Events

Keynote Speaker - Milap C. Nahata, MS, PharmD

Director, Institute of Therapeutic Innovations and Outcomes
Professor Emeritus of Pharmacy, Pediatrics, and Internal Medicine
The Ohio State University

Nahata is the director of the Institute of Therapeutic Innovations and Outcomes and professor emeritus of Pharmacy, Pediatrics and Internal Medicine at The Ohio State University (OSU) Colleges of Pharmacy and Medicine. Prior to this role he served as chair of the division of pharmacy practice and science and associate director of pharmacy at OSU Wexner Medical Center, where he led the division to national acclaim for its innovative pharmacy practices, residency programs and education and research initiatives.

A prolific researcher and scholar, Nahata has published more than 700 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters and given more than 400 invited lectures in the U.S. and abroad, including more than 50 distinguished lectureships. His research on the antibiotic azithromycin was instrumental in securing U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the drug for use in children, which is used today to treat ear infections, pneumonia and other bacterial conditions. He has authored or co-edited five books, including Pediatric Drug Formulations, one of the most widely used references in health-system pharmacy practice, and serves as editor-in-chief of the Annals of Pharmacotherapy.

Nahata has received numerous distinguished honors, including the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) Remington Honor Medal —the pharmacy profession's highest honor — the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) Harvey A.K. Whitney Lecture Award, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Lifetime Achievement Award and the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) Paul Parker Medal, among many others. He has served as president of both AACP and ACCP, is one of few pharmacists to be elected a member of the National Academy of Medicine — one of the highest honors a scientist can receive — and is a fellow of APhA, ASHP, ACCP and the Pediatric Pharmacy Association.

Nahata received both his Doctor of Pharmacy and master’s degree from the Duquesne University School of Pharmacy.

Alumni Speaker - Andy Chang, PharmD '13

Andy Chang, PharmD, PhD, ’13, serves as the senior director of medical affairs strategy at Nuvalent, a biopharmaceutical company developing precisely targeted cancer therapies. In this role he focuses on advancing biomarker-driven treatments for lung cancer. Before joining Nuvalent, Chang held roles of increasing responsibility in medical affairs at Genentech, ImmunityBio and Immunovant. He began his pharmaceutical career at Pfizer, where he spent more than eight years contributing to the development of novel cancer therapies across clinical development and medical affairs. Chang is also a volunteer instructor with our school, teaching in the pharmacy practice course and in the Master of Science in Drug Development and Product Management program.

Chang earned his bachelor’s degree in molecular and cellular biology from the University of Arizona and holds a dual doctorate — a PhD in biomedical sciences (cancer biology focus) and PharmD — from UC San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. A member of the class of 2009, Chang was part of our inaugural PharmD/PhD dual-degree program, completing both degrees in 2013. Following graduation, Andy was selected for the Pfizer–UC San Diego postdoctoral fellowship in clinical pharmacology - oncology.

Outside of his professional activities, Chang enjoys traveling and long-distance running, taking full advantage of San Diego’s ideal weather.