Press Release
ASHP Foundation Announces Specialty Pharmacy Care in Rheumatoid Arthritis Research Grant Recipients
The ASHP Foundation has awarded funding to five pharmacists through the Specialty Pharmacy Care in Rheumatoid Arthritis Research Grant Program, a collaboration between the Foundation and the ASHP Section of Specialty Pharmacy Practitioners. The five projects funded will add to the body of evidence on specialty pharmacy’s impact to enhance the care and outcomes of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a complex chronic disease, causing pain and joint damage that progressively worsens with time. Hospital- and health-system-based specialty pharmacy services are well-positioned to manage care across the continuum of a patient’s journey and provide value to patients, providers, and stakeholders.
The awardees, each of whom received a grant of up to $5,000, are conducting research that measures patient and organizational outcomes, which is essential to demonstrating the value of team-based, integrated specialty pharmacy services.
See more information about each recipient and their study below:
Specialty Pharmacy Initiated Cardiovascular Risk Assessment in RA Patients
Linda Chen, PharmD
Pharmacy Manager
Baylor Scott & White Health, Round Rock, TX
Proactive Therapeutic Drug Monitoring Based Adalimumab Therapy Optimization in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis
Amanuel Kehasse, PharmD, PhD
Clinical Pharmacy Specialist
Boston Medical Center Health System, Boston, MA
Evaluation of an Embedded Rheumatology Specialty Clinical Pharmacists within an Integrated Health System
Jeffrey Lew, PharmD, BCPS
Managed Care Pharmacist
MultiCare Health System, Tacoma, WA
Assessing the Impact of an Integrated Health System Specialty Pharmacy Model on Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients
Thuyvan Thi Phan, PharmD, BCPS, CPP
Clinical Pharmacist
UNC Health, Durham, NC
Measurement and characterization of clinical, operational, and financial interventions and outcomes for Rheumatoid Arthritis patients at a Health System Specialty Pharmacy
Karen Thomas, PharmD, PhD, MBA
Outcomes Coordinator, Specialty Pharmacy Services
University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL
About the ASHP Foundation
The ASHP Foundation was established in 1968 by ASHP as a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization. As the philanthropic arm of ASHP, the Foundation shares ASHP's vision that medication use will be optimal, safe, and effective for all people all of the time. Our mission is to support ASHP by advancing the professional practice of pharmacists and the pharmacy workforce by funding research and education that improves health outcomes through optimal, safe, and effective medication use. To learn more about the Foundation’s programs, visit ashpfoundation.org.