VCU chapter of ISPOR stands out at annual conference
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VCU School of Pharmacy’s ISPOR team advanced two spots this year, placing second out of 17 competitors in the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research 2015 Student Research Competition.
The competition — which tested knowledge of key concepts in pharmacoeconomics — took place May 17 as part of ISPOR’s 20th Annual International Meeting in Philadelphia. Members of VCU’s Team ISPOR were Hrishikesh Kale, Anisha Patel, Julie Patterson and Anal Shah, all graduate students with the Department of Pharmacotherapy and Outcomes Science.
Also in attendance were students Sarah Almanie, Mai Alhazami, Batul Electricwala, Raheema Muhammad-Kah, Kunal Saxena and Della Varghese, in addition to professors Norman Carroll, David Holdford and Pramit Nadpara.
Varghese was ranked as a best poster finalist with her research on “Resource Utilization and Costs Associated With Off-Label Use of Atypical Antipsychotics in a Community-Dwelling Adult Population: Findings From the Medical Expenditure Survey.”
Also presenting posters were Almanie (“Economic Impact of Waste in Prescribing, Dispensing and Medication Consumption in the United States”), Alhazami (“Cost-Effectiveness of an Anticoagulant Clinic After Introduction of NOACS for Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation Patients in the United States”) and Electricwala (“Prevalance of Medication Use Not Captured by Prescription Claims Databases — An Analysis Using 2012 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Data”).
Also: Saxena (“Investigation of Relationships Between Biomarkers of Potential Harm and Cigarette Smoking Measures Among Current, Past and Nonsmokers Based on National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2007-1012” and “Impact of Appointment-Based Medication Synchronization on Existing Users of Chronic Medications”), Holdford (“Cost-Effectiveness of Prescribing Evzio for Lay Heroin Overdose Reversal”) and Nadpara (“Comorbidity and Postoperative Outcomes Among Lung Cancer Patients in the United States”).
The VCU chapter hosted its fifth annual alumni-faculty-student reunion dinner on May 18. “It was attended by about 15 guests,” reported Varghese. “Everyone had a fun night mingling with the faculty and meeting with the alums of our program.”
The theme of the annual meeting was “Integrating Big Data, Patient Data and Cost-Effectiveness Into Clinical Practice: Promises and Prospects.” More than 3,700 attendees gathered in Philadelphia to see and hear more than 1,750 presentations.
Carroll is advisor to ISPOR’s VCU chapter, which was established in 2001. Officers are Varghese, president; Patterson, vice president; Bassem Mohammed, treasurer; and Shah, secretary.
ISPOR’s 21st Annual International Meeting will take place May 21-15 in Washington, D.C.
