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Washington State University
Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences April newsletter

Study points to cause of safety concerns in painkiller diclofenac

By Judith Van Dongen, originally published in the WSU Insider

Safety concerns related to the widely used painkiller diclofenac may be tied to a little-studied drug-metabolizing enzyme whose expression can vary as much as 3,000 times from one individual to the next, according to new research.

Published in the journal Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics, findings from the study could be used to develop ways to identify individuals at risk of serious side effects from diclofenac and to determine safer dosing standards for specific populations, including women, young children and people of certain ethnicities. » More ...

Real talk on the future of pharmacy jobs and pay

By Elina Schmauch, class of 2025 student pharmacist

I think every pharmacy student has asked themselves, “What the heck am I doing?”

If we aren’t fighting imposter syndrome or the fear of entering the field, we stop and think about what we want to do when we graduate pharmacy school and how it will be a reflection of the 4 years of the Doctor of Pharmacy program that we just underwent.

I am only in my second year (PY2), but I am looking ahead always—asking pharmacist how much they are making per hour at my local community pharmacy or looking into residencies and their time … » More …

Tips and Tricks for Funding Pharmacy School

By Elina Schmauch, class of 2025 student pharmacists

In my two years of pharmacy school I have learned a lot outside of the pharmacy program. A few things of note are that I learned how to set up utilities, Wi-Fi, and how to drive a U-Haul truck (not very well, I’ll admit). Most importantly, I learned how to budget and find ways to extend my student budget as far as I can. You are welcome to take my advice, modify it, or leave it, as I have no formal financial training and my lowest undergraduate grade was in Econ 101. While maybe not financially literate, … » More …

April 2023 Updates

FACULTY SCHOLARSHIP

Publications

Pharmaceutical Sciences and Molecular Medicine Graduate Student Rakshit Tanna (Paine lab), Pharmaceutical Sciences and Molecular Medicine Graduate Student James Nguyen (Paine lab, PharmD ’20)), Pharmaceutical Sciences Fiscal Analyst Deena L. Hadi, Department of Translational Medicine and Physiology Professor Matthew E. Layton, Pharmacotherapy Chair and R. Keith Campbell Distinguished Professor in Diabetes Care John White, Pharmaceutical Sciences Professor Mary F. Paine and four co-authors published, “Clinical assessment of the drug interaction potential of the psychotropic natural product kratom,” in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, published online ahead of print in March.

Postdoctoral Research Associate Yujie Su and Associate Professor Zhenjia Wang and one co-author published, “Remote co-loading … » More …

PhD student to educate Capitol Hill lawmakers on health science research

Paul Panipinto researches rheumatology, a branch of medicine which focuses on the management of inflammation in the bones, joints, and internal organs. After receiving his bachelor’s from the University of Washington, he followed his long-time mentor Pharmaceutical Sciences Professor Salah Ahmed to Washington State University to continue their work on researching the inner workings of rheumatoid arthritis, a debilitating autoimmune disease which affects 1.3 million people in the U.S.

Panipinto was recently named a 2023 Fellow for the American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET) where he and a select group of scientists across the country will influence policy for the development of new … » More …

Pharmacy students training to fill rural health care gap

WSU College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences has accepted five students into the rural health track. These first-year students will be the inaugural class in the track and will undergo specialized training and education in rural health care. Upon their graduation in 2025, they will be equipped with the skills, tools, and network needed to work in a rural setting.

“We look forward to working with this small group of talented students. Health care providers in rural areas face a unique set of challenges. This includes advising patients on how to access care if they don’t have phone or internet services, or if the nearest … » More …

April 2022 Updates

FACULTY SCHOLARSHIP

Publications

Puneet Kaur (Doctor of Pharmacy Honors class of 2022, Z. Wang lab), Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Associate Jin Gao (Z. Wang lab) and Pharmaceutical Sciences Associate Professor Zhenjia Wang published, “Liposomal formulations enhance the anti-inflammatory effect of eicosapentaenoic acid in HL60 cells,” in Pharmaceutics in February 2022.

Pharmacotherapy Assistant Professor Jennifer Miller, Pharmacotherapy Assistant Professor Nicole Rodin, Pharmacotherapy Associate Professor and Director for the Center for Pharmacy Practice Research Kimberly McKeirnan published, “Training student pharmacists to administer pediatric immunizations,” in Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning in March 2022.

Kimberly McKeirnan and one other published, “The physician perspective on pharmacist-physician … » More …

Getting to know your new APhA-ASP national president

Kennedy Erickson, class of 2023, was sworn in as the American Pharmacists Association – Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP) national president during the APhA Annual Meeting and Exposition in San Antonio, Texas in March. Erickson shares what she plans for her presidency and why she believes finding the “Courage to Change,” the theme of her presidency, is crucial to student pharmacists and the field of pharmacy today.
Can you tell us about your presidential theme?
My presidential theme “Courage to Change” was inspired by several events throughout the pandemic. The first being the exaggeration of pre-pandemic problems facing our society when the pandemic … » More …

Step into history: WSU pharmacy’s first female faculty member

When Belle Wenz first stepped onto the State College of Washington (WSC) campus in the fall of 1918—renamed Washington State University in 1959–the world was in the midst of a global pandemic and World War I was just coming to a close. When she received her graduate of pharmacy (PhG) degree in 1920, women had just won the right to vote, and prohibition was in full swing in the United States. She went on to receive pharmaceutical chemist (PhC) and bachelor of science in pharmacy degrees in 1922, earning a four-year degree in a time when a two-year degree was the norm. It was a … » More …

From farm to pharmacy

Tyler Young grew up in Oakesdale, Washington, a town of about 400 people, and a 45-minute drive south of Spokane. He graduated from high school with only 11 other students in his class and his first job was on the wheat farm where he spent summers from ages 14 to 20 spraying weeds in 90-degree heat, driving a tractor, and harvesting the crop. » More ...