Filling a Need

Safety goggles? Check. Pipettes? Check. Medicine counter? Check. This isn’t the checklist of a mad scientist—these are the tools that students are using in the new doctor of pharmacy program at Husson University in Bangor.

Thanks to pre-candidacy status from the National Accreditation Council on Pharmacy Education, the program began accepting students this fall and can accommodate up to 65 enrollees. The accreditation process is scheduled to be completed by 2013—just in time for this year’s crop of students to graduate. Rodney Larson, the pharmacy school’s founding dean, believes that this is an achievable goal. “The national accreditation board was impressed with our plans to meet their standards,” he says. “Our progress will be monitored closely between now and then, and any concerns that may come up will be addressed quickly so as not to jeopardize the final accreditation decision.”

With only 113 established pharmacy schools nationwide and just one other in Maine, Husson is a popular choice for aspiring pharmacy students. “Until now, attending pharmacy school would have meant relocating my family or spending a significant amount of time away from them,” says student Gary Kribel. “I didn’t want to do either.” And now he doesn’t have to.

Training to become a pharmacist starts in the third floor classrooms of the newly renovated Peabody Hall. Assistant professor Tianzhi Yang teaches Drug Action I, an introductory course that focuses on the chemical and biological effects of a drug on a patient’s body. Yang, originally from China, chose to teach at Husson in part because of its small size. “It allows me the opportunity to work with students one-on-one, which is the most effective way to share my passion for science,” she says. “Our school is committed to influencing the practice of pharmacy and rural healthcare delivery. I like being part of this big commitment.”

In addition to theoretical classes, students also learn the hands-on skills required of pharmacists in lab sessions. They’re instructed in compounding, how to process medical orders, and how to get medication to someone who may not want to receive it. “For kids who don’t want to take their medicine, we’ll make gummy bears and lollipops with medicine inside,” Larson says. “We tell them that this is a special lollipop, and they only eat it at a certain time so they don’t overdose on the medication.”

The overall goal of the school is to train students to practice pharmacy in Maine or other rural areas. “There are jobs in Maine,” says Larson, who moved from Michigan to Maine to help found the school. “With the shortage of pharmacies in rural areas, it’s hard to fill all the positions. There is a large demand for more pharmacists.”

In a state with the nation’s highest percentage of elderly citizens, the need for pharmacists will continue to grow. In order to help keep students in-state after graduation, Husson has developed relationships with many local pharmacies to ensure that students attain clinical experience in a professional atmosphere. According to Larson, students are more likely to stay in the area where they gain clinical practice.

Currently, Husson has affiliation agreements with Miller Drug in Bangor and major retail chains like Rite-Aid, Walgreens, and Wal-Mart. Husson University’s director of experimental education, Ahmed Abdelmageed, helped arrange a relationship with a pet prescription pharmacy in southern Maine. “We’re trying to show students that they can do a lot with a pharmacy degree,” he says. “You can work in retail, in a hospital, with the government, military, nursing, or individual consulting. The flexibility is what makes it appealing.”

Abdelmageed is responsible for arranging the clinical rotation schedules for students. “Between each semester, students will get real-world experience and tie that back into the classroom,” he says. “I hope it will solidify what they learn in class.”

Graduates of the four-year program will receive a doctorate of pharmacy, which is an entry-level requirement for those seeking a pharmaceutical profession. “We’re looking for people who are caring and compassionate, with a good head on their shoulders,” Larson says. After all, he says, the solutions they recommend can save lives or take them away.