Samford University's McWhorter School of Pharmacy honored its third-year Doctor of Pharmacy students at its annual professional pinning ceremony on February 16. 

This significant milestone recognizes students transitioning from a predominately classroom environment to advanced pharmacy practice experiences. It is a testament to how Samford ensures lasting success through steadfast adherence to its mission of preparing pharmacists who transform lives.

Gun violence is a leading cause of premature death in the United States. This year's theme of the  Healthcare Ethics and Law (HEAL) conference, “Gun Violence and Health Care: A Public Health Issue?" explored the challenges around preventing firearm injury and death.

Hosted by College of Health Sciences' Office for Faith and Health, the HEAL conference is designed to facilitate collaboration amongst healthcare professionals, clergy and health system administrators through presentations and discussions with prominent experts. More than 200 attendees heard presentations, which included public policy findings, epidemiological solutions, local initiatives and health care strategies to interrupt the cycle of gun violence.

This week, Samford's McWhorter School of Pharmacy transitioned the first group of students under the new Doctor of Pharmacy curriculum into Advance Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPE). In 2017, Dean Michael Crouch and faculty began working to transform the curriculum to address the profession's ever-expanding role in health care and redefine the structure of each semester.

After several years of research and planning, the school implemented the revised curriculum in the 2020 academic year. Crouch's vision has come to fruition with the class of 2025 students. Clinical rotations now begin slightly earlier, allowing time for students to return to campus to learn from each other's experiences. 

McWhorter School of Pharmacy will host an overnight Bulldog Pharmacy Camp this summer for current high school sophomores, juniors and seniors, June 23-28. Campers will learn about careers in pharmacy through hands-on lab demonstrations and unique service projects. We hope you'll encourage your young, aspiring pharmacist to join us this summer. The deadline to register is March 15. 

In this month's episode of Samford University's Healthy Dose® podcast, host Anthony Bolus, PharmD '13 talks with Cherry Jackson, professor of pharmacy at Auburn University’s Harrison School of Pharmacy and clinical professor of psychiatry and behavioral neurobiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Jackson discusses everything about mental health (from what it is and how to help manage it) and the role that COVID-19 played in worsening mental health. Bolus also introduces listeners to the new 9-8-8 emergency phone number to dial in the case of a mental health emergency.

New episodes are available on the third Tuesday of every month and can be found wherever you stream podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Spotify.