Faculty Welcomes New Faces… and Familiar Ones, Too

Faculty Welcomes New Faces...

MICHAEL LIU, PHARMD Michael Liu, PharmD, joined Touro in 2020 as assistant dean of clinical and professional affairs, a new position, and as associate professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice. Dr. Liu has extensive experience as a frontline clinical pharmacist with all aspects of adult critical care medicine, managerial clinical pharmacy and pharmacy residency programs for health systems. He came to Touro from Yale New Haven Health, where he led the establishment of new pharmacy services through successful execution of business plans with C-suite. Dr. Liu earned a PharmD from Long Island University and completed his PGY-1 and PGY-2 residencies at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center in New York City. A recipient of numerous honors and awards, his research focus is on health economics.

ELIZABETH J. UNNI, PH.D., MBA, B.PHARM Elizabeth J. Unni, Ph.D., MBA, B.Pharm joined TCOP in 2019 as associate professor and chair of the Department of Social, Behavioral, and Administrative Sciences, after a decade at the Roseman University College of Pharmacy in Utah. Dr. Unni is an engaging teacher and ardent researcher. Her research interest is in health services, and includes medication adherence, patients’ beliefs in their medicines and illnesses, health literacy and self-efficacy. Dr. Unni’s interest lies in developing theoretical models and measures that explain medication adherence based on psychosocial variables. She has published widely and has made numerous presentations both nationally and internationally. Dr. Unni is a firm believer in collaborative leadership, and enjoys working with different stakeholders to serve the students, the College, the University and the pharmacy academy.

JENNA BLOEMER, PHARMD, PH.D. Jenna Bloemer, PharmD, Ph.D., is a pharmacist and pharmacologist from Alabama who joined the Department of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences in November 2019. After completing her Doctor of Pharmacy in 2016 at Auburn University, she worked as an ambulatory care pharmacist while pursuing a Ph.D. in neuropharmacology at Auburn, which she completed in 2019. Dr. Bloemer enjoys teaching PharmD students in the classroom, laboratory and in clinical settings. She is passionate about teaching, inspiring curiosity and linking basic science concepts to clinical practice. Dr. Bloemer’s clinical specialty is ambulatory care and her research interests include neuroendocrinology and neuropharmacology, molecular mechanisms of memory impairment and prenatal exposure to psychoactive substances. She is the recipient of the Touro College & University System 2021 Presidential Research Development Grant to investigate alterations in the brain related to Alzheimer's disease.

JUSTIN A. ANDRADE, PHARMD Justin A. Andrade, PharmD, joined the faculty as an assistant professor of pharmacy practice in summer 2021, following completion of a fellowship in precision medicine/infectious diseases at the Long Island University Arnold and Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in Brooklyn, N.Y. After earning his PharmD cum laude from the Temple University School of Pharmacy in Philadelphia, he completed a PGY-1 pharmacy residency and a PGY-2 infectious diseases pharmacy residency at The Brooklyn Hospital Center. He has already compiled an impressive record of leadership and national-level presentations at conferences of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, as well as publications in prestigious journals and extensive research and community and professional service. His interests include clinical translation of in vitro pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic findings to advance therapeutic drug monitoring practices and evaluation of optimal antimicrobial regimens for multidrug-resistant infections. A board-certified infectious diseases pharmacist, in addition to teaching Dr. Andrade will continue his clinical practice at The Brooklyn Hospital Center.

DAVID BRAVERMAN, PHARMD David Braverman, PharmD, was appointed assistant professor of pharmaceutics—sterile and non-sterile drug compounding in spring 2021. Born and raised in New York City, Dr. Braverman is a boardcertified sterile compounding specialist responsible for all aspects of the compounding laboratories’ functions and activities, education related to drug compounding, pharmacy calculations, supervising laboratory technicians and hosting the NYS Compounding and Pharmacy Practice Exam. Dr. Braverman brings to TCOP extensive experience with sterile and non-sterile compounding and compliance management, compliance and regulatory issues and also has extensive experience in hospital pharmacy, research, industry, drug information, drug safety and retail settings. He earned his PharmD summa cum laude from the Arnold and Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences of Long Island University.

TYLER D. MAXWELL, PHARMD Tyler D. Maxwell, PharmD, joined the TCOP family last summer after completing a journey that brought him from the Big Sky to the Big Apple. Currently he is serving as assistant professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice. Originally from a small town in California, Dr. Maxwell completed his undergraduate and professional education in Colorado, then continued east to become an infectious diseases pharmacist. He completed his PGY-1 as a pharmacy practice resident at Stony Brook University Hospital in Stony Brook, N.Y. and his PGY-2 as an infectious diseases pharmacy resident at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn. No stranger to TCOP, in spring 2021 Dr. Maxwell served as an affiliate instructor of pharmacy practice. His practice site is SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn. Dr. Maxwell earned a B.S. in Microbiology from Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo. and his PharmD from the Regis University School of Pharmacy in Denver.

MAHSA LEAH MORADI, PHARMD Mahsa Leah Moradi, PharmD, has joined the full-time faculty as assistant professor of pharmacy practice. Prior to her appointment, Dr. Moradi served as a clinical instructor of pharmacy practice at TCOP while completing her postgraduate residencies. She earned her B.S. in Biology magna cum laude from Touro’s Lander College of Arts and Sciences (LAS), and a B.P.S. in pharmaceutical sciences and PharmD, both magna cum laude, from the Arnold and Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy of Long Island University in Brooklyn, N.Y. She carried out her PGY-1 Pharmacy Practice Residency and PGY-2 Internal Medicine Pharmacy Residency at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center in Brooklyn, and has worked as a staffing pharmacist at Kingsbrook and as a pharmacy intern in community pharmacies.

…and Familiar Ones Too!

MICHELLE JAKUBOVICS (FRIEDMAN), PHARMD Michelle Jakubovics (Friedman), PharmD, earned her Doctor of Pharmacy at TCOP and her B.S. in Biology at Touro’s LAS. After receiving her PharmD, she completed a PGY-1 Pharmacy Practice Residency and PGY-2 Internal Medicine Pharmacy Residency at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center in New York City. Currently, she teaches pharmacotherapeutics, advanced diabetes management, comprehensive patient care management and drug-induced diseases and toxicology. Dr. Jakubovics is a board-certified pharmacotherapy specialist and geriatric pharmacist. Her research interests include diabetes management in the hospital and anticoagulation in special patient populations.

PAUL J. ISIKWE, PHARMD Paul J. Isikwe, PharmD, recently returned to Touro as an adjunct assistant professor. He teaches the elective, Introduction to the Pharmaceutical Industry. After earning his PharmD in 2016 as part of TCOP’s fifth graduating class, Dr. Isikwe completed a two-year postdoctoral biopharmaceutical fellowship with Sanofi Genzyme in conjunction with Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), where he worked with key decision-makers across specialties in managed care, market access and health economics and outcomes research. Dr. Isikwe also served as an adjunct assistant professor at MCPHS and preceptor to pharmacy students. Subsequently, he joined Teva Pharmaceuticals as a medical affairs specialist.

NEGIN ALIZADEH SHAYGH, PHARMD Negin Alizadeh Shaygh, PharmD, received her Doctor of Pharmacy from Touro in 2017 and has returned as assistant director of practice experience and assistant professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice. Her clinical specialties are ambulatory care and internal medicine. She completed a PGY-1 pharmacy practice residency at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center in New York City, and obtained her B.S. in Biology at George Mason University. Her research has focused on experiential education, preceptor development and pharmacy education/academia. She is a course coordinator for Advanced Pharmacy Calculations, a preparation course in pharmacy calculations for the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX).