The Department of Pharmacotherapy and Translational Research welcomes six new faculty members: Jatinder Lamba, Vishal Lamba, Lindsey Childs-Kean, Priti Patel, Ado Khoury, and Megan Murphy-Menezes.
Jatinder Lamba, PhD joined the department on July 1, 2014, as an Associate Professor. Lamba earned her PhD in pharmacogenomics from the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, India. She completed post-doctoral training at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee and remained there as a junior faculty member until moving to the University of Minnesota. She was an Associate Professor at University of Minnesota, Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Director of the Pathway driven Pharmacogenomics; University of Minnesota Alliance (PUMA) Institute of Personalized Medicine prior to joining the University of Florida. Dr. Lamba’s research is focused on identification, characterization and clinical validation of genomic/epigenomic markers predictive of therapeutic outcome in patients with cancer. Her research spans from preclinical basic research comprising the discovery phase to translational/clinical phase in patient populations from multi-institute clinical trials.
Vishal Lamba, PhD joined the department on July 1, 2014, as an Assistant Professor. Lamba earned his PhD from the University of Tennessee working at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. He completed post-doctoral training in the Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Transplantation at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Lamba’s research focuses on understanding the various regulatory mechanisms involved in regulation of expression of human drug response genes such as the cytochrome P450s and the identification of key regulatory factors and genetic/epigenetic markers of inter-individual variability in drug metabolism and disposition.
Lindsey Childs-Kean, PharmD, MPH, BCPS joined the department on July 1, 2014 as a Clinical Assistant Professor. Childs-Kean received a BS in chemistry and BA in Spanish from Tulane University, her Master of Public Health degree from the University of South Florida, and her PharmD degree from the UF College of Pharmacy. She then completed a PGY-1 residency at Tampa General Hospital in Tampa, FL, followed by a PGY-2 residency in infectious diseases at the South Texas Veterans Affairs Healthcare System in San Antonio Texas. Prior to joining the department, Childs-Kean was the hepatology pharmacy program manager at Bay Pines VA Healthcare system in Bay Pines, FL.
Priti Patel, PharmD, BCPS joined the department on July 14, 2014 as a Clinical Associate Professor and Assistant Director of the St. Petersburg campus. Patel received her PharmD degree from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, University of the Sciences in Philadelphia. She then completed and ASHP-accredited drug information residency at the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia and McNeil Consumer and Specialty Pharmaceuticals in Fort Washington, PA. Prior to joining the department, Patel was an Associate Clinical Professor at St. John’s University College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Professions, and Co-director of the St. John’s University drug information service at Long Island Jewish Medical Center.
Adonice Khoury, PharmD, BCPS, joined the department on July 28, 2014 as a Clinical Assistant Professor. Khoury received a BS in microbiology and cell science from the UF College of Agriculture and a PharmD degree from the UF College of Pharmacy. He then completed an ASHP accredited specialty residency in geriatric pharmacy practice at the Malcolm Randall VA Medical Center in Gainesville. Prior to joining the department, Khoury was the head clinical pharmacist at Select Specialty Hospital in Gainesville, a 44-bed long-term acute care hospital. Dr. Khoury was active with the College at Select Specialty Hospital, serving as a preceptor for adult medicine APPE rotations. Dr. Khoury’s clinical practice will be based at the UFHealth Shands Hospital, where he will work with WPPD students here for their formal clinical practice assessment.
Megan Murphy-Menezes, PharmD, MSCR, joined the department on August 1, 2014 as a Clinical Assistant Professor and the Assistant Director of Continuing Pharmacy Education. Murphy-Menezes received a PharmD degree from Campbell University School of Pharmacy, where she also earned a Master of Science in Clinical Research through Campbell’s PharmD/MS dual degree program. Dr. Murphy-Menezes then completed a post-doctoral fellowship in Women’s health, with a focus on osteoporosis, at Procter & Gamble in Mason, OH. She remained with Procter & Gamble as a Health Systems Consultant and Project Specialist, working in the area of Women’s Health and Gastrointestinal Health. She subsequently joined Amgen as a senior regional medical liaison in North Florida, specializing in the area of osteoporosis.