Fellow of GSHP

GSHP Fellowship is awarded to acknowledge members who have made significant and sustained contributions to GSHP and the profession.  

Please help us congratulate the follow members.

Collin Lee

Susan Wright

Anthony Hawkins

Maura Hall

Sonny Rader

 

Twenty-five year Practitioner Awards

Twenty-five year Practitioner Awards are presented to GSHP members who have actively practiced in hospital or health-system pharmacy for 25 years or more.

Please congratulate the following GSHP members

Eileen Kennedy

Jana Mills

Misha Watts

Tracy Menninger

 

2024 Outstanding Community Volunteer Service Award

A GSHP member who has demonstrated significant contributions to their local community.  Volunteer service is not limited to medical services but is inclusive of any volunteer activities (outside normal job duties) that enhance or improve the quality of life of the local community.

This individual is a current student at PCOMA and is the Founding Executive Director of Georgia First Generation Foundation a non-profit organization devoted to providing resources for high school students who cannot obtain a college education without these resources. These students must be first-generation students who are passionate about achieving academic success.  Achievements include $465K scholarship dollars earned by our students and 310K volunteer hours completed by students and members.   

This individual is a member of and volunteers with ASHP, GSHP, & Georgia Pharmacy Association.  Currently serves as the Vice Chair of the ASHP Pharmacy Student Forum Executive Committee serving as the chair for 2024-2025 year.  This individual has been described as “Driven by their desire to uplift underserved communities, harnessing professional skills and personal passions for the greater good.”

Please join me in congratulating Charbel Aoun as the 2024 recipient of the Outstanding Community Volunteer Service Award.

 

OUTSTANDING PHARMACY STUDENT

This student placed first at GSHP’s 2023 State Clinical Skills Competition and has held numerous leadership roles including Vice President of Rho Chi and Treasurer of their GSHP Student Chapter.  They participate in several professional and community service activities including Ronald McDonald House, Mental Health Booths and Immunization Clinics. As quoted by their nominator, “As an intern this student has taken advantage of every work experience to learn acute care pharmacy operations and used these experiences to complement theirclass work and experiential rotations.”  Please join me in congratulating Binh Bui – University of Georgia.

 

This student has provided extensive service and leadership within GSHP actively serving on the Education and Professional Development Committee, and taking a project lead role for the GSHP DOP Directory Resource Project. At the 2024 Spring GSHP meeting, they introduced one of the presentation speakers in addition to giving a presentation on behalf of the GSHP chapter to Savannah Early High School students regarding pharmacy as a career path. This student was named by their peers as the GSHP Member of the Month. They also provided presentations to Athens Clarke County employees on various topics including the opioid epidemic.  As stated by the nominator “Their professionalism is one of the best I’ve seen when working with a student. Their maturity and emotional intelligence are significantly above average and looked upon with great respect by their peers. In a number of situations, they have displayed great professional judgment, especially with conflicts within the class.” Please join me in congratulating Reese Howell - University of Georgia.

 

OUTSTANDING PHARMACY PROFESSIONAL REPRESENTATIVE

This individual has a twenty-five-year career as a Health Science and Systems Specialist and has been a long-time supporter of GSHP. With their background as a pharmacist, long standing knowledge of industry, and familiarity with various hospitals and health systems in the territory, this individual does an outstanding job representing their company and their products.  This person serves as an advocate for patients and patient access and is a regular fixture at GSHP's statewide meetings. “They are effective at establishing constructive relationships and as a pharmacist, recognizes our needs and knows how and when to check in with us as well as when to give us space when we're preoccupied with other things.”  They have also been a supporter of the Atlanta Area Residency Journal Club program.  Please join me in congratulating Ted Farmer – Pfizer.

 

OUTSTANDING PRECEPTOR

In their 15 years as a preceptor, this individual has precepted over 200 resident and student Internal Medicine rotations and serves as a PGY2 program director.  Their nominator states “as an APPE student, it was their dedication to improving patient care and to uplifting learners that inspired me to pursue a PGY1 residency.” Under this individual’s guidance, this resident was able to receive the ACCP Adult Medicine PRN Seed Grant for their research project.  This individual has also earned resident preceptor of the year twice at her practice site institution. 

“They helped design my rotation schedule to make me a well-rounded clinician, advocated for me in times of hardship, encouraged me to pursue my interests, and motivated me to pursue career advancement and networking opportunities outside of my institution.” This preceptor’s teaching philosophy states, "the patient is our focus, and students learn best from example." This preceptor models how pharmacists provide outstanding patient care as healthcare team members for students and residents. Please join me in congratulating Nicole Metzger – Mercer University/Emory University Hospital.

Outstanding New Practitioner Award

Nominees should have graduated from a pharmacy school within the past five years. The recipient is chosen based on exemplary service and dedication to the field of health-system pharmacy in this time period.

This individual serves as a pediatric ambulatory care pharmacist with practice sites in renal transplant, complex care, and other specialty area.  This individual was described by the Chief of Pediatric Pulmonology as “strikes a great balance of expertise in pharmacology, clinical instinct and communication skills. It is a rare gift to possess all those skills as a health care provider, and even more impressive to see it in someone relatively early in their career.  Networks seamlessly with providers ranging from interns to chiefs of service, and navigates parental concerns with the same aplomb. The commitment to guiding families through the maze of complexities made even more challenging with our vulnerable patient population, should be lauded as it is a model for family centered care”.  

Further this individual was described “as shining her light on each patient and colleague that crosses her path”.

As the only pediatric pharmacist in the state of Georgia with a Collaborative Practice Agreement – specifically for renal transplant patients and is on track to establish a second Collaborative Practice Agreement for patients seen in the complex care clinic.  This person has an innate drive to provide the best care for patients while continuing to advance the profession of pharmacy, with a unique practice model for pediatric patients in the state of Georgia.  Serving on the Ambulatory Quality Committee, Pharmacy Quality/Safety Committee, & teaching pediatric medical residents on transitions of care, med error reductions & an intern bootcamp.

In addition, led the development of a Residency Wellness Series for the pharmacy residents focusing on a formal wellness series, incorporating reflections and rewards. 

This individual is a 2020 graduate of the UGA College of Pharmacy, completed PGY1 in 2021 & then PGY2 pediatric residency in 2022.

Please join me in congratulating Aubrey Slaughter from Wellstar MCG Health as the 2024 recipient of the Outstanding New Practitioner Award.

 

Outstanding Pharmaceutical Publication Award

The award for Outstanding Pharmaceutical Publication seeks to recognize GSHP members who have made significant contributions to the pharmaceutical literature within the past year.  Publications are not limited by topic and can include identification of new pharmacy services, enhancements to pharmaceutical care, or economic analyses.

Penicillin allergy evaluation and skin testing (when appropriate) as an antimicrobial stewardship initiative has been recommended in the guidelines since 2016. At the time, the recommendation was considered low-quality evidence as publications in this area were minimal. More and more facilities have implemented this practice and publications have increased showing value in hospitalized patients. Benefits of increased beta-lactam prescribing have been well documented in index hospitalization, but data regarding subsequent longitudinal prescribing of beta-lactams are less clear, especially within antimicrobial stewardship initiatives.

This year’s recognized publication in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Practice followed antimicrobial prescribing practices over multiple years in patients with a penicillin allergy but a negative skin test. The authors found that the proportion of patients who received a penicillin or cephalosporin course after the penicillin skin test was significantly higher and there was a significantly higher rate of beta-lactam antibiotic days and days of specifically receiving a penicillin. The authors concluded that penicillin skin testing resulted in de-labeling a patient led to long-term, sustained prescribing of beta-lactams, including penicillins, for inpatients readmitted for care.

Please join me in congratulating Christopher Bland, clinical professor at the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy, for his publication entitled: “Delabeling for the duration? Beta-Lactam prescribing in hospitalized patients after penicillin skin testing” as this year’s GSHP Outstanding Pharmaceutical Publication Award. Of note, Susan Smith and Bruce Jones are co-authors on this publication and are also members of GSHP.

 

Outstanding Pharmacy Mentor Award

The Outstanding Pharmacy Mentor Award is designed to recognize a GSHP member who has served as a mentor in the GSHP mentorship program. The award recognizes outstanding service to a mentee and the future of our profession.

Serving as a mentor is one of the most selfless ways to pay it forward to the next generation of pharmacists. This individual was nominated by their current mentee who noted that this individual “embodies the quintessential traits of an exceptional mentor: compassion, expertise, and an unwavering dedication to the growth and success of her mentees. Furthermore, this individual’s mentorship extends far beyond the realm of academia. She has taken the time to understand my individual aspirations, challenges, and unique circumstances, offering unwavering support and empowering me to overcome obstacles with resilience and determination. As an international student, her support has been especially invaluable, providing a sense of belonging and solidarity in my pharmacy journey.”

It is evident that this individual is truly deserving of this recognition. Please join me in recognizing Bailey Horne, who just completed her PGY2 Pediatric Residency and will be staying on as a Pediatric Clinical Pharmacist at Wellstar MCG in Augusta, Georgia, as this year’s recipient of the GSHP Outstanding Pharmacy Mentor Award.

 

Outstanding Pharmacy Technician Award

The Outstanding Pharmacy Technician Award recognizes a health-system pharmacy technician who has demonstrated practice excellence and leadership in the support of implementing pharmaceutical care. This individual has worked tirelessly to expand pharmacy services at their institution by working closely with pharmacy leadership to develop an ACHC accredited specialty pharmacy. In addition, they have taken the lead in the conversion from one retail pharmacy dispensing software to another. Installation technicians reported they had never worked with someone at a go live site who was as knowledgeable as this technician. This technician holds themselves to a high standard and demonstrates natural leadership skills. From one of their nomination letters: this person “is a true team player, always willing to lend a helping hand and collaborate with colleagues to ensure the smooth operation of our health system’s pharmacy. [Their] positive attitude and willingness to go the extra mile makes [them] an invaluable asset to our health system.” From another nomination letter: this technician is “a team player for all. During a recent ransomware attack affecting one of our third-party vendors, we were unable to adjudicate claims for several days. [They] developed a tracking process that kept us organized so that when the system was restored, we would be in the best position to transmit backlogged claims in a timely manner.”

Please join me in recognizing Amber Jeffords, pharmacy technician and Lead Business Analyst at Wellstar MCG, as this year’s recipient of the GSHP Outstanding Pharmacy Technician Award.

Outstanding Practitioner

The outstanding practitioner award is presented to a pharmacist functioning in a patient care, non-administrative position.  The award recognizes outstanding service to the profession, patients, and their individual health-systems.  Nominees should be greater than 5 years into their pharmacy career.

This year's nominee currently provides Ambulatory Care Services at a health-system in South Georgia.  During their tenure, they have developed a Hepatitis C clinic and established a practice site in a physician’s office.  This individual also serves as a clinical professor for UGA and as PGY2 Ambulatory Care Residency Director.  They are devoted to the patient’s they serve, spending time after hours securing prior authorizations and calming concerns patient’s have about their medications.

This individual is noted by the nominee as The Wonder Woman of Pharmacy.

Congratulations to Chelsea Keedy UGA College of Pharmacy and St Joseph’s/Candler Health System.

 

Outstanding Preceptor Award

 

The Outstanding Preceptor Award is presented to a pharmacist serving as a preceptor for pharmacy students and/or pharmacy residents. The award recognizes outstanding service to the future of our profession. This pharmacist has served as a preceptor for 4^th year APPE students and PGY1 pharmacy residents as well as a mentor and advisor for extracurricular student activities. In addition, this preceptor has served on their institution’s Residency Advisory Committee (RAC) and as the Preceptor Development Coordinator. From the nominator: this person views their “role as a preceptor like that of a coach, drawing out each learner’s unique qualities and strengths and gently pushing learners out of their comfort zones to improve upon their weaknesses as they develop their professional identity… Even after the end of the rotation, [they] work diligently as a mentor to help [their] learners achieve their personal and professional goals.” This preceptor has served as a leader and contributor to student and pharmacy resident precepting/training on departmental, institutional, state, and national levels.

Please join me in recognizing Pam Ku, Internal Medicine Clinical Pharmacist at Wellstar MCG, as this year’s recipient of the GSHP Outstanding Preceptor Award.

 

 

Pharmacist of the Year

The Pharmacist of the Year Award is the highest honor GSHP can bestow on any member and is presented to a health system pharmacist to honor outstanding service and accomplishments in health-system pharmacy practice as well as participation in GSHP.

This year's nominee has worked for a number of years for a large metro Atlanta health system, with a focus in hospital operations.  Working in a variety of roles just a few of this individual's accomplishments include:  building a pharmacist-driven clinical pain specialist program, expanding the 340B program, implementing patient assistance programs, and gaining USP 800 compliance across a healthcare system.  This individual has served GSHP in a variety of roles, including President, Treasurer, and as a district director.  They have been recognized with several awards, including  Great Place to Work Mentor, Challenge the Process Leadership Award, and as a distinguished Alumna from the University of Georgia.

I wanted to share some thoughts on our nominee from work colleagues.

This individual models what it means to be a leader who cares.  They make any room they enter a little bit brighter.

Whether it is a word of encouragement or just to chat, you get their full attention, and never feel rushed.  I am always impressed by how many details are remembered about my personal and professional life.  By investing so much into everyone they get the most out of us in return.  

They strive to highlight successes of pharmacy and technicians and advance the profession as a whole.

They are professional through and through - a leader among leaders.

Congratulations to Susan Wright, Kennestone Health System, GSHP Pharmacist of the Year.