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Spring 2008 Sections

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Schneider to join Phoenix team

Phil Schneider is not one to shy away from a challenge.

“I gravitate toward new things,” he says. “I was on the search committee that was looking for an editor of a brand-new journal, and the job sounded so interesting, I resigned from the committee and applied.” As a result, Schneider was editor in chief of Nutrition in Clinical Practice for 10 years.

In keeping with his penchant for the new, Schneider has accepted the recently created position of director of administrative and professional affairs at the UA College of Pharmacy located on the Phoenix Biomedical Campus. He also will be a clinical professor. Schneider, who has spent 35 years with The Ohio State University, will start work in the valley of the sun May 5.

Schneider will be responsible for implementing new academic programs in Phoenix, including a PharmD program, innovative healthcare delivery services that include pharmacists, and translation of research discoveries into practice. He will help with hiring faculty, planning space and designing programs to include more interdisciplinary education, practice and research with the colleges of medicine, nursing and public health.

He also will develop accredited postgraduate training programs for pharmacy residents and fellows based on the genomics/personalized medicine focus at the Phoenix Biomedical Campus, and innovative practice programs similar to those he helped design at OSU.

Schneider comes to COP from the positions of clinical professor and director of the Latiolais Leadership Program in OSU’s Division of Pharmacy Practice and Administration. He holds a BS in pharmacy from the University of Wisconsin and an MS in hospital pharmacy from The Ohio State University.

In March, Schneider was named the 2008 recipient of the Harvey A. K. Whitney Lecture Award by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Established in 1950 by the Michigan Society of Hospital Pharmacists, the award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to health-system pharmacy. It is considered to be the highest honor in the field. Schneider will receive the award on June 10 during ASHP’s summer meeting in Seattle.

“Phil Schneider is one of the world’s leaders in the safe and effective use of medications,” says J. Lyle Bootman, dean of the college. “I am very excited about his contributions to our expanding efforts in Phoenix. His tremendous administrative abilities and internationally recognized professional experience make him our ideal selection for this important position.”

When he’s not working at establishing COP’s presence in Phoenix, Schneider hopes to continue pursuing his three main hobbies: golf, snow skiing and sailing. His most interesting sailing experience, he says, was a three-week trip from Nova Scotia to Newfoundland and back. It’s no surprise that Schneider liked it because it was “different.”

“It was exciting,” he says. “I was exposed to a lot of new things. Like cod tongues and seal flipper pie.”

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Boesen to aid with Phoenix goals

Mark Boesen, director of operations for the Apothecary Shop in Gilbert, Ariz., has been hired as an adviser to the college. In this role, Boesen, PharmD, an alumnus from the Class of 1995, will complement existing staff in the areas of new development in Phoenix and alumni affairs.

In Phoenix, Boesen will work closely with Phil Schneider, who start s as director of administrative and professional affairs in May. They will explore professional and educational activities to engage the community of Maricopa County. Initially, Boesen will help the college examine potential activities related to ambulatory clinical services in Phoenix.

In the area of alumni affairs, Boesen will collaborate with Rebecca Cole, development director, and Liz Mellor of the dean’s office. One of the team’s first goals will be to explore development of an alumni organization which is dedicated to the college’s success.

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COP hires new health disparities program manager

Elizabeth Hall-Lipsy is the college's program manager for health disparities initiatives and community outreach. The job is a new position in the Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science.

Hall-Lipsy directs the college’s rural health experiential education program. Under this program, student pharmacists work in rural sites and learn what it’s like to provide health care in remote and medically underserved communities.

One of Hall-Lipsy’s first objectives is to increase and retain the number of students participating in the Rural Health Professions Program.  The Rural Health Professions Program, established by the Arizona Legislature in 1996, recruits, develops and prepares pharmacy students for careers in rural areas.  In 2007, there were seven first-year students enrolled in the program. This summer, six of those students are returning to their internship sites to complete an early advanced pharmacy practice experience. 

“We’ve been busy recruiting first-year students for the program,” Hall-Lipsy says. “Thirty-five students attended the information luncheon. Fifteen applied for an internship position, and we have been able to place 10 in the four-week internship program.  We have students going to almost all four corners of the state this summer and I hope both the students and the communities have a great experience.”

Hall-Lipsy has also been assisting in scheduling early Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience rotations for third-year students.

“Last year there were 18 early rotation students,” Hall-Lipsy says. “This year we’ve already scheduled 19 early rotations and we are still in the process of putting together at least seven or eight more.” 

Hall-Lipsy is trying to set up additional rotation sites in rural Arizona, and has established a site in Piñon, Arizona. “I am really excited about the Piñon site,” Hall-Lipsy says. “This is a special opportunity for pharmacy students to work at a clinic that helps meet the healthcare needs of a very rural and unique population. The staff at the clinic has been so friendly and welcoming, and I hope this can be a mutually beneficial collaborative experience for the community and the college.”

Other parts of Hall-Lipsy’s job are to evaluate the program’s success and help COP partner with the colleges of nursing, medicine, public health and law to provide services to rural and medically underserved populations. Since beginning work at the college in January 2008, Hall-Lipsy has helped COP partner with the College of Medicine’s Commitment to Underserved People Program. Pharmacy students have been able to volunteer at the Shubitz Family Clinic, which is run by medical students, to assist in medication monitoring and patient education on a weekly basis.

Hall-Lipsy holds a juris doctorate from the UA’s James E. Rogers College of Law, a master’s of public health from the UA College of Public Health and a bachelor of science degree from Pepperdine University.

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