We are deeply saddened to convey that our colleague, mentor, and friend, Dr. David Adler, passed away at his home on Saturday, November 4, 2023 surrounded by family. David established the UC San Francisco PharmD Student Program at UC San Diego Health in 1975 and served as Founding Faculty and the Founding Associate Dean of Academic Affairs (now called Pharmacy Education) at the UC San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (SSPPS) since 2000. He was a passionate and devoted educator, and precepted and taught thousands of UCSF and UC San Diego pharmacy students, residents, and many others over his impressive career.
David completed his BA in Biochemistry at UC Berkeley (1966), his Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) at UC San Francisco (1970), and his Pharmacy Residency at UC San Francisco (1971). David was a pioneer in clinical pharmacy, always moving the profession forward and motivating others to do the very same. His 45-year career began as an Assistant Clinical Professor at UC San Francisco in 1971. Shortly thereafter, with the support of Deans Jere Goyan (UCSF School of Pharmacy) and Jack Moxley (UC San Diego School of Medicine), David accepted the position of vice chair of the UCSF Clinical Pharmacy Division and agreed to move to San Diego to establish and coordinate a new program for UCSF pharmacy students to complete their 4th year clinical rotations at UC San Diego. The first six PharmD students arrived in 1975, and the program grew to provide clinical opportunities for 20 students each year.
David loved his clinical practice – he considered caring for patients each week his respite from the stresses of faculty endeavors. Combining his expertise in anticoagulation with his passion for patient care, David proved to be visionary in clinical pharmacy practice. He collaborated with Dr. Samuel Rappaport at the UC San Diego Veterans Administration Division of Hematology to establish one of the first pharmacist-led and managed clinical anticoagulation practices in the nation (1976 – 2007). The approach was later replicated at UC San Diego Health, where David also practiced from 1985 – 2016, and at many other health care institutions nationally not only for anticoagulation, but for other diseases states requiring tight medication adjustment and monitoring.
David’s passion for education and the community extended beyond pharmacy students and residents. David was instrumental in establishing a training program for refugee pharmacists from Vietnam to become licensed in the United States. From 1982 to 1986, David secured grant funding from the Social Security Administration Refugee Resettlement Program to organize didactic curricula and internship placement for 110 Vietnamese pharmacists, 95% of whom were able to pass licensure exams in California and elsewhere. His lasting contribution to the Vietnamese community was recognized through multiple Appreciation Awards from the Vietnamese Pharmacists Association (1985, 1997, 2008).
Building on his experience helping to establish the Haight-Ashbury Free Medical Clinic while he was a student pharmacist himself in San Francisco, David was the Founding Pharmacy Director of the UC San Diego Student-run Free Clinic Project, working alongside Dr. Ellen Beck and medical and pharmacy students who founded the clinics including his daughter Michelle Adler (UC San Diego MD Class of 2001), Brookie Best (UCSF PharmD Class of 1999), and Sarah Freeman (UCSF PharmD Class of 1999). David’s guidance and support helped institutionalize the Free Clinic as a core component of the Pharmacy and Medical School clinical curricula which continue to benefit not only the students but also provide a critical service to the greater San Diego community. David’s passion for social justice, and his commitment to high quality, interdisciplinary, empowering care with underserved communities, especially those who had nowhere to turn, has cemented his legacy as a role model for social justice, education and service within the field of pharmacy.
The success of the UCSF Pharmacy Program in San Diego formed the basis for the development of a school of pharmacy at UC San Diego. A planning committee, led by Founding Dean Palmer Taylor, was established; David provided his faculty expertise and the new school was created as envisioned by Deans Moxley and Goyan almost 30 years prior. In 2002, the charter class of 25 student pharmacists matriculated to the UC San Diego SSPPS. During his tenure at UC San Diego SSPPS, David was Professor of Clinical Pharmacy (2000 – 2016), Founding Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, and held appointments in Pharmacology and Family and Preventive Medicine in the UC San Diego School of Medicine. He guided and mentored over 500 future doctors of pharmacy at SSPPS prior to his retirement in 2016.
David cared deeply about the profession of pharmacy and devoted countless hours to professional organization service. He held numerous positions within the American Society for Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), the California and San Diego chapters (CSHP and SDSHP), the California and San Diego Chapters of the American Pharmacists Association (CPhA and SDCPhA), the San Diego Poison Center, the Vietnamese Pharmacists Association in the USA, and the National Invitational Anticoagulation Conferences to name a few. He served as President, Chairman of the Board, Parliamentarian, among many other roles for CSHP, and influenced countless pharmacist trainees to engage with professional organizations to advance the pharmacy profession.
David’s dedication and commitment to our profession, to patient care and to education resulted in numerous awards, including Pharmacist of the Year for SDSHP (1982, 1983) and CSHP (1987), Fellow of CSHP (inducted 1993), Appreciation Awards from the Vietnamese Pharmacists Association (1985, 1997, 2008), UCSF Teaching Excellence Awards (2000, 2002), Health Care Champion Award, San Diego Business Journal (2008), the Asian Heritage Society Award for Education (2016), the UCSF School of Pharmacy Distinguished Alumnus Award (2016), and most recently, David was inducted into the CPhA Pharmacy Hall of Fame (2022). David was an instrumental figure in so many of our professional lives, and he left an indelible mark on the practice of pharmacy in California.
David will be remembered for his dedication to pharmacy and education, his high standards, his social consciousness, his big heart and quick wit, and his ability to make lemonade out of lemons no matter how challenging the situation. David was a cherished pillar at UC San Diego SSPPS and his legacy lives on through the school, those he touched and through his beautiful family. David is survived by his wife, Penny Adler, his daughters Michelle and Laura, son Darrell, daughter-in-law Ana Celia, and granddaughter Eleana.
RSVP
Kindly confirm your attendance and number of guests before December 29, 2023.
Virtual Participation
For those who are not able to join us in person, we welcome your participation during the formal program through Zoom. Meeting ID: 865 8882 1189. RSVP and select virtual attendance to receive this link via email.
Parking
Two lots are located near The Faculty Club. Parking is $2.10 per hour and may be paid using the ParkMobile online application or at the pay stations found inside The Faculty Club or within the parking structure (you will need to enter your license plate number). Parking details can be found at Visitor Parking. Driving instructions and a map to The Faculty Club can be found here.
Share a Memory
We would appreciate you sharing your favorite photos, memories, and/or tributes (written or short video) with us by December 17, 2023. Upload your submissions here or email it to sspps-communications@health.ucsd.edu.
Contributions
The Adler family has requested that remembrances be made in the form of contributions to the UC San Diego Foundation fund designated as the "David and Penny Adler Endowed Scholarship Fund" at UC San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Gifts may be made through this link or by check payable to the UC San Diego Foundation (with "David and Penny Adler Endowed Scholarship Fund - Fund K2403" on the memo line) to:
UC San Diego Gift Services
9500 Gilman Drive, Mail Code 0940
La Jolla, CA 92093-0940