On-Campus Event Connects Alumni, Students
COP Reconnect Brings Together Graduates, Preceptors, PharmD Candidates
Members of the College of Pharmacy’s student, faculty, preceptor, and alumni communities came together Feb. 2 on campus for a free conference that organizers hope to replicate as they seek to connect program alumni with their alma mater.
The theme of connection was evident in the title of the day’s activities: “Contemporary Pharmacy Practice Issues: Reconnecting with TUC College of Pharmacy.”
Participating alumni and preceptors qualified for continuing education credits based on the three presentations. One of those talks was given by Dr. Monica Donnelley, PharmD Class of 2010, who serves as a faculty member and as a Director on the Touro University California Alumni Association Board of Directors.
Participation was free and included three units of continuing education credit, professional portraits, breakfast and lunch, and a speed mentoring session that allowed students to meet briefly with the assembled alumni and preceptors.
The Mentor-Preceptor Connection
Dr. Theresa Abatayo, PharmD Class of 2014 and a preceptor for the program, was invited by classmate Dr. Rizza Alcaria to take part in the Reconnect activities.
“I thought it would be a good opportunity to revisit our old stomping ground, and to get some CE, and to maybe see and meet some new pharmacy students,” Abatayo said.
She said the speed mentoring component was “cool, and fun.” Mentoring students is something she really enjoys, she said, and she hopes to continue to help students navigate pharmacy school.
The event also served as a mini reunion.
Classmates Dr. Judea Mintalar and Raechel Urbano, PharmD Class of 2013. The reconnection went further still for Mintalar, who was reunited with one of her former preceptors, Dr. Flora He, a Vallejo pharmacist who continues her service as a preceptor for the program.
Table Set for Future Program Activities
The conference was a modified version of an existing annual event that was supercharged to draw participants to campus.
It’s part of an effort by Dr. Catherine Cone, Interim Dean of the College of Pharmacy, Dr. Shane Desselle, Associate Dean for Research and Professional Affairs, and Dr. Jason Bandy, Assistant Dean for Experiential Education, to encourage alumni participation with the program.
Faculty member Dr. Shadi Doroudgar presented on the topic, “Precepting the Next Generation.” Desselle’s presentation was titled, “Optimizing Practice to Coincide with Patients’ Social Determinants of Health.”
The program is planning to launch a Distinguished Lecture Series at noon April 17 featuring Dr. Betty Chewning of the University of Wisconsin.
Chewning in 2020 was awarded the American Association of Colleges and Pharmacy’s Paul R. Dawson Award for Excellence in Patient Care Research for innovative and impactful research in the areas of social determinants of health, patient communication, and the medication use experience.