Dr. Amber Castle started her career as a pharmacy technician at a Stop & Shop pharmacy when she was 16 years old. For the first time, she understood that pharmacists did much more than manage the inventory. She admired their compassion and the strong personal relationships they built with their clients. It was then that she decided to pursue pharmacy as a career. After starting college at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston, Rhode Island, Castle learned that pharmacists had many roles outside retail pharmacies. She spent a summer volunteering at Yale-New Haven Hospital (YNHH) in New Haven, Connecticut. During that time, she had the opportunity to shadow Bryan Polsonetti, a clinical pharmacist, in the surgical ICU. She saw patients, discussed their care as an equal member of the medical team, and was able to make real-time interventions before a prescription was ever written. That was when she knew she wanted to be a pharmacist specializing in the care of the critically ill. In 2007, Castle graduated magna cum laude with a Pharm.D. degree and a certificate in French and pharmacy. She worked as a pharmacy intern at YNHH most weekends throughout college and went on to complete a PGY1 pharmacy practice residency. She finished her training at just the right time and was able to immediately transition into her current position as the neuroscience ICU (NeuroICU) pharmacist.

As the NeuroICU clinical specialist, Castle is responsible for epilepsy, neurology, and neurosurgery services. She has found the neuroscience pharmacy community welcoming, vibrant, and dynamic. She believes neuroscience really stands out as a field in which pharmacists are exceptionally well represented at the highest levels of leadership. Gretchen Brophy, Theresa Murphy-Human, and Denise Rhoney are mentors and role models who have inspired Castle to get involved with collaborative, multicenter research and interdisciplinary education. It is truly an exciting time to practice in neuroscience. Today, Castle wears many hats in addition to her primary role. As the lead ICU pharmacist, she helps coordinate policy and other initiatives across the ICUs. As a part-time lecturer in the Yale School of Nursing nurse practitioner program, she coordinates two pharmacology courses. As the director of the PGY2 critical care pharmacy residency program, she is responsible for the recruitment and training of two residents.

Castle is also proud to be a member of the Connecticut 1 (CT-1) disaster medical assistance team. The CT-1 team was deployed to New York during Hurricane Sandy in 2012; however, she was sent to join the Tennessee 1 (TN-1) team in New Jersey, which needed an additional pharmacist. These teams were among the first of many in the United States to respond to the disaster. Castle found it a challenge not knowing where she would be located or exactly what to expect,…and it was a little scary driving through a hurricane! However, thanks to the amazing TN-1 team led by Team Commander Teddy Rogers, the team was able to quickly set up a functional base of operations and start seeing patients immediately after the storm. The pharmacy team, Roberta Keeton, Stephen Wickizer, and Patricia Wilcox, led by the multitalented Glenn Susskind, successfully operated a pharmacy out of a tent on the Rutgers campus and then out of the back of a truck at a convention center in Atlantic City, New Jersey, for 2 weeks. While there, the team assisted with therapeutic interchange, drug information, drug selection and dosing, and inventory management. YNHH and the pharmacy department management team fully supported this humanitarian mission.

Castle is grateful for the many opportunities she has had over the years. She feels privileged to be part of an amazing department of talented, dedicated, and incredibly intelligent pharmacists at YNHH. One of the best parts of her job is the opportunity to work with students and residents. Their energy and enthusiasm is contagious and pushes her to do more and learn more. She is thankful for her mentors, especially Jim Sarigianis, Eric Tichy, Marina Yazdi, and Lori Lee, for all of their encouragement and support.