DISRxUPT

In today’s episode, Dr. Justin Cole is joined by a panel of medical professionals, including a retired physician and ethicist, an infectious disease specialty pharmacist, and a student from Cedarville University School of Pharmacy. Dr. Dennis Sullivan, professor emeritus of pharmacy practice at Cedarville University, and Rachel Wolthoff, a current second-year student pharmacist, will provide background information and detailed perspective on the ethical dilemmas surrounding COVID-19 vaccine development, production, and distribution. They are joined by Dr. Zach Jenkins, associate professor of pharmacy practice in the Cedarville University School of Pharmacy and a frontline infectious disease pharmacist who is familiar with COVID-19, its treatment, and the scientific basis for vaccinations. 

Listen in to hear more from our panel as they explain the scientific background of COVID-19, vaccinations, and the ethical questions surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine. With vaccine approval and availability just days away, this panel provides a unique opportunity better understand the unique healthcare dilemmas and ethical challenges that COVID-19  and a potential vaccination has brought to our world.

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In today’s episode Dr. Mohan Pereira, Assistant Professor of Physics at Cedarville University, outlines the basics of nanotechnology applications in medicine. Dr. Pereira shares his career journey from a young child in Sri Lanka with an interest in science to a nanotechnology expert in the United States. The physics professor says this about the surprising way in which his career in which physics and medicine have come together:

“Even when I was a child I never thought of pursuing my career and research in nanomedicine.”

Through his experience with a variety of interdisciplinary science teams, Dr. Pereira became more interested in the novel ways a physics-based approach can be utilized in other various scientific fields, particularly drug design and delivery. The field of nanomedicine includes new drug delivery mechanisms such as pHLIP™ (pH-low insertion peptide) technology. Dr. Pereira describes this technology as a unique collection of peptides that sense local pH changes, which can be used to accurately deliver drugs or other target molecules to individual cells.

Listen in to hear more from Dr. Pereira as he explains the science of nanotechnology, its potential role in therapeutics, and various examples of Subscribe to this podcast to stay up-to-date with current projects, interviews, and innovation in pharmacy.

Welcome to the first episode of the Disrupt Podcast, brought to you by the Cedarville University Center for Pharmacy Innovation. In this inaugural episode, Dr. Justin Cole, the director of the center, as well as two of the center’s student innovators, discuss their backgrounds, interests in innovation, and current projects.

Luke O’Brien, one of the center’s student innovators, mentioning his interest in technology and informatics, says this about his interest to work in this setting: ”The more I learned about pharmacy informatics and leveraging new workflow, the more I found it really exciting.” Luke continues to serve the center and its partners in a number of projects involving data collection and media production.

Matt Merical, with his interest in advancing the clinical practice of pharmacists, mentions this regarding the expertise and training of pharmacists: “We have a lot of skills that are sometimes over-developed and then underutilized.” Matt supports the center for pharmacy innovation by conducting research and collaborating with its partners in innovation.

Dr. Justin Cole, a pediatric pharmacist by training, has led the center since its founding in 2018. Utilizing the resources inside the Center for Pharmacy Innovation, he desires to help change the face of pharmacy practice with innovative approaches to healthcare and systems design, saying, “When we hear the words ‘pharmacy innovation’, I think our minds are naturally drawn to thinking about new drugs. But we also want to ask ‘How can we improve the care system around us?’ We want to be proactive and forward-thinking on how we can improve the health of our patients.”

Listen in to hear more from each member of the team, and subscribe to this podcast to stay up-to-date with the rapid pace of change in the profession of pharmacy.