Pharmacy Professor On Mission to Change Lives

Phan is a clinical assistant professor of pharmacy practice at the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, where she also assists with coordinating the postgraduate year two ambulatory care pharmacy residency based out of Jackson.

She splits her time between three Jackson-area practice sites, serving as a medicine/pediatrics pharmacist at University Physicians, a pediatric endocrinology transitions of care pharmacist at Children’s of Mississippi and focusing on pediatric weight management at Riverchase Medical Center.

Phan is also taking part in a trial where she and a physician look at continuous glucose monitoring, or CGM, use in patients newly initiated on basal insulin. Patients are enrolled for six months and receive free glucometer monitoring and CGM supplies for their time in the study. The trial is funded by Dexcom, which is covering the needed supplies.

Working within multiple practice sites has afforded Phan valuable opportunities to collaborate with teams comprising a wide variety of health care professionals, all with the common goal of taking care of patients.

Most of all, she enjoys the opportunity to change the trajectory of the lives of patients.

“I love working with my adolescent patients because you can see that you are hopefully making an impact on their future by controlling their chronic diseases now instead of letting it become a problem when they’re adults,” Phan said.

“It’s also rewarding to know that under my care, I can efficiently manage chronic diseases if I’m able to create those relationships with the providers I work with.”

Not without its challenges, such as space constraints and lack of reimbursement for pharmacists, Phan emphasizes the importance of speaking up.

“Advocacy is such a big deal in our profession,” she said. “We need to advocate for change to ensure we are getting reimbursed for our services that we provide on the teams we work on.”

Her message to current pharmacy students? Take a bird’s-eye view of the experience. 

“There is so much more to pharmacy school than getting an A,” Phan said. “Take advantage of the activities, networking and opportunities presented to you. You are more than just a number and a grade; you are a health care provider and leader in your community. That role is not to be taken lightly.”

Phan received her bachelor’s degree in biology and business administration and management from the Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va., and her Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Maryland in Baltimore, Md

She completed a community pharmacy residency at Johns Hopkins Home Care Group and an ambulatory care residency at the Ole Miss School of Pharmacy’s Jackson campus.

By Natalie Ehrhardt