For the second consecutive year, the Belmont University College of Pharmacy has risen to reach the “Elight 8” in a national pharmacy and clinical skills competition. Pharmacy students Kim Bentley, Courtney Curtis, Kris Losanovski, Jesse Howell and Dana Spenser will represent Belmont University in the quarterfinal round of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) Challenge in Hollywood, Fla. during ACCP’s annual meeting on Oct. 20-22.
Belmont College of Pharmacy is the only Tennessee team remaining in the competition as well as the only team in the country to make a repeat trip to the national quarterfinal. The other seven teams advancing this year are from pharmacy schools at Drake University, Northeastern University, Purdue University, Samford University, Thomas Jefferson University, University of California San Diego and University of Colorado. Last fall Belmont’s team reached the No. 5 spot in the national competition.
Assistant Professor and Director of Drug Information Services Cathy Ficzere worked to facilitate participation among students in the College of Pharmacy last spring along with Assistant Professor Rachel Franks, who worked to prepare the selected team over the summer for this challenging competition.
The competition began early in September with student teams from 90 pharmacy schools. Competing online, Belmont advanced through four rounds of competition, the first narrowing the field to 64 and then in three elimination rounds to reach the “Elite 8”.
“We are very proud of the efforts and accomplishments of our student pharmacists and the faculty who have prepared them for this competition,” said College of Pharmacy Dean Philip Johnston. “They have accomplished so much already. We have received several comments and congratulations from other pharmacy schools already. I can verify that the competition is amazing, and that the questions and cases they are challenged with are complex. It is wonderful to see Belmont able to compete nationally, and for the second year in a row.”
About Belmont’s College of Pharmacy
Belmont University College of Pharmacy is fully accredited by the Accreditation Council of Pharmacy Education (ACPE). With an enrollment of nearly 300 students, the College is preparing a new generation of health professionals to meet the changing needs of pharmacy practice with a future-oriented Doctor of Pharmacy degree. Building on a solid educational foundation in pharmaceutical sciences and pharmacy practice from a faculty of experienced practitioners and educators, students are engaged in an innovative academic program and extensive experiential component designed to provide depth and breadth of knowledge and skills to prepare students for an emerging array of career options in pharmacy. This is accomplished by specialized study available in pharmacy management, information management, missions/public health, pharmacotherapy or interdisciplinary care delivery.
