrea Sikora, Susan Smith. Relationship Between Medication Regimen Complexity and Number of Pharmacist-Driven Fluid Stewardship Recommendations.
• Logan Smith (P4), Mentor: Linda Logan, Co-authors Michaelyn Moretz (P3), Justin Petway ‘21, Andrew Darley. Evaluation of Mental Health First Aid in a Cohort of Pharmacy Students, Alumni, Faculty, and Staff to Assess its Impact on Stigma and Attitudes Toward Mental Health.
• Megha D Patel (P4), Lara Lindsay (P4), Mentor: Rebecca H Stone. Pharmacist Prescribed Hormonal Contraception: Georgia Community Pharmacist Perceptions in Metropolitan versus Nonmetropolitan Counties. 
• Monica Acharya (P4), Ann Irvin (P3), Mentor: Rebecca H Stone. Temporal Access to Contraceptive Prescribers in Georgia Safety Net Clinics: An Argument for Pharmacist Prescribed Hormonal Contraception. 
• Natt Patimavirujh (P4), Mentor: Chris Bland, Co-authors: Susan Smith, Bruce Jones. Evaluation of Dalbavancin at Discharge for Substance Abuse Patients with Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infections.
• Shelby Webb (P4), Kelsea Mabie (P4), Rebecca H. Stone. Does Availability of Obstetric Care Affect Patient Support of Community Pharmacists Provided Maternal Health Services?  

Faculty members who attended and served in leadership and/or pending leadership roles included:

• Beth Phillips participated as an ACCP Board of Regents member.
• Susan Smith was recognized at the Critical Care PRN Business Meeting for her role as Secretary/Treasurer of the PRN over the past year and was inducted as the Critical Care PRN Chair-Elect for the 2022-23 year.
• Sharmon P. Osae was inducted as Secretary/Treasurer of the Health Equity PRN for the 2022-2023 year. She also was selected as a part of the inaugural cohort of the ACCP Professional Leadership Program.  
• Rebecca Stone was invited to serve on the ACCP Publications Committee to help continuously update the “ACCP Didactic Toolkit.” 
• Susan Smith was invited to serve on the ACCP Member Relations Committee to help create a guide for PRN best practices.

Featured speakers and presenter included:

• Andrea Sikora was a featured speaker at the Critical Care Focus Session. Her talk was titled “Critical Care Pharmacy Practice Models of the Future.”
• Anthony Hawkins presented at the Critical Care PRN business meeting as the incoming chair of the Trainee Engagement Committee. Hawkins also facilitated the Critical Care/Emergency Medicine roundtable for student programming. 
• Sharmon P. Osae was a featured speaker within the MeRIT Platform Presentations. Her talk was entitled “Evaluation of quality measure attainment with pharmacist-delivered Medicare annual wellness visits.”
• Sharmon P. Osae was also a featured speaker within the Incorporating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Principles in Pharmacy Experiential Education presentation. Her talk was entitled “Getting Uncomfortable: Integrating Health Equity into Experiential Education.”