Michael A. Pastrick Receives APhA's Hubert H. Humphrey Award

Pharmacist recognized for contributions to his community

WASHINGTON, DC – Michael A. Pastrick, clinical pharmacist at the John Muir Medical Center in Concord, CA, is the 2009 recipient of the Hubert H. Humphrey Award. The award, named for Hubert H. Humphrey, a noted pharmacist and former Vice President of the United States, was established in 1978 to recognize American Pharmacists Association (APhA) members who have made major contributions in government and/or legislative service at the local, state, or national level. Pastrick will be officially recognized at APhA’s Annual Meeting and Exposition in San Antonio, Texas, April 3-6, 2009. APhA's awards program is pharmacy's most comprehensive recognition program.

Throughout Pastrick's pharmacy career, he has given unselfishly of his time for both his profession and for his community and government-related service. Pastrick served the City of Concord for nearly 20 years in various positions such as Planning Commissioner, City Council Member from 1993 to 2002 and as Mayor in 1994 and again in 1998 to 1999. During his tenure as Mayor and   Councilmember, the city developed radically different performance-based budgeting, pay-for-performance and 10-year financial planning programs and has been recognized as a performance leader among local governments in the United States for its innovation.

In addition to serving his community, for nearly 35 years, Pastrick has held a variety of positions in the California Pharmacists Association (CPhA). Most notably, he spent 10 years on CPhA’s Board of Directors, including terms as President, Vice President, Speaker and Vice Speaker of the House of Delegates and District Trustee. He has served as a delegate to the House of Delegates since 1975 and continues to serve the CPhA House of Delegates as Parliamentarian, a position he has held since 1987.

Pastrick also provided leadership to the CPhA Political Action Committee (CPhA-PAC) serving for many years on its Board of Directors and twice as CPhA-PAC President. During this time he helped raise significant amounts of money and developed grass-roots support for CPhA’s legislative agenda. Pastrick has also served the pharmacy profession at the national level, holding various APhA committee positions, including Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Policy Committee on Scientific Affairs and Member of the APhA-PAC Board of Governors. Pastrick’s visible and active participation in the profession’s political arena was recognized by the APhA-PAC Board of Governors by honoring him as the first recipient of the Good Government Pharmacist-of-the-Year Award in 1992. In 1973, Pastrick earned his degree in Pharmacy from the University of the Pacific School of Pharmacy.

About the American Pharmacists Association (APhA)
The American Pharmacists Association, founded in 1852 as the American Pharmaceutical Association, represents more than 63,000 practicing pharmacists, pharmaceutical scientists, student pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and others interested in advancing the profession. APhA, dedicated to helping all pharmacists improve medication use and advance patient care, is the first-established and largest association of pharmacists in the United States. APhA members provide care in all practice settings, including community pharmacies, health systems, long-term care facilities, managed care organizations, hospice settings, and the uniformed services.

Where Are They Now?

Historian; Neemah Yaminesfandiary

As Gamma Nu alumni we pride ourselves in having one of the strongest fraternities on campus. This stems from having a solid alumni support channel, but sometimes alumni connections get lost. In this article we take a look at three brothers who have contributed greatly to the fraternity and try to answer the question: Where are they now?

Steven Walden

Originally from San Bernardino, Steven graduated from pharmacy school in 1979. Upon graduation he moved to Florida for a one year pharmacy practice residency. He was offered a position and continued to practice hospital pharmacy for 20 years. Steven now lives in Tampa, FL and for the past 10 years has worked for Pfizer working as a Field Medical Outcome Specialist, Associate Director. His fondest memories of being a collegiate brother are getting thrown out of Shamrock’s for being under age and living in the house. He is the proud father of two children and happily married for the past 25 years.

Perry Cohen

Once referred to as the life of the party, Perry now resides in Connecticut with his loving wife and daughter. After graduating in 1978 he spent some years working in various fields of pharmacy including the FDA and in 1991 made the decision to move across the country. Perry is now the co-founder and President of The Pharmacy Group consulting firm and plays an integral role in shaping the idea of managed care pharmacy for practitioners and patients.

Felix Tsui

Felix is the proud father of Chris who recently became inducted as a brother this year. He graduated in 1975 and began his longstanding career with Kaiser Permanente. He currently serves as the Area Pharmacy Director in Walnut Creek, CA where he also resides with his loving wife of 26 years. His work requires him to oversee both inpatient and outpatient along with clinical operations. His most memorable moment as a collegiate brother is hell night. When asked what about hell night was memorable, he replies, "I don’t think I want to remember."