Spotlight on new faculty – Kim Scarsi, Pharm.D.

Kim Scarsi, Pharm.D., is a new faculty member at the College of Pharmacy. Here’s a brief rundown of her background and the expertise she brings to UNMC.

• Name: Kim Scarsi, Pharm.D.
• Hometown: Rapid City, S.D.
• New title and department at UNMC: Associate professor of pharmacy practice

Research/professional interests:
Dr. Scarsi practices as an ambulatory clinical pharmacist as part of the UNMC HIV Program. Her research focus is the clinical pharmacology of antiretroviral agents, as well as the safe and effective management of medications frequently used in combination with antiretroviral therapy. Ongoing projects include investigator-initiated and AIDS Clinical Trial Group collaborative studies in both domestic and international sites, with an emphasis on women infected with HIV. Dr. Scarsi also works on HIV clinical care and medication therapy management demonstration projects in both sub-Saharan Africa and the U.S. to improve access to high quality HIV care throughout the world.

How I fell in love with HIV research:
During my post-graduate training I worked in an ambulatory HIV clinic in the late 1990s, when effective therapy for HIV was still relatively new. Watching how the right combination of medications could transform HIV infection from a death sentence to a long-term, manageable condition was very powerful for a young pharmacist.

Teaching activities:
Dr. Scarsi teaches in the pharmacotherapy course on topics related to HIV infection and associated opportunistic infections. She also will be a preceptor for the ambulatory HIV clinic rotation beginning in the summer of 2014.

Previous positions:

• Research assistant professor, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Chicago; Infectious Diseases Clinical Pharmacist, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago.

Education:

• Pharm.D., Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa
• Masters of science in clinical investigation, Northwestern University, Chicago

Honors:

• Panel member, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents
• Editor, “Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy”
• International Advisory Council, Drake University
• Young Alumna Achievement Award, Drake University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences

Three things you don’t know about me:

• My 3-year-old daughter is surprised when I am in the kitchen and assumes she is getting either grilled cheese or breakfast for dinner.
• I trained my dog to only sit on the couch when my husband was out of town.
• One of my absolute favorite foods is sushi – raw pieces, not fancy rolls. Please forward any good recommendations for sushi in Omaha!