Seventeen investigator participants and 12 faculty mentors teamed up for 4½ days of intensive investigator development at the University of Georgia (UGA) College of Pharmacy from July 9 to 13.

July 2015 marked the inaugural offering of the Research Institute’s (RI’s) Mentored Research Investigator Training (MeRIT) Program. Fourteen participants traveled to UGA to attend the primer session for this individualized, 2-year longitudinal program designed to mentor participants on moving from research idea through study design, as well as on IRB and funding application, data collection, results presentation, and manuscript submission.

Three Focused Investigator Training (FIT) participants attended the seventh offering of this proven, intensive, hands-on grant refinement experience for pharmacist-investigators pursuing NIH (National Institutes of Health) funding as a principal investigator.

Assisted by skilled and successful research mentors, attendees concentrated on developing and revising their individual proposals throughout the week. Small-group sessions and individual worktime allowed mentees to focus on their individual projects and immediately work on addressing questions and recommended revisions. The small-group sessions were complemented by tip-rich lectures and discussions, one-on-one mentor and biostatistician appointments, and continual revision and feedback on ideas/proposals.

MeRIT participants will present posters of their proposed research projects on Tuesday morning, October 20, during the ACCP Global Conference on Clinical Pharmacy in San Francisco, California, October 17–21, 2015. Please stop by to learn about their projects, pose questions, and offer advice to these aspiring researchers. You may also learn more about both programs during the Global Conference at the RI’s Open House the morning of Tuesday, October 20, or at any time on the RI website (www.accpri.org).

Watch for the summer 2016 FIT and MeRIT Program application materials on the ACCP RI website, and accelerate your growth as a clinical pharmacy researcher by submitting your letter of intent in February 2016. This type of protected time for proposal development and investigator training with experienced and passionate mentors is unmatched anywhere!

2015 FIT Investigator Participants:

• Eyob Adane
  Ohio Northern University
• Ted Cory
  University of Tennessee
• Sam Ellis
  University of Colorado

2015 FIT Faculty Mentors:

• John D. Cleary, Pharm.D., FCCP
  University of Mississippi
• Maribeth Johnson, M.S.
  Medical College of Georgia, Georgia Regents University
• Robert B. Parker, Pharm.D., FCCP
  University of Tennessee

2015 MeRIT Investigator Participants:

• Trisha Branan, Pharm.D., BCPS
  University of Georgia
• Amber Crowley, Pharm.D., MS‐MTM, BCPS, BCACP
  Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, New York
• Christine Eisenhower, Pharm.D.
  University of Rhode Island
• Kylee Funk, Pharm.D.
  University of Minnesota
• Ivy Ge, Pharm.D., BCPS
  Kaiser Permanente
  Redwood City Medical Center in California
• Drayton Hammond, Pharm.D., MBA, BCPS
  University of Arkansas
• Sarah Kelling, Pharm.D., MPH, BCACP
  University of Michigan
• Young Lee, Pharm.D., BCPS
  Texas Tech University
• Charlie Leonard, Pharm.D., MSCE
  University of Pennsylvania
• Celia Lu, Pharm.D., BCACP
  St. John’s University, Queens, New York
• Rima Mohammad, Pharm.D., BCPS
  University of Michigan
• Merlin Punnoose, Pharm.D.
  University Hospital in Newark, New Jersey
• Rebecca Stone, Pharm.D., BCPS, BCACP
  University of Illinois at Chicago
• Katie Vogel Anderson, Pharm.D., BCACP
  University of Florida

2015 MeRIT Faculty Mentors:

• Christina Aquilante, Pharm.D.
  University of Colorado
• Larisa H. Cavallari, Pharm.D., FCCP, BCPS
  University of Florida
• Rachel R. Chennault, Ph.D.
  ACCP Research Institute
• Rhonda Cooper-DeHoff, Pharm.D., M.S.
  University of Florida
• Vicki L. Ellingrod, Pharm.D., FCCP
  University of Michigan
• Karen Farris, Ph.D.
  University of Michigan
• Jimmi Hatton-Kolpek, Pharm.D., FCCP, FCCM
  University of Kentucky
• Maribeth Johnson, M.S.
  Medical College of Georgia, Georgia Regents University
• Kimberly K. Scarsi, Pharm.D., M.S., BCPS-AQ ID
  University of Nebraska
• Kathleen A. Stringer, Pharm.D., FCCP
  University of Michigan

PRN-Sponsored Tuition Scholarship Recipients for 2015:

Adult Medicine:

• Rima Mohammad

Ambulatory Care:

• Kylee Funk
• Rebecca Stone

Critical Care:

• Eyob Adane
• Trisha Branan
• Drayton Hammond

Education and Training:

• Drayton Hammond
• Sarah Kelling

Geriatrics:

• Christine Eisenhower

Infectious Diseases:

• Ivy Ge
• Young Lee
• Merlin Punnoose

Pharmacokinetics/Pharmacodynamics/Pharmacogenomics:

• Eyob Adane