Awards Ceremony Honors Two SOP Health Services Research Graduate Students

Sarah Dutcher and Michelle Campbell receive scholarship awards acknowledging their contributions to the field of pharmaceutical health services research.

By Malissa Carroll
December 6, 2012

On Wednesday, Nov. 28, the Department of Pharmaceutical Health Services Research (PHSR) hosted an awards ceremony to present its Arthur Schwartz Memorial Scholarship and first-ever Donald O. Fedder Memorial Fellowship to two accomplished students in the department’s graduate program.

Arthur (Artie) Schwartz was a former student at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy who showed great interest in drug use and pharmaceutical marketing issues. He was the first student admitted to the PHSR graduate program, but, unfortunately he died at an early age. His wife Karen Schwartz established the Arthur Schwartz Memorial Scholarship in his honor to provide funding for a student in the graduate program based on academic standing and financial need.

This year, the scholarship was presented to Sarah Dutcher, a fifth year student in the program.

Dutcher completed her undergraduate degree at the College of William and Mary, where she majored in biochemistry and conducted basic science research on proteins involved in Alzheimer’s Disease. Though she enjoyed her research, she wondered how she could directly relate her work in the lab to patient care. She was accepted into the PHSR graduate program in 2008, and now conducts research on the quality of medication use for patients moving across care settings, with a focus on long-term care patients, and how medication issues during these care transitions influence patient outcomes.

“Sarah is an independent, creative thinker with a thorough understanding of how to conduct high-quality scientific research,” said Ilene Zuckerman, PharmD, PhD, professor and chair of PHSR and Dutcher’s mentor in the program. “She operates well as part of a team and works effectively with others, communicating with faculty members and external team members with confidence and respect. We have made a sound investment in selecting Sarah for this award.”

The Donald O. Fedder Memorial Fellowship was established in honor of Donald Fedder, DrPH, MPH, BSP, FAPhA, a public health pharmacist and long-time School of Pharmacy faculty member who passed away in August 2010. His scholarly work paved the trail for the role of professional pharmacy in public health and brought national attention to the importance of patient behaviors and chronic disease management. During his time at the School, Fedder mentored more than 20 graduate students, many of whom obtained leadership positions in the pharmaceutical industry and academia.

This award, which supports the training and development of a graduate student whose work focuses on social justice, pharmacy advocacy, or public health, was presented to Michelle Campbell, another fifth year student in the PHSR graduate program.

Campbell credits her parents with introducing her to the field of public health. As a child, she assisted her mother, a nurse, in health clinics and watched her father, a volunteer firefighter, rescue people from burning buildings. She attended Notre Dame of Maryland University, where she majored in biology and served as an intern for the Harford County Health Department and Upper Chesapeake Health’s HealthLink program. She first came to the School of Pharmacy in 2004, working with faculty in the former Office of Substance Abuse Studies. In 2008, following a position at the Kennedy Krieger Institute where she had her first experiences with clinical research, she was admitted to the PHSR graduate program. Her current research project, a state-wide evaluation of the Maryland Strategic Planning Framework, has brought her public health career full circle and allows her to work with the same individuals she first met during her internship at the health department.

“As Michelle’s mentor, I know she has learned a lot about public health, patient-centered pharmacy, and behavioral research. I am very proud of her dedication,” said Francoise Pradel, PhD, associate professor and director of the PHSR graduate program. “Her future contributions to public health, particularly to the most vulnerable populations across the nation, will be significant, making her the perfect student to start this award.”

Also in attendance at the ceremony were Karen Schwartz and Aaron Schwartz from the Schwartz family and Michaeline Fedder and Ira Fedder representing the Fedder family.

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