Jonathan Watanabe, PharmD, MS, PhD

I serve as the Chair of the Department of Clinical Pharmacy. Providing guidance on responsibilities and goals in the realms of Strategic Leadership, Research and Scholarship, and Education to support the Departmental and School faculty in achievement of clinical care, research aims, and teaching outcomes that translates to improved care of patients and populations that maximizes the societal and global benefit of pharmacists, pharmacies, medicines, and academic pharmacy.

Biography:

I am a board-certified geriatrics pharmacist, health policy investigator, and outcomes researcher with a passion to utilize real-world data to develop policy solutions to improve patient care, bolster population-health, enhance access that reduces medical costs. I serve as a Member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) Forum on Drug, Discovery, Development, and Translation and also serve as an appointed member of the Board of Directors of the California Geriatrics Society of the American Geriatrics Society. Recent appointments include serving as Chair of the NASEM “Innovations in Pharmacy Training and Practice To Advance Patient Care Committee” and appointment to the "Processes to Evaluate the Safety and Efficacy of Drugs for Rare Diseases or Conditions in the United States and the European Union" sponsored by FDA. I served as the co-chair of the "Preparing the Future Workforce in Drug Research & Development" Committee of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine. I have been involved in methods development for pragmatic clinical trials through the FDA-sponsored Real-World Evidence Series and served on the steering committee for the Drug Research Development in Older Adults Workshop. I was appointed to the NASEM Committee on Methadone Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder: Examining Federal Regulations and Laws sponsored by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. I was a contributor to the NASEM report Making Medicines Affordable: a National Imperative and served on the committee for the Medications in Single-Dose Vials: Implications of Discarded Drugs Report. I have provided briefings to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, United States Senate Finance, Appropriations, House Ways and Means, Senate HELP, and House Energy and Commerce Committee and Briefings to United States House of Representatives Appropriations Committee Staff on the implications of discarded medications and steps to take to reduce wasted medications. My research on health implications of non-optimized medication regimens has been cited in multiple successful state legislative efforts to bolster patient-centered care and medication management, and I have testified before the California Senate Health Panel regarding value of comprehensive medication management services to bolster the health and wellness of Californians enrolled in Medicaid. I am currently appointed to the Task Force of the California Health Benefits Review Program of the California State Legislature. I previously served on the American Academy of Neurology Neurotherapies Workgroup on Pharmacoeconomics. I was the first recipient of the University of Washington/Allergan Global Health Economics and Outcomes Research Fellowship. I was past recipient of the University of Washington Distinguished Alumnae in Pharmaceutical Science and Research award. I am a past National Academy of Medicine (NAM) Anniversary Fellow in Pharmacy and served as a Scholar in the NAM Emerging Leaders in Health and Medicine Program and serves as a Distinguished Fellow of the Get the Medications Right Institute. I serve on the journal editorial advisory board for The Senior Care Pharmacist. My prior direct-patient care clinical experiences have included the Medicare-Medicaid Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) program, assisted living, skilled nursing, and long-term care settings.