The University of Iowa College of Pharmacy has received the top award from the Pharmacy Partners Scholarship Program of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) Foundation.

Being selected for the top award – the $40,000 Apotex Corp. Wayne Roberts Memorial Scholarship – was an acknowledgement of the college’s strong ties to community pharmacy. Specifically, the NACDS Foundation recognized the college’s leadership in advancing and improving patient care through community pharmacy, and implementing innovative programs to prepare students for these new roles.

The funds will assist high-caliber pharmacy students working to achieve their professional Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree. Out of 48 applicant institutions, 12 accredited pharmacy schools and colleges received scholarships.

Some examples of the college’s strong ties to community pharmacy include:

• The college’s curriculum offers patient-centered coursework involving advanced care in community settings.
• About 60-65 percent of graduates enter into community pharmacy practice within two years of graduation, per pharmacy class, on average.
• This year, the college has 83 volunteer preceptors who manage rotations in 24 advanced community pharmacy practice settings. Another 73 volunteer preceptors deliver other elective rotations in 44 community settings.
• In the college’s introductory professional experience program, 136 preceptors are in 64 community pharmacies.
• The college is home to many new and innovative community-based programs. For example, one project underway is focusing on whether community pharmacy prescription vouchers help people released from jail or prison to re-engage in health care.
• There are eight current research projects in the college which focus on community pharmacy practice.
• Each year the college participates in a shared summer internship with OutcomesMTM.
• The college's community pharmacy residency program, launched in 1997, is the longest continually-offered and continually-accredited community residency program in the country.
• The college has two full-time faculty who have community pharmacy responsibilities, primarily through the residency setting.