Leadership
Plein Geriatric Pharmacy Center leadership (L to R): Assistant Director for Research Zach Marcum, Assistant Director for Education Leigh Ann Mike, and Director Shelly Gray
Shelly Gray
Director of Plein Center for Geriatric Pharmacy Research, Education and Outreach
Dr. Gray’s research and teaching has focused on medication-related problems among older adults with a particular interest in drug-induced cognitive, falls and hip fractures and functional impairment. She is an investigator on numerous federally funded research grants and is author of more than ninety peer-reviewed publications. She serves on the editorial board for the Annals of Pharmacotherapy, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society and Research in Gerontological Nursing.
Leigh Ann Mike
Assistant Director for Education Plein Center for Geriatric Pharmacy Research, Education and Outreach
Dr. Mike is a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Washington School Of Pharmacy. She is heavily involved in the design and teaching of the School’s curriculum, both as an instructor and a coursemaster. She is also the Coordinator for the Plein Certificate in Geriatric Pharmacy Program and is currently practicing as a consultant pharmacist with UW Pharmacy Cares, which provides services to over a dozen local retirement communities.
Her previous experience includes seven years as a clinical pharmacist in the medical intensive care unit at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Washington and as a Drug Information Specialist at Grady Health System in Atlanta, Georgia. Her professional interests are geriatrics, critical care therapeutics, medication safety, and education.
Zachary Marcum
Assistant Director for Research, Plein Center for Geriatric Pharmacy Research, Education and Outreach
Dr. Marcum has been a faculty member in the UW Department of Pharmacy since 2015. He is an investigator on federally funded research grants and is author of more than 50 peer-reviewed publications. He has received an American Geriatrics Society New Investigator Award and a Next-Generation Pharmacist Rising Star of the Year Award. Previously, he completed a two-year fellowship in geriatric pharmacotherapy research at the University of Pittsburgh and a PGY1 pharmacy practice residency at the Indianapolis VA Medical Center.
Steering Committee
Anirban Basu
Professor, Stergachis Family Endowed Director, PORPP; Professor, Health Services; Adjunct Professor, Economics
Abhinav Nath
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicinal Chemistry
Peggy Odegard
Lynn and Geraldine Brady Endowed Professor of Pharmacy; Associate Dean for Professional Programs; Director, UW Pharmacy Cares; Clinical Pharmacist and Diabetes Educator, Department of Medicine, UW Medicine
Joy Plein
Professor Emeritus, Department of Pharmacy
Andy Stergachis
Professor of Pharmacy, Global Health & Adjunct Professor of Epidemiology and Health Services; Associate Dean for Research, Graduate Programs and New Initiatives
Joanne Wang
Professor, Department of Pharmaceutics; Affiliate Investigator, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Advisory Board
Basia Belza, PhD, RN, FAAN
Professor and The Aljoya Endowed Professor in Aging
Director, de Tornyay Center for Healthy Aging
School of Nursing, University of Washington
Clara W. Berridge, PhD, MSW
Assistant Professor
School of Social Work, University of Washington
Healthy Generations Hartford Center of Excellence in Geriatrics
Peggy Hannon, PhD, MPH
Professor, Health Services
James W. Mifflin University Professorship
Director, Health Promotion Research Center
School of Public Health, University of Washington
Eric Larson, MD, MPH, MACP
Vice President, Research and Health Care Innovation, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington
Executive Director and Senior Investigator, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
Elizabeth A. Phelan, MD, MS
Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine
Adjunct Associate Professor, Health Services
Schools of Medicine and Public Health
University of Washington
Stephen Theilke, MD, MS, MA
Associate Director, Education & Evaluation
Puget Sound Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center
After earning his PharmD, Brian worked for independent community pharmacies before joining the Kelley-Ross Pharmacy Group, where he helped move Kelley-Ross from a mixed-model to a closed-door, long-term care pharmacy. Brian is currently the Chief Financial Officer and manages the Union Center Pharmacy for the Kelley-Ross Pharmacy Group. Brian was presented with the 2015 National Community Pharmacists Association Prescription Drug Safety Award for his work to expand access to the overdose antidote naloxone and continues to fight the opioid overdose crisis by working to reduce the stigma surrounding opioid overdoses.
Susan is currently Senior Consultant with ASHP Consulting Services and serves as primary faculty member for the ASHP Pharmacy Leadership Academy. 
Larry C. Wienkers received his BS in Chemistry and Biology in 1986 and his MS in Chemistry in 1988 from Western Washington University. He then earned his Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry from University of Washington in 1993 under the direction of Dr William F. Trager. He did postdoctoral work in the department of Drug Metabolism at the Upjohn Company and subsequently joined the company as a Research Scientist 1995. 
Gayle Hudgins, Pharm. D., BCGP, is a Professor Emerita of the University of Montana Skaggs School of Pharmacy in the Department of Pharmacy Practice. She is a 1969 graduate of the University of Washington School of Pharmacy with a B.S. degree in Pharmacy and a 1976 graduate of Duquesne University with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. She also completed a pharmacy practice residency at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh. 
Ed Wong was formerly Vice President of Pharmacy and Clinical Programs at Premera Blue Cross. His responsibilities under Integrated Health Management include leadership for strategy development, vendor contracting; care management, disease management and pharmacy programs.
Growing up the son of a pharmacist in Tacoma, Richard spent his high school years working at the family store, Nelson Drug Company, before pursuing his own Pharmacy degree at the University of Washington in 1962. 
Al holds degrees from Central Washington State BS in Zoology, University of Washington BS Pharmacy, Class of 1971, and an MBA Fuqua School of Business at Duke University. 
Duane D. Miller, born 1943, grew up on a farm in Larned Kansas. He obtained his B.S. degree in Pharmacy at Kansas University in 1966, and his interest in research was stimulated by two professors at the University of Kansas, Dr. Ed Smissman and Dr. Matt Mertes. As a National Science Foundation Undergraduate Research Fellow, he worked on anticancer drugs. He next moved to Seattle, Washington and was an NIH Fellow while at the University of Washington and obtained his Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry in 1969, under the mentorship of Dr. Wendel L. Nelson and did research on conformationally restricted analogs of ephedrine. He next joined The Ohio State University Faculty in 1969, where he became Professor and Chairman of the Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy in 1982. He studied dopamine and norepinephrine analogs with Drs. Popat Patil, Norman Uretsky and Dennis Feller. He moved to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis, TN in 1992, as the Van Vleet Endowed Professor of The Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the College of Pharmacy. He was made chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2001. 
Dr. Nanci Murphy’s past roles at the University of Washington include, Collaborative Practice Specialist, Co-Director of the Center for Health Sciences Interprofessional Education, Research and Practice, and Associate Dean and Director of Student Leadership Programs for the School of Pharmacy. She received her PharmD degree from UW SOP in 1997. She looks forward to the next chapter of her post-retirement career contributing to an international work force group focused on interprofessional education and collaborative practice.
Timothy Fuller, ‘69, is an independent pharmacist consultant and founder of Timothy S. Fuller & Associates, Inc. Consulting. He is recognized as the Father of Pharmacist Collaborative Drug Therapy for his extensive and continued research, advocacy, and publication on the subject. In partnership with the WSPA and PATH, Tim recruited 50 pharmacies in Washington to pilot the U.S. movement for pharmacists to prescribe emergency contraceptive pills. Tim is the fourth member of the UW School of Pharmacy B.S. Class of 1969 to receive a PAA Distinguished Alumni Award.
After completing his graduate work in California, Sid Nelson returned to the School of Pharmacy to join the faculty in 1977. Progressing through the ranks, he landed his “dream job” as the Dean of the School of Pharmacy in 1995. Under his leadership, the School converted our degree offerings from a B.S. degree to an entry-level Doctor of Pharmacy degree program and added a nontraditional approach that enabled existing pharmacists to obtain the Pharm.D. degree. He also evolved the graduate programs and worked tirelessly to expand the School’s faculty. In 2008, he returned full-time to his research and teaching activities in the School’s Department of Medicinal Chemistry. Sid truly embodies the idea of a legend with his warmth, care and passion for our students and alumni.
Shirley is a Seattleite, born and raised. From a young age, she dedicated her life to advocating for women, children, human rights and healthcare. Encouragement from her mother, and her knack for science, led Shirley to Pharmacy school where she thrived. Her career helped so many people, but as the HIV/AIDS epidemic grew, it became a central part of her career. Her outreach efforts, where she went door to door to help people understand the disease, was only part of her contribution to battle the epidemic. She was a founding board member of AIDS Housing of Washington (recently renamed Building Changes) and co-chaired the $8.5 million campaign that built the group’s Bailey-Boushay House in 1992. Her legacy of advocating for women pharmacists lives on with the Herb and Shirley Bridge Endowed Professorship, designed to support women in pharmacy.
Dr. Brady was recruited to join the University of Washington by Tip Tyler, a School of Pharmacy Faculty member studying mushrooms and ergot. After completing his Ph.D. at the School of Pharmacy, Lynn joined the faculty and eventually became the first chair of the then-named Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences. As a graduate student, Lynn authored or co-authored over 100 research and review articles and later in his career authored the major textbook in the field of Pharmacognosy. Lynn was very passionate about the Medicinal Herb Garden and was on the steering committee for the Friends of the Medicinal Herb Garden.
George Benson, also known as the Father of the Waterfront Street Trolley, was a WWII Navy Veteran, five-term City Council member, owner of Mission Street Pharmacy and one of the founders of the Friends of the Medicinal Herb Garden. George was nothing short of a passionate person, known throughout his life for his caring nature. He was devoted to his wife Evelyn, who was a fellow Pharmacy alumna, their business and spearheading the development of the Waterfront Streetcar.
Herb’s time at the School of Pharmacy lead him to a life rich in love, charity and service. During his 50-year career as a pharmacy owner and clinical pharmacist, he always found a way to support his communities. From founding the Walk for Rice, a fundraising walk to support the Asian Counseling and Referral Service food bank, to donating his expertise to the Rainier Vista Clinic Pharmacy where he sourced low-cost drugs for in-need communities, Herbert was always dedicated to his community. Herbert received the Pharmacy Alumni Association Distinguished Alumni Award in 2008, in addition to the A.H. Robins/Wyeth Bowl of Hygeia Award and a Seattle Mayor’s Small Business Award for excellence in management, entrepreneurial spirit and customer service. He is a member of the National Community Pharmacists Association and Washington State Pharmacy Association, and a former longstanding member of the American Pharmaceutical Association and Seattle-King County Pharmaceutical Society.
Dr. Plein and her late husband Elmer, are widely credited for creating the momentum for senior-care pharmacy in the state of Washington at a time when few pharmacists were geriatricians and had few resources to advocate for older patients. In 1973, they developed a nursing home pharmacy course at the School of Pharmacy and Foss Home, a nursing home, with the help of a graduate student. Throughout her career, she was honored with several awards and is a beloved member of the School of Pharmacy.
Phil received a pharmacy degree from the University of Washington in 1964 and by 1975, was the Head of Pharmacy for Group Health. That same year he unveiled the Co-OPRx computerized prescription system that provided doctors and pharmacists instant access to patient drug histories, potential allergies and adverse reactions. The Co-CORx project sparked his interest in innovation, which became the cornerstone of his career. He went on to help Group Health expand into Bellevue and rose to a top leadership position with Group Health and Kaiser Operations in the Northwest.
Virginia graduated from the School of Pharmacy in 1943 and while in school, she was a member of the Totem Club and Chi Omega Sorority. Virginia was one of the first women pharmacists to work in a hospital setting, which was remarkable in the 1940s. During her career, she conducted research on motion sickness medication for soldiers in World War II, studied breast cancer at the University of Rochester Medical School and was the first pharmacist at the Monadnock Hospital. She spent 17 years as a relief pharmacist and traveled the world after opening her travel company.
George H. Bartell Jr. started his career in the family business stocking shelves and went on to grow Bartell Drugs into the oldest family-owned drugstore chain in the nation. After becoming the President of Bartell Drugs in 1939, George served in World War II and came back to a world changed. Among these changes were new Pharmacist licensing laws in Washington State that required George to become licensed. After joining the School of Pharmacy, he earned his Pharmacy Degree (and became licensed) in just three years. George was an avid Husky Football fan and a supporter of local organizations such as the Rainier Club, Seattle Golf and Country Club, the Scottish Rite Temple and the Seattle Chamber of Commerce.
Dr. Hall joined the faculty of the School of Pharmacy in 1952, after spending a few years at the Eli Lilly and Co. as a Pharmaceutical Chemist. After returning to the UW, he soon set himself apart from his peers by developing innovative approaches to teaching, particularly in dispensing pharmacy. While at UW Hall developed one of the first models for an externship program, allowing senior pharmacy students to gain theoretical and practical experience in a pharmacy setting for academic credit. Being too ahead of his time, this for credit externship program did not became a formal requirement in the School of Pharmacy’s curriculum until the 1990’s, thanks in large part to Dr. Hall’s vision. Dr. Hall was also awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1980 to celebrate the impact of his career on the profession of Pharmacy.
Jonathan Watanabe, ‘08, ‘12, PharmD, MS, PhD, BCGP, is a board-certified geriatrics pharmacist, outcomes researcher, and associate professor at the University of California San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Dr. Watanabe was the first the UW/Allergan Global Health Economics and Outcomes Research Fellow. His research on the cost of non-optimized therapy, comprehensive medication management and drug prices has been cited in successful state legislative efforts for pharmacist provider status. Dr. Watanabe is an inaugural scholar in the National Academy of Medicine Emerging Leaders in Health and Medicine program.