SPHS 11 5 15 Parsons SoP News Image

KGI School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Awarded Grant from The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation

KGI is proud to announce that the School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (SPHS) was recently awarded an Equipment Grant from The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation in the amount of $250,000.

SoP faculty developed the Patient-Focused Clinical Skills Laboratory and Medication Management Technology Center (LAB) to afford PharmD students opportunities to gain hands-on experience across the continuum of patient care, ranging from the initial patient assessment, diagnosis and prescribing of medication, through the monitoring, assessment and follow-up care for the prescribed treatment. This grant will provide the funding to purchase the core components required for the LAB which will include state-of-the-art equipment for students to become familiar with bedside electronic medical records, pharmacy automation systems, patient simulation and clinical assessment tools.

Commenting on this news KGI President Sheldon Schuster said, “This is a great achievement and brings with it the opportunity for the School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences to move to the next level. Adding the LAB will no doubt enhance the student experience and have positive reverberations for years to come.”

The LAB, approximately 1,300 square feet, will be organized in four sections: a Technology Lab, Counseling Room, Computer Lab, and Clinical Assessment Room. An Electronic Health Record (EMR) and automation system, commonly encountered in hospitals and other healthcare facilities, will allow students to understand the advantages and challenges that such technology presents.

Another key feature of this new learning space will be a patient simulation mannequin, an accessible resource for students to perform physical assessments, observe effects of pharmacological interventions on vital signs, and demonstrate adverse effects resulting from inappropriate dosing or prescribing a wrong medication.

KGI School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Founding Dean, Kathy Webster also expressed how far the resources from this grant can take the school. “We are excited to begin moving forward on this new facility and know it will be a key feature that will attract the best and most professional-minded students to our campus. KGI’s SoP LAB will be distinctive in that PharmD students will have hands-on opportunities to refine their clinical skills while at the same time gaining an understanding of the behind-the-scenes technology required to manage patients’ transitions of care from hospital to home.”

The School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences faculty that worked on this grant include: Connie Kang, Gail Orum-Alexander, Armen Simonian, and Robert L. Stein.

On speaking about his experience with the grant proposal process, SPHS faculty member Armen Simonian said, “The overall experience was highly collaborative and uplifting. We all believe in and are committed to Dean Webster’s vision, mission and goals for our school of pharmacy, and the grant proposal reflected this commitment.”

Elaborating on the collaboration, Simonian explained the team consisted of specialists in the continuum of clinical skills, medication management and information technology: “We were all focused on the school of pharmacy’s mission which ’emphasizes interprofessional collaboration, systematic problem-solving, the safe, efficient and ethical use of technology and biotechnology, and personalized patient care.’ The proposal we created for the Parsons Foundation grant was perfectly aligned with this mission.”

The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation was an early supporter of KGI. Since its initial grant awarded in 1999, Parsons Foundation has invested a total of $2.57 million. The Foundation’s mission is to improve the well-being of Los Angeles County residents by investing in quality nonprofit organizations responding to people’s social, civic, cultural, health, and educational needs.