Making History

Program

Setting the stage

• B. Joseph Guglielmo, PharmD; Dean, UCSF School of Pharmacy

• Ian Pearson; Moderator

Daytime stories

• Robert Day, PharmD ’59; Lecturer and Associate Dean Emeritus

Red-letter research

• Leslie Benet, PhD ’65; Professor, Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences
• ​Irwin (Tack) Kuntz, PhD; Professor Emeritus, Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry

Breaking ground nine floors up

• Eric (Toby) Herfindal, PharmD ’65, MPH; Former Chair, Division of Clinical Pharmacy

Educating a new kind of pharmacist

• Mary Anne Koda-Kimble, PharmD ’69; Dean Emeritus, School of Pharmacy
• Sharon Youmans, PharmD ’85, MPH; Vice Dean, School of Pharmacy

Pushing the envelope

• Rear Admiral Pamela (Salas) Schweitzer, PharmD ’87; Assistant Surgeon General, Chief Pharmacist Officer, U.S. Public Health Service​

Program participants

Leslie Benet, PhD ’65

Leslie Benet earned a PhD degree in pharmaceutical chemistry from UCSF in 1965 and joined the UCSF School of Pharmacy faculty in 1969. He is currently a professor in the Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, having chaired its predecessor—the Department of Biopharmaceutical Sciences—from 1978 to 1998. Benet is internationally known for his research in the areas of pharmacokinetics, biopharmaceutics, drug delivery, and pharmacodynamics. He is listed by Thomson Reuters as one of the most highly cited pharmacologists worldwide. He is the founder and first president of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists.

Robert Day, PharmD ’59

Robert Day earned a PharmD degree from the UCSF School of Pharmacy in 1959 and joined the faculty in 1962. During his long and active career, Day served as vice chair of the Department of Pharmacy, assistant dean for student affairs, associate dean for continuing education and professional affairs, and associate dean. He was one of the founders and a charter chapter author of the American Pharmacists Association Handbook on Non-Prescription Medication. He continued to teach pharmacy practice courses until 1998. For decades he gathered and safeguarded items related to the history of the School and brought that history to life through alumni newsletters and personal retellings. Upon his departure from UCSF after more than 50 years of service, Day generously donated his collection to the University.

B. Joseph Guglielmo, PharmD

B. Joseph Guglielmo, PharmD, became dean of the UCSF School of Pharmacy in 2013, having served since 2012 as interim dean and as chair of the Department of Clinical Pharmacy since 2006. He joined the UCSF faculty in 1979 after earning a PharmD degree from the University of Southern California in 1978 and subsequently completing a pharmacy residency at UCSF. Guglielmo is a clinical scientist, teacher, and international expert in the evidence-based use of antimicrobials to treat infections. He is a staunch advocate for evidence- based decision-making, collaboration, continuous innovation, and constant improvement across the School’s agenda of research, education, and patient care. He holds the Troy C. Daniels Distinguished Professorship in Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Eric (Toby) Herfindal, PharmD ’65, MPH

Eric Herfindal served on the faculty of the UCSF School of Pharmacy for more than 20 years after earning a PharmD degree from the School in 1965. In 1982 he received an MPH degree from UC Berkeley. He was one of the early crew of pharmacists on what is known as the Ninth-floor Project, a mid-1960s pilot project that put pharmacists on the ninth floor of the UCSF Medical Center working with doctors, nurses, and patients to directly manage patients’ medications. From 1973 to 1994, he chaired the Division of Clinical Pharmacy (now the Department of Clinical Pharmacy). Herfindal co-founded National Oncology Alliance, Inc. (NOA), a company that provides business, clinical, technology, and management services to community-based oncology practices. The company was subsequently acquired by McKesson. He served in executive positions for oncology health care companies OnCare, Inc. and Axion Healthcare.

Mary Anne Koda-Kimble, PharmD ’69

Mary Anne Koda-Kimble served as UCSF School of Pharmacy dean from 1998 until her retirement in 2012. She joined the faculty in 1970 after earning a PharmD degree from the School in 1969. She taught pharmacy students, nurses, and physicians; practiced in the UCSF Medical Center; served in vice chair positions, as chair of the School’s Division of Clinical Pharmacy (1975 to 1996), then as chair of the Department of Clinical Pharmacy (1996 to 1998). At the Dean’s Office level, she was assistant dean then associate dean for student affairs for almost 10 years. Koda-Kimble is a member of the Institute of Medicine. She was one of the founding co-editors of the textbook Applied Therapeutics: The Clinical Use of Drugs. This was the first clinical pharmacy textbook to be based on patient case histories. She is recognized internationally as a leader in pharmacy education.

Irwin (Tack) Kuntz, PhD

Irwin Kuntz is a professor emeritus in the UCSF School of Pharmacy’s Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry. He earned a PhD degree in chemistry from UC Berkeley in 1965 and taught at Princeton University before joining the department as a member of the faculty in 1971. His research focused on structure-based ligand design and docking algorithms. One of the first and well-known molecular docking software programs, called DOCK, was developed by the Kuntz lab group. It uses database and graph theoretic techniques to suggest molecules that have good steric and chemical complementarity to protein and nucleic acid receptors of known structure. Its application has led to academic and industrial laboratories finding lead compounds in the search for new drugs against viruses, bacteria, and parasites. Kuntz served as the School’s associate dean for research and founded the UCSF Molecular Design Institute.

Ian Pearson

Ian Pearson has provided media relations consultation and video production services to more than 100 universities, non-profits, and corporations nationally since 1991. His work with UCSF spans two decades, from moderating wellness symposia to producing more than 100 videos. He created videos for every UCSF capital campaign, five “Raising Hope” campaigns, and every UCSF Medal recipient over the past 20 years. His work twice won top honors from the Association of American Medical Colleges and a regional Emmy for documentary writing. Pearson began his career as a broadcast reporter and anchor, eventually managing news departments in five cities, most recently Houston and San Francisco.

Pamela (Salas) Schweitzer, PharmD ’87

Rear Admiral Pamela Schweitzer was appointed the tenth chief pharmacist officer of the United States Public Health Service (PHS) Commissioned Corps with a temporary promotion to assistant surgeon general in 2014. As chief pharmacist officer, Schweitzer is responsible for providing leadership and coordination of PHS pharmacy programs and professional affairs for the Office of the Surgeon General and the Department of Health and Human Services. She earned a PharmD from the UCSF School of Pharmacy in 1987 and subsequently completed a pharmacy residency at UC Irvine. She has served in varied assignments, progressing in leadership responsibilities in the Indian Health Service (IHS), the Veterans Administration (VA), and currently the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Schweitzer began her Corps career with the IHS at Pine Ridge Indian Hospital in South Dakota. Her VA service was with the VA Medical Center Hot Springs in South Dakota. Her current duty station with CMS is in Baltimore, Maryland.

Sharon Youmans, PharmD ’85, MPH

Sharon Youmans was appointed UCSF School of Pharmacy vice dean in 2013. In this role she oversees the School’s diversity initiatives and education mission, including the transformation of the doctor of pharmacy curriculum currently under way. She earned a PharmD degree from the UCSF School of Pharmacy in 1985 and an MPH from San Jose State University in 2005. Prior to joining the faculty in 2001, she worked as a pharmacist in hospital and community pharmacy settings. She served as vice chair of education for the Department of Clinical Pharmacy from 2007 to 2013.