New Certificate Course Offers Students the Chance to Learn about Liability and Regulation in Healthcare

The course will offer valuable information for navigating the policies that regulate a chosen profession.

Students interested in understanding professional responsibility and compliance issues for healthcare providers can join faculty member Elizabeth Hall-Lipsy, JD, MPH, in her new class, Liability and Regulation of Healthcare Professionals as part of the Health Law Certificate offered through the PharmD Forward Program at the College of Pharmacy. The class will be delivered over the course of seven weeks using the online platform D2L in order to accommodate current healthcare professionals who are interested in furthering their education as well as current students in health science or law programs. Currently, law students, pharmacy students, practicing doctors and nurses are examples of some of the students enrolled.

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Researcher Spotlight: Yin Chen, PhD, Inspired to Solve Deadly Illnesses

Dr. Chen wants to unlock the secrets of the lungs to treat health issues afflicting people for millennia, as well as the one devastating our world now.

Scientists work to create real-world solutions to health care challenges, but they don’t always get to see the firsthand impacts of their research. Yin Chen, PhD, a geneticist-turned-lung-disease-researcher in the College of Pharmacy, got that chance when his father made a big health decision.

Dr. Chen said he “accidentally” started on a path of studying lung disease at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where his mentor was an expert in the field. Despite the unintentional start, Dr. Chen stayed in lung research because he found a love for learning about the organ, which is second only to the skin in the risk of potential damage caused by environmental exposure, he said.

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Student Spotlight: Siennah Miller

Miller uses her biochemistry background to study transporter proteins.

Since it opened in 1947, the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy has been a launchpad for groundbreaking ideas. Students at the College come from a variety of disciplines, each bringing their own unique interests to the table. Siennah Miller, a PhD student in the Pharmacology and Toxicology degree track, is using her biochemistry background to study transporter proteins, which help drugs to cross physiological barriers.

"My research focuses on two specific transporters related to the blood-testis barrier," Miller explained."These transporters move nucleosides, a key component of DNA and RNA, into and out of cells. Drugs that are similar to nucleosides, called nucleoside analogs, can use these transporters."

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The College Bids Farewell to Dr. Sandipan Bhattacharjee

Help us wish him luck in this next chapter!

It is with great sadness and deep appreciation that we announce Sandipan Bhattacharjee, MS, PhD, will be departing our college this August to begin a new position as Associate Professor in the Health Outcomes Division at the University of Texas at Austin.

Over the past six years, Dr. Bhattacharjee has taken on many different roles at the college including as faculty advisor for the UA ISPOR student chapter, representing UACOP as the faculty delegate at AACP, serving as chair of the Mission, Vision and Planning Committee of the Department of Pharmacy Practice & Science, and more recently as the co-chair of the PharmD Admissions committee. He has also been the course coordinator of the Drug Literature Evaluation-Research Design Considerations for the 2nd year pharmD students and co-taught in the Health Services Research Methods course for graduate students.

Reflecting on his time at the University of Arizona, Dr. Bhattacharjee had this to share:

“I started my faculty position at UACOP in August 2014 and the past six years have been an amazing journey. My decision to resign was a very tough call and based on several different factors, but mainly based on personal/family life considerations. I have made some really good friends here at UACOP and will cherish them forever. I would like to thank all my colleagues at UACOP for their help, support and kindness. No matter where my life takes me in the future, I will always remember you all and wish everyone the very best for all their future endeavors. I would also like to convey a special THANK YOU to our PharmD students from whom I have received a lot of love and kindness. It was my pleasure to teach and mentor you guys and hope nothing but the very best for you all in the future.”

Please help us wish him the best of luck in this next chapter!

Wellness Wednesdays: The Amazing Healing Properties of Food

Wednesday, July 15 | 12:00 – 12:30

What’s on your plate? Food can be a powerful tool to maximize your health. Even minor adjustments to your diet can bring huge benefits and help reduce inflammation, maintain a healthy body weight and sharpen your mental focus. Dr. Galinat will provide tips and resources to help you get on track and stay on course for a healthy diet and healthy life.

Laura Galinat, MD, associate professor, the University of Arizona, College of Medicine, Department of Family and Community Medicine, Certified Culinary Medicine Specialist. Dr Galinat is a family physician who is certified in integrative medicine and culinary medicine, a subset of integrative medicine that blends the art of cuisine and cooking with the science of medicine. Dr. Micek-Galinat helps patients better understand the important connections between the foods they eat and their overall health.

Cost: Free
What: The discussion is a 30-minute virtual and interactive experience through Zoom.
Registration required: Upon registration, a confirmation email with login information and instructions will be sent the day before the event.

Questions? Contact Caroline Berger, cberger1@arizona.edu.

CARES Act Funding Application Process

Important reminder for students

Apply for financial assistance through the University’s CARES Act funding.

Five million dollars will be sent out by the University in the form of emergency financial aid grants to eligible undergraduate, graduate, and professional students who:

experienced disruption and were displaced from campus housing
lost funding for meal plans
likely had to unexpectedly travel long distances
and/or live in rural areas of Arizona
students must be fully eligible for federal financial aid

If you fall under this category then the Office of Financial Aid will notify you of your award via email. These funds will be automatically deposited to students deemed eligible, no action required. Review the CARES Act FAQ page if you have additional questions.

CARES Act funding is also being distributed through the Student Emergency Fund. If you don’t meet the criteria listed above for the emergency grants, but are still in need of financial assistance, then you are able to eligible for the Student Emergency Fund. Contact DOS-SEF@email.arizona.edu if you have questions about the program.

Please note, if you received an email regarding 'CARES Funding' requesting you to update your refund method, do not click on the provided links. This is a known phishing attempt to fraudulently acquire your bank information. The Bursar's Office will never send you a link to update your refund method. You should only access your information by going through UAccess Student Center.

For additional questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Barb Collins via email at collins@pharmacy.arizona.edu.

Pharm Photo of the Week

The Skaggs Pharmaceutical Sciences Center on the Tucson Heath Sciences campus received a new accessory this past month as signage was installed.

We can't wait for the day when you can check it out for yourselves!

About PharmWeekly

PharmWeekly is the official internal communication for the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy, published during the academic year weekly on Mondays at 10 a.m. by the Communications Office. PharmWeekly is distributed to College of Pharmacy students, faculty, staff, the National Advisory Board and UA Communications colleagues. If you have a submission, email it to Ali Bridges by the Friday prior no later than 2:00 p.m. If a colleague or friend of the college would like to receive PharmWeekly, a sign-up form is here.

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