For the second consecutive year, students in the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy won first place in the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy Foundation’s National Student Pharmacist Pharmacy and Therapeutics Competition.
Members of the UNC chapter of AMCP took home the top prize in a field of 46 pharmacy schools, topping seven other teams in the finals in Boston on April 26.
UNC Pharm.D. students Jesse Martin, Kristen Tripicchio, Kristen Wines and Katie Woodworth represented the School at the competition, accompanied by chapter adviser Ben Urick, Pharm.D., Ph.D. The team won a $4,000 scholarship for the School.
“Our heartfelt congratulations go out to the bright student pharmacists who competed in this prestigious and challenging competition,” said Susan A. Cantrell, AMCP CEO and chair of the AMCP Foundation Board of Trustees. “The P&T competition presents a real-word experience for individuals who are considering careers in managed care pharmacy. These winners are truly the best of the best.”
The P&T competition provides a firsthand experience into the complex practice of managing the formulary process. The teams of four worked through a case study using a product dossier in the AMCP Format for Formulary Submissions.
This year’s competition drug was Xultophy 100/3.6 (insulin degludec and liraglutide). manufactured by Novo Nordisk, Inc. Using available evidence, the teams evaluated the product and presented their recommendations for formulary status and coverage criteria to a panel of judges representing a P&T committee.
The UNC team beat out the second-place finishers from the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy, as well as the third place team, The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy. Other finalists included the University of California San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan College of Pharmacy, University of the Pacific Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, University of Utah College of Pharmacy and the University of Wisconsin—Madison School of Pharmacy.
“Our students put in more than 200 hours of combined effort into the competition, and it really paid off,” Urick said. “This win, following on last year’s win, brings substantial recognition to UNC by members of the managed care pharmacy community.”
The AMCP Foundation is a research, education and philanthropic organization which exists to advance collective knowledge and insights on major issues associated with the practice of pharmacy in managed health care settings. It is the philanthropic arm of the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy.