MSHP Social Sept. 18 at High Caliber

Join the Michigan Society of Health-System Pharmacists (MSHP) Organizational Affairs Committee for food, drinks and fun at High Caliber Karting & Entertainment Sept. 18 inside the Meridian Mall in Okemos. Pharmacists, technicians and their families are welcome to attend.



If you are interested in attending, please click the register button below and RSVP no later than Sept. 11, 2025. If members intend to bring their spouse, children or other guests, please make sure to add them as attendees when registering for your ticket.

Free MSHP Webinar April 29

Join the Michigan Society of Health System Pharmacists April 29 for "Incorporating Social Determinants of Health into Residency Training and Research." This continuing education webinar is provided FREE for MPA members.

- BOARD UPDATE -

Empowering and Engaging Our Membership to Enact Change

Julie Schmidt, Pharm.D., BCPS; cardiology clinical pharmacist, Bronson Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo; MSHP director, Membership Committee board liaison

Staying with our presidential theme for the year “Empower, Engage, Enact,” it is very fitting to look at this from a membership standpoint. How do we empower and engage our current membership? How do we ensure we are retaining members who will work to enact positive changes for both our organization and our profession?

One of the specific membership categories that we have recently struggled to retain is new practitioners. At our January Committee Day, I was able to spend time with the Residency Committee, which is doing a great job to support and collaborate with various residency programs throughout the state. I first joined an MSHP committee when I was a resident, as it was a requirement of my residency program. Although at the time it may have seemed like one more thing I had to do during a busy year, I am so glad that I became involved. Since that year, I have continued to be engaged in MSHP by serving on a committee each year. I have also served as a co-chair and am currently serving my fourth year as a director on the Executive Board. Now, I have even joined an MPA committee.

What may have seemed like a small step when I was a resident has turned into growing my network and helping to support an organization that strongly advocates for our profession. For residency programs that do not currently require residents to be a part of an MSHP committee, I would encourage you to empower your residents to do just that. Joining a committee is also not the only way a resident can become involved in MSHP. Other opportunities involve writing a Resident’s Corner article in the Monitor, attending the resident luncheon at the Annual Convention & Exposition, or participating in the MSHP poster competition. 

In order to promote resident (and preceptor) engagement, the Residency Committee is also working on implementing a mentorship program. Mentorship programs have been shown to foster professional growth, develop leadership skills and even increase learning opportunities. I would encourage you to consider signing up as a mentor or mentee when the engagement form is sent out in the fall.

The MSHP Membership Committee is also working on engaging our membership as well. The annual student luncheon at ACE was on track to have another great turn out this year. This luncheon provides a great networking opportunity for students to spend time with various pharmacists from across the state. Overall, MPA student membership has significantly grown in the past couple of years thanks to a very generous donation. The opportunity is here for us now to ensure these students are engaged in the organization and experience the various benefits. As I mentioned previously, the new practitioner category is one that we struggle to retain members. Now is the time to develop helpful strategies so we may retain these members post-graduation. If we involve our students now and they feel connected to our MPA community, they may very well be more likely to stay a member after they graduate.

While student and resident members are extremely important to our organization, we also want to be sure we are satisfying and retaining our current members. One of the charges the Membership Committee has this year is to develop an annual survey to identify member satisfaction and needs. MPA and MSHP value their members and we cannot know what they need or want unless we ask. Hopefully this survey will allow us to enact positive changes in the years ahead.

Another charge the committee has for the year is to develop a new member open house. An onboarding process can create a positive first impression and would provide excellent networking opportunities. Current members can also be more involved by attending the MSHP social event on Sept.18. Be sure to save the date! MSHP members and their families are invited to attend the social, which will take place at High Caliber Karting & Entertainment in Okemos from 3-6 p.m. Make sure you RSVP online by Sept. 11.

These are just a few ways our committees are working this year to create positive changes to empower and engage our members. I know that MPA/MSHP has been a positive community in my life for over a decade and that empowers me to want to enact positive changes in our organization, too.

- AMBULATORY CARE -

Champions of Care: Ambulatory Care Pharmacists Serving Vulnerable Patients – An HIV Specialist Perspective

By John Di Lodovico, RPh, AAHIVP, TTS, advanced pharmacy practice provider, ambulatory care, Henry Ford Health; Emily Thomas, Pharm.D., BCPS, BCACP, clinical pharmacy coordinator and advanced pharmacy practice provider, ambulatory care, Henry Ford Health; and Alison Lobkovich, Pharm.D., assistant professor (clinical), Wayne State University; advanced pharmacy practice provider, ambulatory care, Henry Ford Health

A goal of the MSHP Ambulatory Care Committee is to highlight and bring awareness to pharmacists who serve vulnerable patient populations across the nation. Our hope is to help others gain insight into how this could be applied to Ambulatory Care practice and determine the feasibility of expansion. We are titling this series “Champions of Care,” and readers should expect to see additional articles throughout the year related to other specialties. This month, we are excited to highlight John Di Lodovico, an advanced pharmacy practice provider in ambulatory care for Henry Ford Health.

1. Can you describe your role and the patients you serve? I am an HIV Specialty pharmacist, and my role is to promote medication safety and improve/maintain adherence in persons living with HIV (PLWH) taking combination antiretroviral therapy (cART).
2. How did you establish yourself in your healthcare team? I established myself by creating standards and referral criteria for pharmacy patient care services provided by the pharmacist for PLWH. Specifically, patients that are newly diagnosed and prescribed cART, patients that are changing their current cART regimens (due to treatment failure or medication adverse event), transition of care for PLWH from inpatient to outpatient care, pregnancy in HIV, coinfection with Hepatitis B or C, solid organ transplantation (SOT) in PLWH, and nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) in PLWH using tobacco products.
3. What were your previous professional experiences that led you this role? Prior to my current role in the outpatient clinical care area, I practiced as a clinical pharmacist in the inpatient setting at Henry Ford Hospital for 13 years and was a preceptor for pharmacy students on their inpatient rotations.
4. What are some barriers your position faced in getting established and how was it overcome? I was fortunate in that there were minimal barriers in establishing my position in the HIV clinic. The pharmacist position was already established, and I replaced the previous pharmacist. Professionally, it took time to develop a professional relationship with the current staff (physicians/nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers, patients, and administrative staff in the ID clinic).
5. How is your position funded? My role is funded by multiple sources, including the Ryan White Federal Grant, Tobacco Use Reduction Grant, HIV Care Coordination Grant, and Ambulatory Outpatient Health Pharmacy Services. Currently, my services are not directly reimbursed.
6. Can you discuss metrics and outcomes that you gather to justify the impact of your role? The primary metrics measured include HIV-1 viral load and CD4 metrics. The outcomes include reduced hospitalizations, reduced opportunistic infections, maintenance of immunocompetence and improved immunosuppression.
7. Can you describe a rewarding experience? A recent rewarding experience was getting insurance approval after initial denial for an all-injectable cART regimen in a 30-year-old patient that was vertically infected at birth, who has advanced disease and is failing his oral cART regimen. After one month of injectable therapy, he is now fully suppressed for the first time while in our care since 2019.
8. What words of advice would you give to practitioners trying to develop this role? Always put the patient’s medical/pharmacy needs and care first. Do all that you can to advocate for your patient's well-being by being a vocal leader on the care team. Do no harm and to always focus on the 7 types of drug related problems which are unnecessary drug therapy, needs additional drug, ineffective drug, dose too low, dose too high, adverse drug reaction, and noncompliance.

- MEMBERSHIP -

The More the Merrier: Why You Should Consider Dual Membership

By Nate Harde, Pharm.D., PGY1 pharmacy resident, Henry Ford Health

Upon finishing pharmacy school and starting my residency, I joined MPA to be involved with advocacy related to my new practice. I wanted to make connections and network with other pharmacists, have access to continuing education resources and attend conferences and meetings with other pharmacists from my hospital. When joining MPA, I was prompted to choose a practice division. Of course, I chose MSHP, but I was surprised to see that I could select a second practice division as well.

MPA values members who have diverse practice interests. Pharmacy is a field with many different opportunities and choosing a practice section doesn’t need to be a one size fits all approach. There are five practice sections, and the rest of this article will detail the different practice divisions and who should consider joining multiple areas.

• CSPM (Consultant and Specialty Pharmacists of Michigan) represents pharmacists who work as consultants and in the specialty space. Specialty pharmacists who work for a larger retail chain can consider being an also being a member of MSCP to stay in touch with their community pharmacy colleagues, for example. This includes areas such as long-term care. 
• MSCP (Michigan Society of Community Pharmacists) represents pharmacists who work in community and retail settings. 
• MSHP (Michigan Society of Health-System Pharmacists) represents pharmacists who work in hospitals and inpatient settings. 
• MSPT (Michigan Society of Pharmacy Technicians) represents pharmacy technicians across all areas of pharmacy practice. Technicians in MSPT should consider choosing a dual member in the specific area they practice; for example, becoming a member of MSCP if they work at a community pharmacy. 
• SMPA (Student Michigan Pharmacist Association) represents pharmacy students prior to entering practice. Students interested in going into inpatient practice can consider also being members of MSHP to be informed of MSHP events where they can network.

Becoming a dual member of different practice divisions is easy. If you are interested in becoming a dual member, follow these steps:

Step 1: Go to the MPA homepage, login and click on your name in the upper banner

Step 2: Select “Profile” from this menu

Step 3: Scroll down to the “More About Me” section, and see the “Secondary Division Selection” option menu

Step 4: Select your preferred secondary practice division

Step 5: Hit the save button in the upper right corner

- STUDENT FOCUS -

Pregna-cogenomics: A Women’s Health Initiative? 

K.M. Pawlowski, BS Chem, Pharm.D. candidate 2025

Pharmacogenomics is a rapidly-evolving and growing field showing promise in the future of medication management. New data is showing that not only can phenotyping of enzyme function be useful in predicting patient response, but specific genotypes affecting various protein and neurologic functions can affect individual response to specific medications. Alterations in adrenergic receptors, electrolyte transporters, downstream phosphorylation pathways, hormonal signaling, immune cell response, apoptosis pathways, neurotransmitter release, RNA binding, factor V mutations and even the regulation of epigenetic activity have altered patients’ response to specific medications in hypertension and diabetes.^1,2 Recommendations on the appropriate use of genetic testing are variable. 

The Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium cautions about the limitations of unknown or uncommon mutations (commonly non-Caucasian/non-European races and ethnicities) that may be misidentified and/or have incorrect phenotypes assigned. In addition, previous studies of the use of pharmacogenomic testing in certain conditions have not necessarily shown evidence that the clinical benefits outweigh the financial burden. A trial by Oslin et al. comparing pharmacogenomic testing versus standard of care for initiation of treatment in patients with depression found a positive association between the use of pharmacogenomic testing and control of symptoms at 12 weeks, with no difference in control of symptoms at 24 weeks. This suggests there is little long-term benefit in utilizing pharmacogenomic testing.³ However, guidance on the use of genetic testing in acutely prolonged conditions that require immediate treatment, such as conditions of pregnancy and postpartum care, is limited.

Treatment of conditions in pregnancy and the postpartum period are limited in medication choice, while also requiring prompt care to ensure the health of both mother and baby. Due to the prolonged, but acute, nature of pregnancy and the hemodynamic/hormonal unstable nature of the postpartum period, optimizing treatment as early as possible is essential to improving long-term maternal and fetal outcomes. 

Maternal health plays a crucial role in shaping both fetal and neonatal outcomes during pregnancy and the postpartum period. Effectively managing common conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension and depression is essential for ensuring both short- and long-term health for both mother and baby. Patients at risk for perinatal depression, gestational diabetes mellitus, pre-eclampsia, gestational hypertension, or chronic hypertension and diabetes – especially those on medications unsuitable for pregnancy, or those who may require future treatment – could benefit significantly from pharmacogenetic data. This personalized approach can help optimize medication choices, improving treatment efficacy, while minimizing risks to both mother and child.

For instance, identifying whether a patient with gestational diabetes mellitus will respond to metformin underscores the critical of genetic testing in personalized treatment. Since metformin typically takes three to four weeks to take full effect, predicting non-responsiveness before initiating therapy can prevent prolonged hyperglycemia, which may lead to both short-term and long-term complications for both mother and baby.⁴ Alternatively, prescribing insulin to a patient who could have effectively managed their condition with metformin may impose unnecessary burden, requiring more intensive monitoring and increasing the risk of hypoglycemia. 

Similarly, finding a medication that is effective in managing symptoms of hypertension is essential for early control thus preventing complications related to reduced placental blood flow. Thus, selecting an appropriate antihypertensive upon diagnosis of hypertension during pregnancy and in the postpartum period can help prevent severe pre-eclampsia, eclampsia or both, lower the risk of maternal and fetal/neonatal adverse effects and improve long-term maternal outcomes.⁵ 

Lastly, untreated perinatal depression has been linked to poor outcomes with childhood development, reduced fetal growth and prematurity.⁶ Prompt and effective treatment of perinatal depression can reduce maternal burden and improve both fetal and neonatal outcomes. However, once a patient is symptomatic and is requiring medication, there may be little benefit to obtaining pharmacogenetic testing, as results can take weeks. Further, patients requiring several trials of medications, especially due to adverse effects, may form a distrust for providers or medications, which could lead to poorer fetal and maternal outcomes. 

Unfortunately, insurance companies have under-appreciated the value of pharmacogenomics and there is little coverage for “experimental” genetic testing, generally described as either a genetic test of an asymptomatic individual or genetic testing for the sole purpose of medication management. Despite this, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services deems pharmacogenomic testing medically necessary in certain jurisdictions if the patient’s condition requires medication treatment for which a known drug-gene interaction exists, a valid test is used, and there is a clinically actionable response that can be taken from the results of the test.⁷ 

In addition to insurance coverage, the availability of applicable and commercially available testing must be considered. With the rapid expansion of knowledge in the field of pharmacogenomics, commercial testing may not be available and/or accessible for specific genes and combination panels may be required. If an adequate panel does not test for the applicable information, whole genome sequencing may be the only option. Newer non-invasive methods for collecting gene sequencing of a fetus are also being evaluated for practicality in determining fetal exposure risks to maternal medications.⁸ 

As cost, insurance coverage, differences in ethnicities/race, differences among tests, and time-to-result are important factors in genetic testing, careful consideration should be given to recommending/acquiring genetic testing in all patients. However, high-risk patients with acutely prolonged conditions, such as pregnancy and postpartum, may have a high chance of benefiting from the use of genetic testing to predict adequate medication response while reducing the risk of fetal and maternal adverse effects and improving long-term outcomes. 

References

1. Cooper-DeHoff RM, Johnson JA. Hypertension pharmacogenomics: in search of personalized treatment approaches. Nat Rev Nephrol. 2015;12(2):110-122. doi:10.1038/nrneph.2015.176 
2. Li JH, Brenner LN, Kaur V, et al. Genome-wide association analysis identifies ancestry-specific genetic variation associated with acute response to metformin and glipizide in SUGAR-MGH. Diabetologia. 2023;66(7):1260-1271. doi:10.1007/s00125-023-05922-7
3. Oslin DW, Lynch KG, Shih M. Effect of Pharmacogenomic Testing for Interactions on Medication Selection and Symptoms in Major Depressive Disorder: The PRIME Care Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2022;328(2):151-161. doi:10.1001/jama.2022.9805 
4. Ghanei A, Fattahi MA, Banadkoki MG. Investigating predictive factors in treatment response with metformin in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus: a cross-sectional analytical-descriptive study. J Diabetes Metab Disorder. 2024;24:5. doi:10.1007/s40200-024-01520-5 
5. Kitt J, Fox R, Frost A, el at. Long-Term Blood Pressure Control After Hypertensive Pregnancy Following Physician Optimized Self-Management The POP-HT Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2023;330(20):1991-1999. doi:10.1001/jama.2023.21523 
6. Chan J, Natekar A, Einarson A, Koren G. Risks of untreated depression in pregnancy. Can Fam Physician. 2014;60(3):242-243. 
7. Pharmacogenomics Testing (LCD). Medicare Coverage Database. U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid; 2021. www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database.
8. O’Brien M, Doyle S, McAuliffe FM, et al. Current status and future of genomics in fetal and maternal medicine: A scientific review commissioned by European Board and College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (EBCOG). Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 2024;299:336-341. doi:10.1016/j.ejogrb.2024.05.019

- REGIONAL UPDATES -

Southeastern Michigan Society

of Health-System Pharmacists Update

 By Lama Hsaiky, PharmD, BCPS; SMSHP president-elect

The Southeastern Michigan Society of Health-System Pharmacists (SMSHP) had a strong finish to 2024! I had the honor of being installed as the president-elect for 2025 with the rest of the new board members during our annual awards banquet in November 2024.

From left, Kim Moon, Pharm.D., Jennifer Priziola, Pharm.D., BCPS, MBA, Jeff Hurren, Pharm.D. and Lama Hsaiky, Pharm.D., BCPS, were installed as the society’s newly elected executive board members during the annual awards banquet on Nov. 13, 2024.

The awards banquet was filled with excitement! We got to celebrate our exemplary members and their wonderful achievements. Our award winners for 2024 were Jodie Robb (technician of the year); Wolfegang Moorhouse (preceptor of the year); Nisha Patel (pharmacist of the year); Petar Puskar (committee service); Ericka Ridgeway (innovative practice); Daniel Everhart and Yasmin Nasser (exemplary student scholarship); Sarah Channey (student research); and Paige Hanke (resident of the year). 

The newly-inducted SMSHP board had a successful and productive leadership and planning retreat in December. In 2025, the society’s main priorities are to maintain their focus on increasing membership by 10%, expand membership engagement and launch the hybrid continuing education (CE) programs. The first successful hybrid CE program was implemented in February 2025. Furthermore, we heard our members’ valuable feedback in 2024 to guide us on determining the best benefits members are interested in. Some of the member benefits in 2025 would include an annual publication focusing on society updates, executive board updates, member spotlight and improving the feasibility of the society website to share information with members. In addition to the annual golf outing, the membership committee will offer a mentor/mentee program in spring 2025 and a membership mixer in August 2025. Lastly, the board is focusing on increasing visibility using our online and social media presence.

We’ve had a strong start to our CE programming this year. On Jan. 8, a live CE delivered by Abigail Geyer, Pharm.D., BCIDP, on “Managing Drug-Resistant Gram-Negative Infections: Best Practices and Treatment Strategies” was attended by 90 members at the Italian American Banquet and Conference Center in Livonia.

Due to the severe weather advisory in February, the board voted to convert the CE to a full virtual platform to ensure our speaker and members stay safe. A total of 78 members attended the virtual CE, by Lydia L. Benitez, Pharm.D., BCOP “Oncology Updates in Malignant Hematology.” This was a great win for the 2025 goals of offering virtual CEs. On March 17, Dr. James Shen presented on “New Health Technology and Artificial Intelligence” at the Club Venetian Center Banquet Center in Warren.

Abigail Geyer, Pharm.D., BCIDP, delivered a CE on “Managing Drug-Resistant Gram-Negative Infections: Best Practices and Treatment Strategies” on Jan. 8, 2025, at the Italian American Banquet and Conference Center in Livonia. 

Additionally, four board members were proud to represent SMSHP at the MPA House of Delegates April 13, 2025: President Farzad Daneshvar, BCACP, Immediate Past President Jessica Jones, Pharm.D., BCPS, BCCCP, newly-elected SMSHP board member Jennifer Priziola, Pharm.D., BCPS, MBA, and Denise Propes, CPhT. Their contributions and votes help us align our mission to advance the profession of pharmacy forward in the state of Michigan.

If you are a member who would like to get more involved, please reach out to SMSHP President Farzad Daneshvar or let us know via our website, smshp.org.

OFFICERS

PRESIDENT | Stacy Brousseau | 269-341-7407 | Bronson Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo

PRESIDENT-ELECT | Nada Farhat | nmhammou@med.umich.edu | Michigan Medicine, Ann Arbor

IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT | Kyle Schmidt | 616-685-6675 | Mercy Health St. Mary's, Grand Rapids

TREASURER | Michelle Dehoorne | 313-343-6381 | Ascension, Detroit

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT | Edward Szandzik | 313-587-6279 | Detroit

DIRECTORS

Tara McAlpine | tara.mcalpine@trinity-health.org | Trinity Health Michigan

Ben Pontefract | bpontefract@gmail.com | Ferris State University, Big Rapids

Julie Schmidt | 269-341-7999 | Bronson Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo

Amber Lanae Martirosov | 313-916-3494 | Wayne State University, Detroit

REGIONAL SOCIETY REPRESENTATIVES 

CENTRAL | Tim Ekola | 734-845-3418 | VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System

NORTHERN | Miranda Maitland | mirandapmaitland@gmail.com | My Michigan Medical Center, Sault Ste. Marie

SOUTHEASTERN | Lama Hsaiky | lama.hsaiky@corewellhealth.org | Corewell Health, Dearborn

WESTERN | Jessica Prociv | jessie_olds28@yahoo.com | Bronson Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo

MANAGING EDITOR | Ryan Weiss | (517) 377-0232 | Michigan Pharmacists Association, Lansing

The MSHP Monitor is a publication of the Michigan Society of Health-System Pharmacists, published as a service to its members.

Michigan Society of Health-System Pharmacists - An Affiliated Chapter of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists and a Practice Section of the Michigan Pharmacists Association