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Practice Faculty Spotlight: Amber Giles

Amber B. Giles, PharmD, BCPS, MPH is one of our new Assistant Professors of Pharmacy Practice who will be teaching in Infectious Disease, CAPS II and Health Ethics. We sat down with Amber to find out more about what brought her to PC.

1. Why PC?

I did my undergraduate studies at PC and graduated in 2011. I always hoped to give back to PC in a big way because the school had given so much to me in those 4 years of college. Amazingly, after finishing pharmacy school and my second year of residency in infectious disease, the school of pharmacy was in need of an infectious disease specialist (must have been the sun and moon aligning?!). The opportunity to return to the college and serve a new generation of students was an unexpected way to be able to give back to my beloved PC. Timing is everything in life, and the timing was perfect. It was great coming home to my Blue Hose!

2. Why pharmacy?

One of the many things that PC gave me was an amazing chemistry professor (Ed Gouge) who happened to be heavily involved in the creation of the PC School of Pharmacy. Dr. Gouge pulled me aside one day and told me that I should consider a future in pharmacy (I was a math major at the time, so this career choice would cause a pretty major change in my tediously thought out college plan). I began working at a local community pharmacy to see if I would enjoy it, and I did very much! Talking with patients and helping them understand the importance of their medications was (and still is) so rewarding. After a few months working in a pharmacy, I knew I had to switch gears and prepare for pharmacy school. Every patient that I have worked with since has taught me something and made me a better person- it’s why I do the job!

3. What do you see in future of pharmacy or pharmacy education?

With the doctorate level degree and multiple options for post-graduate training, I think that pharmacists will eventually gain provider status in this country. This would allow pharmacists to more easily bill for services and to gain a bit more autonomy in their practice. Outside of provider status, I think we will continue to integrate more and more into healthcare teams inside and outside of the hospital.

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