New faculty spotlight: Shelby Bennett, PharmD

Shelby Bennett, PharmD, is a new faculty member at UNMC.

• Name: Shelby Bennett, PharmD
• Hometown: Galva, Iowa
• Title and department at UNMC: Clinical assistant professor, UNMC Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science and Office of Experiential Programs, College of Pharmacy

Research/professional interests:

• Pharmacist-provided clinical services in the community setting
• Improving communication (especially as it relates to providing effective feedback)
• Workplace authenticity
• Methods of learning

How I fell in love with pharmacy:

I got interested in pharmacy after seeing an independent pharmacist counsel an older patient on a new inhaler device. The way the patient’s mindset changed from anxious and unsure to grateful and confident as a result of her interaction with the pharmacist had me hooked. I started shadowing area pharmacies, and spending a day with a compounding pharmacist sealed the deal. I was intrigued by the compounding process itself, but I also loved how personalized compounded products could be for both human and pet patients.

My love for hands-on pharmacy education came a few years later. My first rotation P4 year was an academic rotation in the skills lab (newly renamed Dispensing and Patient Care course) at Creighton University. The incredibly grateful feedback I received from those distance pathway students for sharing my time and knowledge was so rewarding (and surprising!), and the culture of learning made me feel right at home. I enjoyed the team atmosphere, and I’d finally found a useful outlet for my love of writing.

Several months later I flipped my post-grad plans upside down and pursued a community-based pharmacy residency with a focus on teaching, and I haven’t looked back.

Education:

• PharmD pre-requisites, Creighton University
• PharmD, Creighton University
• Residency, community-based pharmacy practice, University of Kansas and Balls Food Stores, Overland Park, Kansas

Memberships:

• American Pharmacists Association
• Nebraska Pharmacists Association
• American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy

Three things people may not know about me:

• I am on a mission to visit all 50 states by the end of 2021.
• Many of my hobbies include music.
• I love to try new foods and eventually try making them myself!