In this focus area, students will develop the skills needed to evaluate patients clinically, optimize drug therapies, and improve patient adherence. With a focus on chronic conditions, students will learn how to become an integral member of the healthcare team, using clinical expertise and a personalized approach to deliver improved patient outcomes.

What Students Will Learn:

• Analyze the indication(s) and mechanism of action of their assigned drug. Learn how each drug targets and treats specific conditions.
• Navigate evidence-based guidelines to select and tailor drug therapy.
• Personalize drug therapy by evaluating patient-specific and socioeconomic factors.
• Educate and empower patients through effective communication and counseling.
  
  

By the end of the program, students will be able to answer:

• How does the drug address the pathophysiology of this condition?
• What patient factors influence therapy choices?
• How can adherence be improved?
• How can pharmacists contribute to improving patient care?

This focus area introduces students to the complexities of global regulatory processes, including drug approval and post-marketing surveillance.

What Students Will Learn:

• Understand regulatory pathways, including fast-track approvals, priority reviews, and orphan drug designations​​.

• Investigate the drug development process, from preclinical testing to Phase 3 trials, to assess safety and efficacy​​.
• Explore post-marketing requirements, such as surveillance strategies and risk mitigation measures​.
• Analyze regulatory challenges, such as addressing diversity in trial populations or managing safety data​​.
  
  

At the end of the program students should be able to answer the following questions:

• What regulatory pathway was used for your assigned drug? Were any expedited processes employed?
• What preclinical and clinical trial data supported the drug’s approval?
• What labeling requirements ensure safe and effective use of the drug?
• How are post-marketing surveillance strategies designed to monitor long-term safety?

This focus area emphasizes the scientific principles underlying drug design, mechanism of action, and pharmacokinetics.

What Students Will Learn:

• Analyze the molecular structure and functional groups of assigned drugs to understand their physicochemical properties​​.
• Examine proteins and biological pathways targeted by drugs and how these pathways relate to disease pathophysiology​​.
• Investigate the effects of ADME (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion) properties on pharmacokinetics and their influence on establishment of dosing regimens​​.
• Link in vivo pharmacokinetic data quantitatively to in vitro data for physicochemical properties, metabolizing enzyme kinetics, and drug transporter kinetics
• Link drug concentrations achieved in vivo to those required for a pharmacological effect based on in vitro data for enzyme inhibition and receptor agonism or antagonism
• Examine drug-drug interactions and rationalize the mechanisms of these interactions based on in vivo and in vitro data​​
  
  

At the end of the program students should be able to answer the following questions:

• How is the molecular structure of the assigned drug related to its pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties?
• How does the drug target specific proteins and biological pathways to exert its pharmacological effect?
• What factors influence the pharmacokinetics of the drug under different conditions and in diverse patient populations?
• What factors determine the affinity of the drug for its protein target and how are these factors quantified?