ACCP members Jacinda C. Abdul-Mutakabbir, Joshua Jacobs, and Kathryn Litten were selected by the 2024 ACCP Awards Committee to receive the College’s prestigious 2024 New Clinical Practitioner, New Investigator, and New Educator awards, respectively. The awards will be presented in Phoenix, Arizona, on Sunday, October 13, during the Awards and Recognition Ceremony at the 2024 ACCP Annual Meeting.

The New Clinical Practitioner Award honors a new clinical practitioner who has made outstanding contributions to the health of patients and/or the practice of clinical pharmacy. The awardee must have been a Full Member of ACCP at the time of nomination, as well as a member at any level for a minimum of 3 years; in addition, the awardee must have completed their terminal training or degree less than 6 years previously. Jacinda C. Abdul-Mutakabbir, Pharm.D., MPH, is an assistant professor of clinical pharmacy at the University of California – San Diego in both the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Division of the Black Diaspora and African American Studies. Abdul-Mutakabbir received her Pharm.D. degree from the University of Saint Joseph, School of Pharmacy in Hartford, Connecticut, and her MPH degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan.

The Awards Committee commented in its report to the ACCP Board of Regents:

Abdul-Mutakabbir is a leader in clinical pharmacy through her outstanding contributions to the health of her patients. She served as the lead pharmacist for an innovative outreach program that established low-barrier community vaccine clinics in Black and Hispanic communities in California. In addition to receiving vaccinations, patients were provided with educational sessions stressing the importance of vaccinations. This tiered approach (engaging faith/community leaders, vaccine education, and placement of low-barrier vaccination) was highlighted in The Lancet Global Health. Abdul-Mutakabbir is also actively engaged in research and scholarship. At the time of nomination, she had published in the areas of antimicrobial resistance, health equity, and equitable vaccine access, with over 50 peer-reviewed publications, nearly 800 citations, and an h-index of 16 according to Google Scholar. She has received over $1,000,000 in extramural grant funding to support her research initiatives.

Colleagues in their letters of support for Abdul-Mutakabbir share how they “are impressed with her ability to galvanize and inspire a team towards a shared vision.” They continue to write,

[She has] distinguished herself as a local, national, and international voice embracing health equity in diverse patient groups. She brings enthusiasm and compassion in her communications and is successful as a scientific liaison among a variety of care environments and colleagues. Dr. Abdul-Mutakabbir has integrated her values, her academic pedigree and skills, and her experiences into a clinical practice of exceptionally high standards and impact.

Abdul-Mutakabbir has received numerous awards, including the IDSA Clinical Practice Innovation Award in 2023 and the IECAAC Dorothy Ingram Trailblazer Award in 2022, and she is listed among the Top 50 Influential Pharmacists by the Pharmacy Podcast Network. She is a member of the ACCP Health Equity PRN, having previously served as PRN chair in 2021.

The New Investigator Award recognizes an ACCP member who has made a significant impact on an aspect of clinical pharmaceutical science. The awardee must have been a member of ACCP for more than 3 years, must have completed their terminal training or degree less than 6 years previously, and must have a research program with a substantial publication record that includes a programmatic theme or an especially noteworthy single publication. Joshua Jacobs, Pharm.D., BCCP, is a cardiology clinical pharmacist at the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah. Jacobs received his Pharm.D. degree at the University of Toledo College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in Toledo, Ohio, and completed residency training at Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, Utah (PGY1), and The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio (PGY2, cardiology). He is also a Ph.D. candidate in population health sciences at the University of Utah College of Medicine.

In recommending Jacobs for the 2024 New Investigator Award to the ACCP Board of Regents, the committee wrote:

Jacobs has published 24 peer-reviewed articles, including a noteworthy publication in JAMA Cardiology evaluating statin use for primary prevention by race and ethnicity. In 2023, he was selected for the National Institutes of Health Graduate Summer Opportunities to Advance Research program. Along with his lab group, Jacobs currently holds three national grants from the National Institute on Aging, and he has submitted two grant proposals to the American Heart Association and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute as the primary investigator. At the time of nomination, these two grants are pending decision.

Letters from colleagues supporting Jacobs remark that he “is undoubtedly one of the most outstanding early-stage investigators,” and “his familiarity with research literature and the quality of his research endeavors have been nothing short of exemplary.” They continue by sharing,

Beyond his professional capabilities, Josh is a joy to work with. His positive attitude, collaborative spirit, and ability to engage with colleagues make him an asset to any research team. Moreover, his passion for advancing pharmacotherapy optimization in patients with cardiovascular diseases reflects a commitment to making a substantial impact in this critical area of study.

Jacobs is an active member of the ACCP Cardiology PRN, serving on the Research & Scholarship Committee.

The ACCP New Educator Award recognizes and honors a new educator for outstanding contributions to the discipline of teaching and to the education of health care practitioners. The awardee must have been a Full Member of ACCP at the time of nomination and a member at any level for a minimum of 3 years; in addition, the awardee must have completed their terminal training or degree less than 6 years previously. Kathryn Litten, Pharm.D., BCACP, is a clinical assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin College of Pharmacy and an ambulatory care pharmacist at CommUnityCare Health Centers in Austin, Texas. Litten received her Pharm.D. degree from Belmont University College of Pharmacy in Nashville, Tennessee, and completed residency training at New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, North Carolina (PGY1), and CommUnityCare Health Centers (PGY2, ambulatory care).

The Awards Committee noted in its report to the ACCP Board of Regents:

Litten has demonstrated her emergence as a leader in education. Within her academic appointments, she has a variety of didactic and experiential teaching responsibilities. She is the coordinator for an introductory didactic ambulatory care elective course and previously served as coordinator for an elective herbal and botanical supplements course. As part of one of her courses, she implemented novel teaching experiences such as choose your own adventure (CYOA) activities, escape rooms, mock trial activities, and clinic simulation OSCEs. A summary of her work on CYOA was published in Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, and she received a 2023 Women Faculty SIG Early Transformative Teaching Award based on her efforts. Litten also has significant experience mentoring students and precepting residents, APPE, and IPPE students.

Litten’s colleagues describe her as a “highly engaged academic scholar and an excellent educator” with a “passion for innovation and student engagement.” She was recognized as CommUnityCare Health Centers PGY2 Residency Program Preceptor of the Year in 2021 and was awarded the New Pharmacist Award from the Texas Society of Health-System Pharmacists in 2023. She is an active member of the ACCP Ambulatory Care PRN, having served on the Networking Committee and as a student mentor.

Members of the 2024 selection committee were Nancy Shapiro (chair), Melanie Claborn (vice chair), Kayla Stover (secretary), Scott Bolesta, Allison Chung, Amy Fabian, Bethany Ford, Carrie Griffiths, Christine Growth, Paul Gubbins, Zhe Han, Adonice Khoury, Keri Mills, Kimberly Mills, Cynthia Nguyen, Tanvi Patil, Jennifer Phillips, Kevin Rynn, Angeal Shogbon Nwaesei, and Kathleen Vest.