University of Houston College of Pharmacy - the STEM Digital Village

Texas Children’s Hospital Joins M.S./Residency Partnership
As the concurrent M.S./Residency program between UH College
of Pharmacy and several health systems in the Texas Medical
Center (TMC) enters its third year, the program is welcoming a
sixth TMC institution: Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH).
Launched in 2009, the program is designed to prepare
pharmacists with the knowledge and skills necessary to assume
positions of management and leadership in health care. Students
will be awarded a M.S. in Pharmacy Administration with a
focus on pharmacy leadership from UHCOP and concurrently
complete PGY1/PGY2 residency training (as a new program,
it is not yet accredited by ASHP). In addition to UHCOP, the
other founders of the program are the Michael E. DeBakey
Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Harris County Hospital District,
Memorial Hermann Health Care System, The Methodist
Hospital, and St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital.
“Texas Children’s Hospital will undoubtedly add a much-needed
Administrator Helps Faculty
Spend More Time on Research,
Less Time on Funding Reports
With UH College of Pharmacy faculty grant submissions – and
success in receiving awards – at an all-time high, the college
recently hired a Research Administrator to not only assist our
faculty in sustaining the high quality and quantity of proposals,
but also ensure that the grants awards follow proper business
office, university and funding agency guidelines.
Research Administrator Marianne Sherman
joined the college in July 2010 after serving
as Grant Coordinator at the UH National
Wind Energy Center since April 2009.
Sherman graduated with honors from
UH’s College of Education in 2009, with a
B.S. in Interdisciplinary Education with a
specification in mathematics. A member of
Sherman
Chi Omega and the National Association of
Women MBAs, she is currently enrolled in the M.B.A. program
at UH’s Bauer College of Business.
dimension to our program,” said Divya Varkey, Pharm.D., M.S.,
SLEH pharmacy operations manager and chair of the program’s
steering committee. “This only expands the opportunities
provided to not only future candidates for the program, but
current residents should they be interested in gaining experience
in the pediatric setting.”
Katie M. Scholz, Pharm.D. (’07), M.S., TCH pharmacy manager,
said the concurrent M.S./residency program will be a natural
complement to the PGY-2 pharmacy administration residency
program established at TCH three years ago.
“TCH Pharmacy is excited to join the program while it is still in
its early phase,” Scholz said. “Some of the unique opportunities at
Texas Children’s include experience at our new community-based
hospital in West Houston, as well as an opportunity to participate
in the opening of the new maternity hospital and in our extensive
investigational pharmacy services.”
UH Grads Continue to Exceed
National, State Pass Rates on
Mandatory Licensure Exams
UH College of Pharmacy graduates once again have
exceeded the state and national average pass rates among
first-time test-takers on the North American Pharmacist
Licensure Examinations (NAPLEX) and the National
Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination (MPJE).
On the NAPLEX, UH Pharm.D. graduates taking the test
for the first time achieved a pass rate of 98.11 percent,
compared to average pass rates for Texas and the U.S. of
95.00 percent and 95.31 percent, respectively. On the
MPJE, UHCOP graduates taking the test for the first time
achieved a pass rate of 97.18 percent, compared to an
average pass rate of 94.92 percent and 95.50 percent for firsttime
Texas and U.S. test-takers, respectively. The National
Association of Boards of Pharmacy data covers first-time
test-takers from May to August 2010.
College Finalizing Self-study Report for ACPE Accreditation Visit
UH College of Pharmacy’s work on its Self-study Report, which
is one of the first steps required for accreditation for another six
years by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, is
nearing completion and scheduled to be submitted by February
2011.
Before the final document and supporting appendices are
submitted, the Self-study Report will be ratified by the college’s
faculty in January. The report will be posted to the college’s
Web site when it is submitted to ACPE. The accreditation
review team’s site visit is scheduled for March 29-31, 2011.
ACPE is expected to make a final determination on the college’s
accreditation status by late spring/early summer 2011.
“Not only is Self-study exercise mandatory for accreditation, but
it’s also an excellent opportunity to assess the state of the college,
the progress we’ve made since the prior report and the steps
we’re taking to prepare the college and its students for the future
healthcare environment and workplace,” said J. David Hayes,
Pharm.D. (’97), BCPS, clinical associate professor and chair of the
Self-study Taskforce. “The feedback from our students, alumni,
faculty and staff members has been both constructive and
essential in providing a gauge of where the college is headed and
the challenges we need to overcome as we plan for the future.”
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