Strengthening our partnership with the medical center

From the beginning of his deanship at The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy, Henry Mann, PharmD, FCCP, FCCM, FASHP, prioritized strengthening the college’s partnership with the Wexner Medical Center (OSUWMC).  A decade later, that strategy has benefited students, faculty, staff, researchers and clinicians at both institutions. 

“The college sitting steps away from a world-class medical center has expanded opportunities for our students to learn from experts in pharmacy practice; assisted the college in recruiting researchers who are world-renowned leaders in their fields of study; and ultimately, has enhanced our college’s strategic priorities,” Dean Mann said.  

The college’s partnership with OSUWMC delivers on the academic health care pillar of the college’s strategic plan  by leveraging collaborations in three ways:

1. developing meaningful relationships to increase collaboration in education, training and research.
2. creating innovative pharmacy practice sites that ultimately increase patient access to care and improve health outcomes. 
3. preparing students and trainees to become innovative professionals that meet workforce demands.

Clinical expertise reflected in a patient care-focused curriculum

In 2015, the College of Pharmacy launched a new PharmD curriculum, Inquire, Innovate and Involve (I3). I3 helps students develop a comprehensive problem-solving approach through active learning strategies, the integration of pharmaceutical and clinical sciences, and an earlier introduction of integrated practical experiences that can be simulated and then practiced. 

The introduction of I3 created the opportunity to recruit more clinical-focused faculty members, benefiting the college and OSUWMC, where many of these positions have clinical appointments. These positions have allowed the college to focus on improving students’ educational experiences and patient care. For example, through their introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPE), PharmD students meet with Fadwa Revelos, PharmD, a joint hire with the medical center, to practice patient workups and learn how critical pharmacists are to patient care. 

In 2022, the college and OSUWMC collaborated to establish two new faculty positions that split funding and time between the two institutions, taking care of patients and teaching students and residents about critical care pharmacy. Victoria Williams, PharmD, BCCCP, assistant professor – clinical, started in July 2022 and Casey May, PharmD, BCCCP, FNCS, associate professor – clinical, both in the college’s Division of Pharmacy Practice and Science, started in November 2022.

At OSUWMC, Drs. Williams and May have direct patient care responsibilities in the neuro-intensive care and medical intensive care units, respectively. While caring for patients, they also work with their critical care colleagues to create and modify institution guidelines, train residents, conduct research and precept pharmacy students on experiential rotations.

Drs. Williams and May bring acute care expertise into the college’s curriculum. Both faculty members will coordinate and teach a critical care pharmacy elective and teach integrated pharmacotherapy (IP) courses including IP4, which provides third-year PharmD students education on critical care medicine.

The College of Pharmacy has provided pharmacy services for Ohio State’s Division of General Internal Medicine (OSUGIM) for more than 15 years, establishing cutting-edge practices in collaborative medicine and expanding the role of the pharmacist. OSUGIM has been the primary practice site for up to three pharmacy residents per year, with some graduates going on to start similar innovative programs in diverse settings across the country. 

An important component of the college’s success at OSUGIM is having embedded pharmacists work side-by-side with the rest of the health care team—including physicians, nurses, medical assistants and social workers—to start and adjust patient medications; order monitoring labs; and optimize medication regimens for diabetes, hypertension, smoking cessation, behavioral health management and HIV PrEP. The interprofessional collaboration allows the entire health care team to achieve the best outcomes for its patients.

Similar to OSUGIM, faculty members at the college have built innovative specialty pharmacy practice sites in areas such as antiarrhythmic monitoring (Ross Heart Hospital), epilepsy clinics (Martha Morehouse), chronic disease management and more. These health care models improve outcomes for patients and benefit students who learn about cutting-edge practice models and how the faculty members developed them. 

The partnership between the college and the medical center also resulted in an expanded joint residency program – one of the largest in the nation. The joint residency program has approximately 37 residents who practice in a variety of settings and with numerous patient populations.

Additionally, the college’s Master of Science in Health-System Pharmacy Administration and Leadership (MS/HSPAL) program has undergone major changes over the past 10 years, including modernizing the curriculum and an expansion to provide an online offering for working professionals who are emerging leaders in their profession. This builds upon the program’s 64-year-old legacy of excellence and bolsters the thriving MS/HSPAL alumni community active in the Latiolais Leadership Program. 

Expanding possibilities through research partnerships

The college and medical center have worked together to engage faculty, staff and students in special research projects, recruit talented faculty members, build and renovate labs, and develop research programs in which students can participate.

One such program is the Cancer Research Experience for the Advancement and Training of Emerging Scientists (CREATES), a partnership between the College of Pharmacy and Center for Cancer Mentoring, Education, Leadership and Oncology Related Training (CAMELOT) within the Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James).

CREATES gives undergraduate students experience in cancer-based research no matter their desired career path. Through this year-long program, students learn how to read, write, analyze and communicate scientific data while learning how to set up and conduct cutting-edge experiments – crucial skills most students don’t learn until they reach graduate or professional school.

The college’s partnership with OSUWMC has been a key factor for the college’s increased success in research awards. The last five years have had the highest AACP research award totals on record with federal fiscal year 2022 being the highest ever at $19.2 million.

A $15 million investment between the college and OSUCCC – James led to the renovation of a 19,300-square-foot space in the college’s Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy on the fifth floor of Parks Hall and the installment of the small molecule high-throughput screening facility on the third floor of Parks Hall. The construction builds upon a series of joint hires to perform work in the spaces,  professor and chair of the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy.

In 2015, Sharyn Baker, PhD, was recruited as the college’s chair of the Division of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry and the OSUCCC – James’s Gertrude Parker Heer Chair in Cancer Research. Dr. Baker also serves as the OSUCCC – James associate director for shared resources. Alex Sparreboom, PhD, was also recruited as a professor at the college and is the Lucius A. Wing Chair of Cancer Research and Therapy at OSUCCC – James. Drs. Baker and Sparreboom’s recruitment has resulted in more than $15 million in total grant funding since their hires. 

Thanks to the concentrated efforts of all the college’s faculty, staff and students, this decade-long collaboration between the College of Pharmacy and OSUWMC has emerged as a story of success. Dean Mann’s focus on this partnership has resulted in transformative changes to practical education, interdisciplinary teams and research. As the dean departs his role, the relationship between the two organizations will continue to shape the future of health care and pharmacy  and surely be remembered as a prestigious piece of  Dean Mann’s legacy.