Category: Featured News
Popular Netflix show inspires alum in creation of her COVID-19 public service announcement for World Health Organization
August 20, 2021In this alum spotlight, we chat with Ina Liu, Pharm.D., MS (’18, ’20), Clinical Manager at UNC Hospitals at WakeBrook, a behavioral health facility. Recently, Liu participated in a World Health Organization contest to develop a public service announcement to increase awareness of COVID-19 safety precautions. Liu, who won the PSA contest, developed a public service announcement that aimed to “checkmate” COVID-19 transmission. Learn more about where she found her inspiration: Q: What prompted you to participate in the World Health Organization (WHO) contest? A: I have always had a very strong interest in the intersection of art and healthcare … Read more
School partners with University of North Carolina Wilmington to train future pharmacists
August 16, 2021The University of North Carolina Wilmington is collaborating with the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy in a shared commitment to train the future public health workforce. The two universities are creating an Early Assurance Program, offering an automatic interview with the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) program admissions committee for qualifying UNCW students. UNCW will verify that interested students meet the participation qualifications identified by the two schools and provide processes and resources to support interested students. “Each of our universities are committed to engaging with our communities to improve the health of North Carolinians, so … Read more
Meet alumna Irene Ulrich, clinical pharmacist at MAHEC
August 13, 2021In this alum spotlight, we chat with Irene Park Ulrich, Pharm.D., BCACP, clinical pharmacist in the Mountain Area Heath Education Center’s Department of Family Medicine, and associate professor of clinical education at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Please describe your novel practice setting. What makes your career path unique? MAHEC is a multidisciplinary health care institution in Western North Carolina. I work in the Family Medicine Department and practice at 2 of the MAHEC satellite practices alongside family medicine physicians. I practice under a collaborative practice agreement, and have my clinical pharmacist practitioner (CPP) designation in North Carolina. In both … Read more
Carolina scientists testing contraception that stops sperm in its tracks
August 11, 2021University of North Carolina Eshelman School of Pharmacy has developed a panel of ultrapotent sperm-binding monoclonal antibodies as option for affordable, non-hormonal female contraception Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are engineering molecularly tuned monoclonal antibodies that can be directly delivered into the vagina for a new type of non-hormonal female contraception. Monoclonal antibodies are known for their ability to fight off invading germs, and are used to treat and prevent everything from cancer to COVID-19. Scientists are now enabling a new application for antibodies: blocking sperm from reaching an egg. The concept is taking shape … Read more
Two Asheville-based students named NC AHEC scholars
August 6, 2021UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy Asheville-based Pharm.D. students Haley Simkins and Brandyn Wilcox have been named North Carolina Area Health Education Centers (NC AHEC) Scholars. The NC AHEC Scholars Program, part of the National AHEC Organization, recruits, trains, and supports a diverse group of students from across the state, creating a multidisciplinary team of health professionals committed to both community service and the transformation of health care in North Carolina. “The NC AHEC Scholars Program focuses on interprofessional teams, community engagement, leadership, and diversity which are important values for the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. This program will provide Haley … Read more
Dumond receives $3.4 million from NIH to improve HIV treatment outcomes
August 4, 2021Julie Dumond, Pharm.D., M.S., is focused on improving the lives of patients living with HIV. Dumond, a faculty member in the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics (DPET) is primarily focused on the pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics of antiretrovirals for HIV treatment and prevention. Her recent five-year, $3,453,929 grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, will help propel her latest research, “Quantifying Sex-and-Age-Related Differences in Antiretroviral Exposure and Adverse Effects in the MACS/WIHS Combined Cohort Study.” MACS/WIHS, meaning Multicenter AIDS Clinical Study/Women’s Interagency HIV Study. The long-term objective of the … Read more
Kristy Ainslie receives $1.5 million from NIH to combat type 1 diabetes
July 30, 2021With the aid of a $1.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, Kristy Ainslie, Ph.D., will work to develop a long-term treatment for type 1 diabetes. The four-year grant will support her work, “Formulation to Generate Tolerance Towards Type 1 Diabetes.” According to the NIH, type 1 diabetes typically occurs in adolescents and affects about 5% of those living with diabetes in the United States. People with type 1 diabetes rely on insulin injections to survive because their bodies do not produce the hormone. Ainslie, chair of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s Division of Pharmacoengineering and Molecular … Read more
Craig Lee, Pharm.D, Ph.D. promoted to professor in Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics
July 28, 2021Craig Lee, Pharm.D, Ph.D., has been promoted to full professor in the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s Division of Pharmacotherapy and Experimental Therapeutics (DPET), effective July 1. “I am very honored to receive this recognition from the School and University, which would not be possible without the tremendous support I have received from my family and so many wonderful mentors, collaborators, students, fellows, and staff,” Lee said. “I am eager to advance our research that focuses on developing and evaluating more precise medication selection and dosing strategies that improve patient health, and to help train the next generation of … Read more
Klarissa Jackson secures $1.9 million from NIH to study drug metabolism in ethnically diverse populations
July 23, 2021Klarissa Jackson, Ph.D., is the recipient of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award for Early-Stage Investigators (R35). The five-year award totals $1,908,009 and will support her project titled, “Interindividual Variability in Drug Metabolism in Ethnically Diverse Populations.” Jackson said the goal of her project is to better understand how genetic and non-genetic factors affect drug metabolism and drug response in patients from understudied ethnic backgrounds. “We believe this research is important to individualize drug treatment for patients to be able to maximize beneficial drug effects and minimize serious adverse effects,” she said. Jackson, along with … Read more
Herb Patterson receives 2021 Fred M. Eckel Pharmacy Leadership Award
July 21, 2021UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s Herb Patterson, Pharm.D., is the recipient of UNC Health’s 2021 Fred M. Eckel Pharmacy Leadership Award. The award is presented annually in recognition of an individual associated with the UNC Hospitals and Clinics post-graduate pharmacy training programs who has demonstrated sustained professional contributions to pharmacy practice throughout his or her career. “To win any award from the UNC Department of Pharmacy is an honor and particularly one named after one of my mentors, Fred Eckel. When I saw the list of previous winners it is very humbling to now be a part of that group,” Patterson said. The … Read more