Sharks RX Spring 2015 Magazine

COLLEGE OF PHARMACY r 21 PETER (PETE) GANNETT , Ph.D., has assumed the position of associate dean of Graduate Education and Research. Gannett obtained his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin in 1982. He received additional training as a postdoc- toral fellow, first in the College of Pharmacy, University of Wisconsin, in 1982, and then at the Eppley Cancer Research Institute at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in 1985. In 1990, he was named medicinal chemist at the School of Pharmacy, West Virginia University. He was tenured in 1994, promoted to full professor in 2000, and was named the Robert C. Byrd Distin- guished Professor of Medicinal Chemistry from 2010 to 2015. Gannett has twice served as the interim department chair of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the interim associate dean of Graduate Research and Education at the School of Pharmacy at West Virginia University. From 2003 to 2014, he was instrumental in developing an interdisciplinary, nano- science research and graduate education program spanning all of West Virginia University. Simultaneously, he was the principal investigator on three different university- wide, interdisciplinary, graduate-student training programs. During the course of his research career, Gannett has studied the structure and conformation of DNA, especially of DNA modified due to the metabolism of aryl hydrazines, and the consequences with respect to disease. A second research area of interest is the interplay of structure and function of cytochrome P450 with respect to drug design, metabolism, and electron transfer. A third research area is the development and use of nanotechnology for the study of biological problems. In all research areas, he has utilized computational methods for the analysis of biological molecules, drug design, and drug development. RENEE S. JONES , Pharm.D., CPH, has been appointed the director of Preceptor Devel- opment and an assistant professor. Jones received her Doctor of Pharmacy degree at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, where she also completed her postgraduate training in HIVmedicine. As the pharmacy oper- ations supervisor/clinical pharmacy coordinator of Broward Health Medical Center, Jones focused on improving patient care, containing cost, and designing operational plans for 48 pharmacists and 45 technicians. She successfully pro- moted safe practices, optimized patient care, and generated revenue by developing policies and procedures, preprinted order forms, clinical pharmacy services, and financial initiatives. In less than two years, through her initiatives, Jones generated significant revenue and cost savings at Broward Health Medical Center, a 716-bed facility. She also was accountable for evaluating automated medication dispensing pyxis reports and narcotic inventories, action plans for cost savings strategies, and improvement of employee satisfaction scores. At Broward Health Medical Center, Jones also was accountable for control substances and acquisition of narcotics on an ongoing basis. Addi- tionally, her efforts helped the health center’s expansion of the American Society of Health System Pharmacists-accredited pharmacy residency program from one to four residents. She also helped with the modification of clinical pharmacist duties and staffing requirements, which led to a 90-percent retention of pharma- ceutical staff. Jones also spearheaded the implemen- tation and ongoing quality assurance of guidelines for the preparation of pharma- ceutical agents. As a clinical assistant pro- fessor at Rutgers University, Jones’ core responsibilities were to guide fourth-year Pharm.D. candidates on clinical rotations, teach didactic courses such as Infectious Disease Therapeutics, and co-coordinate an elective course.