Mission, Vision and Values

Mission: We discover, evaluate, and communicate to improve the health and well-being of society

Vision: To be an internationally recognized interdisciplinary program, advancing patient care, education, and research

Values: Diversity, Trust, Collaboration, Rigor, Creativity, Discovery

Pharmaceutical Health Services, Outcomes, and Policy (PHSOP) graduate program is an interdisciplinary program leading to the Ph.D. degree.

The increasing complexity of drug utilization in the modern world creates complex problems in pharmaceutical care delivery. Practitioners and researchers need to investigate and understand how changes in the health care system will affect the structure, process and outcomes of pharmaceutical care.

Increasingly, society has been called upon to maximize health outcomes subject to some type of budget constraint, and the need to identify and select efficient health inputs is paramount. Changes in products (goods and services), access to care, freedom of choice, reimbursement policy, direct-to-consumer advertising, third party considerations and government regulation are a few examples of the issues which will impact on the delivery of pharmaceutical care.

These issues will require researchers skilled in a broad spectrum of disciplines including, but not limited to, economics, administration, finance, marketing, epidemiology, and psychology.

The objective of the graduate program in Pharmaceutical Health Services, Outcomes, and Policy is to educate students to perform meaningful independent research and to develop scholarly characteristics preparing them for professional careers in academia, research, government, institutional pharmacy, and industry. Having accomplished the academic and research requirements, students find career opportunities with universities, industry, pharmaceutical associations, local, state and national health agencies, health care delivery organizations, managed care organizations, pharmaceutical industry, state boards of pharmacy, and medical media organizations.

Research Opportunities in PHSOP
The faculty members involved in the PHSOP Program have made significant accomplishments in their respective areas of interest. Their ongoing projects are supported in part by grants from the private and public funding agencies, the pharmaceutical industry, and various private foundations.

The expertise of PHSOP faculty includes:

Quality of life
Medication Adherence
Pharmaceutical marketing
Pharmacoeconomics
Pharmacoepidemiology
Health Policy Evaluation
Social and Behavioral Sciences

Upon entering the PHSOP graduate program, the student will be assigned a graduate faculty advisor until the student selects a major professor.

The faculty advisor will assist the student in establishing a course of study during the first academic year, which will include correcting any deficiencies, incomplete prerequisites and required graduate courses.

In addition, this mentoring relationship is intended to assist the student in selecting their particular research focus.

Ph.D. Program

Follow this link to view the PHSOP handbook:

PHSOP Handbook

Program Faculty
PHSOP Program Handbook and Student Forms
Contact the Program Director
Recent Graduates and Dissertation Titles

Summer 2023
Ijeoma Azih, MD, MPH., PhD

The Effect of Adjuvant and Neoadjuvant Systemic Therapy on the Treatment Outcomes of Renal Cell Carcinoma Patients

Spring 2023
Rupal Trivedi, PhD, MS, RDN
Cardiovascular Disease Management in the South: An Implementation Science Approach

Fall 2022
Smita Rawal, Pharm.D., Ph.D. 
Assessing Community Pharmacists’ Beliefs and Practices Regarding Naloxone Counseling

Summer 2021
Asma Ali, Pharm.D., Ph.D.
Assessment of Factors Associated with Health Outcomes and Access to Prescription Medications in Patients with Diabetes Treated at Federally Qualified Health Centers

Ibrahim M. Asiri, Ph.D.
Comparative Effectiveness of Oral Androgen Signaling Inhibitors in Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer Patients With and without Pre-Existing Cardiovascular Comorbidities

Farah Pathan, Ph.D.
Factors Associated with Asthma-Related Health Services Utilizations in the Adult US Population: A Mixed-Methods Approach

Fall 2017
Shada Kanchanasuwan, Ph.D.
Impact of the Affordable Care Act’s Dependent Coverage Provision

Spring 2017
Surbhi Shah, Ph.D.
Comparative Effectiveness and Costs of Conservative Management and Cryotherapy in Patients with Localized Prostate Cance

Spring 2016
Samah Al-Shatnawi, Ph.D.
Alcohol Use Behaviors and Outcomes in Professional Student Pharmacists

Spring 2015
Rian Marie Extavour, Ph.D.
Prescribing of Potentially Inappropriate Psychotrophic Medications for Older, Community-Dwelling Adults

Summer 2014
Palak Krunal Kumar Patel, Ph.D.
Prostrate Cancer Burden: Addressing Issues of Diagnosis and Development

Summer 2013
J. Heath Ford, Ph.D., Pharm.D.
Pharmacists in Disasters

Spring 2013
Anne Kangethe, Ph.D., Pharm.D., MPh.
Cost Benefit Analysis of a Diabetes Prevention Program in Rural Kenya

Chakita Williams, Ph.D. 
Applying a Model of Risk Information Seeking to a Newly Discovered Drug Risk

Fall 2011
Ming-Yi Haung, Ph.D. 
Utilization of Conjoint Analysis to Elicit Preferences for Genetic Testing for Alzheimer’s Disease

Current Student Directory
Information For Prospective Students- How to Apply

If you are interested in applying to the PHSOP graduate program, please click here and scroll to the “How to Apply” tab.


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