Amazon Alexa is a voice controlled artificial intelligence (A.I.) platform that has the ability to provide information upon request. As part of the Introduction to Healthcare Informatics concentration in the Doctor of Pharmacy program at Belmont, April Pepper, Phuong Truong and Karen Le worked as a team to develop different applications, or “skills,” that are now available in the Alexa store.

The skill, “Drug Wizard,” was created to help pharmacy students study the brand and generic names of the top 300 medications currently prescribed in the United States. “Diabetes Goals Quiz” is another skill that was created. Its purpose is to help students study the American Diabetes Association diabetic goals. The “Thyroid information” skill was created to help students grasp introductory lecture material for this topic. This material was based on clinical practice guidelines from the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists and the American Thyroid Association. The information in these skills are provided for informational and educational purposes only. They are not a substitute for professional medical advice, treatment or diagnosis.

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Courtesy of WSMV

Fourth year pharmacy students Bassel Alhashemi and Patty Hernandez were recently featured in a news report on WSMV News4 Nashville, an NBC affiliate, about their work in administering COVID vaccines at Siloam Health in Nashville. Siloam Health serves uninsured and underserved individuals in the Nashville community.

Siloam Health is one of over a dozen practice sites where Belmont Pharmacy students apprentice with a full-time Belmont faculty member.  Dr. Elisa Greene, Associate Professor, is part of the health team at Siloam and teaches students there in one-month clinical rotations throughout the year.

Click here to view the News4 report and story.

Dr. John Maneno, second year Drug Information Fellow in Belmont’s College of Pharmacy, has accepted an offer to work for IBM. His new role will be part of IBM Watson Health but more specifically within the Micromedex Suite as a clinical content specialist.

Maneno began his fellowship program with Belmont University College of Pharmacy in conjunction with Aegis Sciences Corporation in the summer of 2019 after his graduation from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine’s College of Pharmacy. He has spent time as part of Belmont’s faculty within the College of Pharmacy and also as a drug information pharmacist at the Christy Houston Drug Information Center and Aegis.

During his time at Belmont, Maneno published an article on Annals of Pharmacotherapy, had multiple podium presentations at national conferences, and a poster presentation. Genevieve Engle, PharmD and Andrew Holt, PharmD, directors of the fellowship program, continue to set up the fellows for success by ensuring 100 percent post-fellowship job placements.

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Fourth year pharmacy students, Bassel Alhashemi and Patty Hernandez assist with the COVID-19 vaccination efforts for patients over the age of 75 as part of their learning experience at Siloam Health this month.

Siloam Health is a faith-based nonprofit that provides medical care for the underserved, community health for marginalized immigrant populations and student education for the next generation of health care providers. Siloam Health serves as a training site for pharmacy students under Dr. Elisa Greene, associate professor in the College of Pharmacy.

In December 2019, when we could travel before the pandemic, we had a group of students along with Dr. Elisa Greene and Larkin Briley travel to El Zamorano, Honduras, to work with Jovenes En Camino.  This is the organization which we partnered with Lipscomb College of Pharmacy to build a pharmacy on the campus.  This video captures some of the week.

Soriano is pictured with her team on the far right front.

Trish Soriano, a current Belmont student in the College of Pharmacy and active member of the United States National Guard, was recently recognized by NBC of Palm Spring under the headline “National Guard Helps Riverside Hospital Overrun with Covid Patients.” The California hospital became overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, calling in help from the National Guard.

The strike team that was called into the hospital consists of six team members, one of them being Soriano. The chief nursing officer of Riverside hospital shared that the strike team has helped alleviate the surge of COVID-19 patients and the hospital is more than grateful.

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Chelsa Deanes, fellow at Belmont University in their drug information fellowship program in partnership with Aegis Scientific, and Jacquese Reed, P3 at Belmont University, explain why they aimed to better understand the link between medication and cognitive impairment—specifically in driving impairment—in a recent study, and how pharmacists can help bring awareness to their patients of the potential side effects that they can experience while using certain medications.

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacist (ASHP) Midyear clinical meeting for 2020 concluded on December 10 after completing its first ever virtual meeting due to the current coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic did not stop numerous presenters and participants from all over the country. This conference attracts pharmacy students, pharmacists, hospital systems, pharmaceutical companies and clinical researchers. The Belmont University College of Pharmacy (BUCOP) has a track record of sending students and faculty members each year to this annual conference. Highlights of the conference include presentations, interviews and recruitment, exhibits, and opportunities for continued pharmacist education (CPE) sessions.

Dr. Kate Claussen, Dr. Emily Singleton and Dr. John Maneno recently presented in the Innovations in Drug Information session at the 2020 ASHP Clinical Midyear Meeting. Dr. Maneno, a faculty fellow and clinical pharmacist fellow with BUCOP and Aegis Sciences Corporation, presented on his original research at BUCOP to understand utilization of social media platforms in the academia setting. His presentation focused on the opportunities available for utilizing social media platforms in the academia setting, associated risks and mitigation techniques, and effective audience engagement.

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Dr. John Maneno, PharmD, a second year fellow with Belmont University College of Pharmacy (BUCOP) and Aegis Sciences Corporation, was one of the guest speakers featured at the Rite Aid Leadership Academy on November 6-8, 2020.

This event is annually hosted by Student National Pharmaceutical Association (SNPhA) and the National Pharmaceutical Association (NPhA) during their annual conventions where select speakers are invited for the Rite Aid Leadership Academy. This workshop focuses on molding and preparing future healthcare leaders by having discussions about leadership amongst other topics. Dr. Maneno specifically spoke to attendees about “Authentic Leadership.”

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Bassel Alhashemi, a fourth year pharmacy student at Belmont University, is one of five New Icons Grant winners who will receive $50,000 to put toward school loans and tuition expenses from Figs.

Alhashemi was born in Aleppo, Syria and left the country when the war broke out. Witnessing the devastating effects of lack of access to vaccines and medication, he was inspired to begin his career in pharmacy. He told Figs, “I’m dedicating my professional career goals to making sure people across the globe have access to their medications.”

“We are extremely proud of Bassel and his efforts in receiving an award that nationally recognizes him for what we already know about him as a student in our program,” said Dr. David Gregory, dean of Belmont’s College of Pharmacy. “He is a genuine professional who consistently helps his classmate and exhibits kindness to those around him. He is such a hard worker who has a bright future ahead of him, and students like Bassel are a key reason why our program continues to excel.”

Alhashemi’s goals include climbing Mount Everest, earning his Doctorate degree and one day working for the United Nations. Learn more about Alhashemi and the grant in a video on the Figs website.

Dr. Adam Pace and Dr. Michael McGuire from the Belmont University College of Pharmacy recently published their article “The relationship of self-stigma of depression to evangelical beliefs and religious practices” in the journal Mental Health, Religion, and Culture.

The article describes the results of a 1000-person survey of the United States population to explore differences in attitudes toward depression between Christians and non-Christians. Christians in the study did not show more negative attitudes toward depression than non-Christians on average.

However, increased frequency of many Christian religious practices was associated with more negative attitudes. Dr. David Phillippi, lecturer in Graduate Nursing, provided expertise in the data analysis for the article.

Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences Associate Professor Edgar S. Diaz-Cruz, in collaboration with Belmont University College of Pharmacy alumni Dr. Caleb Darensbourg and Dr. Michael D. Harland, published an article in the Innovations in Pharmacy journal.

The article, titled “Using Biochemistry to Educate Students on the Causal Link between Social Epigenetics and Health Disparities,” discusses an educational activity used to supplement course material on the regulation of gene expression, in which epigenetic changes are driven by social determinants of health.

The educational activity provides students with a biochemical basis to explain some health disparities, rather than viewing them as social obstacles to health exclusively. The activity encourages students to critically think about their role as future pharmacists in helping patients prevent diseases caused by epigenetic changes such as racial discrimination, educational attainment and physical/environmental factors.

On June 18, Belmont University College of Pharmacy invited faculty, staff, students and administrators to participate in a demonstration of “White Coats for Black Lives.”

Participants joined together to listen, take a knee and observe a moment of silence for racial equality.  The event drew a wide array of people from across the organization; in addition to family members and university staff.

Nigel Heard, president of the Student National Pharmacy Association chapter at Belmont University, organized the demonstration and was one of the speakers. “The purpose of this event today is to not only bring awareness to police brutality but also, and more importantly, systemic racism, especially in the healthcare setting,” said Heard. “The purpose is to give insight on the pain carried by a community that influences reactions. To help you understand the weight on our shoulders as we maneuver through our everyday lives. To shine light on police brutality, the unnecessary deaths of people who look like me, and the lack of accountability for those that murder them. It is not good enough to not be a racist. You must be actively anti-racism.”

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Dr. Emily Singleton, the inaugural fellow of the Belmont University College of Pharmacy and HealthTrust Clinical Management Fellowship in Drug Information, has successfully completed the 2-year program and has accepted a position at Belmont University within the Christy Houston Foundation Drug Information Center.

Singleton’s new position will include providing an on-demand drug information service for Health-Trust members and providing drug information support to the clinical pharmacy team at HealthTrust.

Dr. Genevieve Lynn (Ness) Engle, associate professor and director of the Christy Houston Foundation Drug Information Center, said Singleton has become a vital part of the HealthTrust clinical pharmacy team. “Dr. Singleton’s contributions to the fellowship and the Drug Information Center have been remarkable. Within the first few months of her program, she published an article in Annals of Pharmacotherapy, based on one of the drug information questions she answered in the center,” she said. “I am so proud of her accomplishments and am grateful we were able to keep her as the HealthTrust Senior Manager of Clinical Information.”

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3rd Cohort of Students create Artificial Intelligence Software for Amazon Alexa at Belmont University

Tears of joy, hugs and lots of high-fives were abundant at Belmont University as pharmacy students revealed where they were accepted into residency this spring.

Belmont’s College of Pharmacy fourth-year students joined thousands of students nationwide on match day, where each individual learned where they will continue their pharmacy training after graduation in May. Students within the Healthcare Informatics track that participated in the residency match will continue their careers as residents at institutions across the country this summer.

Belmont University’s College of Pharmacy is becoming a nationally-recognized center for practice and leadership in pharmacy education with an innovative clinical doctorate. Building on the traditional Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) curriculum, the college offers students the opportunity to specialize in one of four areas: pharmacy management, healthcare informatics, missions and pharmacotherapy. Each of these areas educate students for life-long professional improvement and service as competent and compassionate practitioners. Continue reading →

From left to right: 2020 Healthcare Informatics Senior Team members Joshua Page, Julie Nguyen & Grant Harder

As a leader in Healthcare Informatics among colleges of pharmacy in the United States, the Belmont University College of Pharmacy’s program frequently entertains visitors interested in learning more about the curriculum and activities of the teams. The spring 2020 semester was no exception.

On Wednesday, February 25, P4 students in the Doctor of Pharmacy program received Dr. Hilary Campbell, PharmD, JD. for a visit and class session. Dr. Campbell is a research associate at the Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy, where she provides guidance on a wide variety of clinical, legal, regulatory, policy and technology issues. Dr. Campbell has developed curriculum for UCSF and Duke, worked at the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, and recently spent a one-year term as the special assistant to the chief data officer of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Campbell is currently researching innovative informatics programs in colleges of pharmacy in the U.S. Continue reading →