Walter L. Fitzgerald, Jr., BPharm, MS, JD
Pharmacy Fusion Radio Show HostWalter L. Fitzgerald, Jr. serves as Dean of the College of Pharmacy, and Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Administrative Sciences, at Idaho State University. He received the Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy in 1979 from Mercer University School of Pharmacy in Atlanta. In 1982 he received the Master of Science in Pharmacy Administration from the University of Tennessee, College of Graduate Health Sciences, in Memphis. And in 1983 he received the Juris Doctor degree from the University of Memphis, School of Law.
Dr. Fitzgerald has nearly four decades of educating student pharmacists and pharmacists, as well as other health professions practitioners and students. The focus of his teaching and research is on healthcare law and ethics, research law and ethics, pharmacy and drug law, and risk management. He has presented many lectures at professional and scientific meetings and has authored numerous articles. He has authored four books, including The Pharmacist’s Guide to the Pharmacy and Drug Law of Tennessee, published by the Tennessee Pharmacists Association, and the HIPAA Compliance Handbook for Community Pharmacy, published by the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA). He also co-authored NCPA’s HIPAA Security Handbook for Community Pharmacy.
His professional career began in 1983 when he was appointed to the faculty of the University of Tennessee, College of Pharmacy. While appointed in the College of Pharmacy, his teaching extended to other health professions colleges. He also was a frequent continuing education program speaker for a variety of healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, physicians, advanced practice nurses, and physician assistants. His career at the University of Tennessee also provided several diverse experiences, such as serving as the project director for the retrospective drug utilization review program for TennCare, Tennessee’s managed care Medicaid program and General Counsel for the American College of Apothecaries. He has also served as a consultant to healthcare organizations, professional associations, and the pharmaceutical industry In 2005, he departed the University of Tennessee to become Founding Dean of the South College School of Pharmacy in Knoxville. As part of this role he supported the Provost/Executive Vice President with institutional preparation and regional accreditation necessary to founding of the School of Pharmacy.
During part of his time at South College he also was an adjunct faculty member teaching law and ethics at East Tennessee State University College of Pharmacy and Lipscomb University College of Pharmacy. After 13 years in this Deanship, in June 2019 Dr. Fitzgerald arrived in Pocatello, Idaho to begin his service to Idaho State University.
Dr. Fitzgerald has received many prestigious awards, including being the first recipient of the Albert B Prescott Pharmacy Leadership Award. He also received the University of Tennessee National Alumni Association Public Service Award, the Tennessee Pharmacist of the Year Award, and membership in the Academy of Distinguished Teaching Professors at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Dr. Fitzgerald was the inaugural recipient of the South College Distinguished Service Award.
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Pharmacy is a growing field, especially for pharmacy technicians. Many pharmacists are also getting sign-on bonuses or other hiring incentives to work in the field. Plus, Idaho is one of the few states where pharmacists are able to diagnose and prescribe medications for things like strep throat or influenza, right there in the pharmacy. Rikki Trussel, College of Pharmacy Class of 2012, and new manager at Bengal Pharmacy in Pocatello says Idaho State University’s work with rural medicine and advancing the practice of pharmacy has always interested and excited her. She discusses the vision for Bengal Pharmacy not just in Pocatello, but at the two telepharmacy location sites in Arco and Challis, ID as well. -
Pharmacy Fusion features a very special guest this month, a two-time Idaho State alumnus and recent recipient of the College of Pharmacy Professional Achievement award. -
If you tuned into last month’s episode of Pharmacy Fusion, you learned about the research and grant funding related to the Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences in the College of Pharmacy at Idaho State University. This month Dr. Renee Robinson joins Dean Walter Fitzgerald to talk about the research initiatives students and faculty are involved in, related to the Department of Pharmacy Practice and Administrative Science. Dr. Robinson joins the broadcast from Anchorage, Alaska, where the College of Pharmacy has a cohort of students as part of a collaboration with the University of Alaska, Anchorage. -
This month’s episode of Pharmacy Fusion offers an in depth look at many of the fascinating College of Pharmacy research initiatives with Dr. Marvin Schulte, chair and professor for the Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences. -
As a follow up to the February episode of Pharmacy Fusion where we discussed pre-diabetes and how to manage or prevent the onset of diabetes, Dr. Cara Liday joins Dean Walter Fitzgerald in this edition for a discussion of the different types of diabetes, how to manage the symptoms and how to improve conditions after diagnosis. Although pharmacists are the medication experts on the health care team, there are options for treating diabetes that do not include prescription medication such as lifestyle changes related to diet, exercise and more.
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On this episode of Pharmacy Fusion, Debbie Marchetti, a pharmacist at Ed Snell’s Pharmacy and College of Pharmacy alumna shares how increasing awareness of prediabetes and its path to type 2 diabetes can help reduce the incidence of diabetes in Americans by 90 percent. -
Student pharmacists at Idaho State University recently received a national award given by the American Pharmacists Association - Academy of Student Pharmacists. Join the chairpersons from each College of Pharmacy campus location, Elise Capson from Meridian, ID, Hannah Galbreth from Pocatello, ID and Liv Swonger from Anchorage, AK for this month’s episode of Pharmacy Fusion on January 4 at 7:30 p.m.Guests: Elise Capson, Hannah Galbreth and Liv Swonger, student pharmacistsOperation Immunization national award winnersStudents at colleges of pharmacy across the country participate in a variety of patient care outreach activities including immunizations, diabetes education and screening, heart health education and screening, women’s health education and more. To receive the Operation Immunization Region 7 Award, the students served over 12,000 patients in 2019-2020, with over 161,000 outreach hours.The chairpersons from each campus location are:Elise Capson: Meridian, ID, Class of 2022Hannah Galbreth: Pocatello, ID, Class of 2022Liv Swonger: Anchorage, AK, Class of 2023 -
Idaho has the most expansive prescriptive authority in the nation. This month on Pharmacy Fusion, Dean Walter Fitzgerald, is joined by Shanna O’Connor, clinical assistant professor for ISU, who explains why your local pharmacist is often your most accessible health care provider. -
Dean Fitzgerald's guest this week is Cathy Oliphant, Co-Chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice and Administrative Sciences and Professor for the College of Pharmacy at Idaho State University. Dr. Oliphant specializes in infectious disease, opioid abuse, and internal medicine. For this episode of Pharmacy Fusion, Dr. Oliphant and Dean Fitzgerald discuss the various treatment options for those suffering from COVID-19. -
This inaugural episode of Pharmacy Fusion features a conversation about vaccines with pharmacist Kevin Cleveland, a member of the College of Pharmacy Faculty. Pharmacy Fusion is a brand-new radio show that covers a broad array of topics related to the Idaho State University College of Pharmacy. The show is hosted by Dean Walter Fitzgerald on the first Tuesday of each month at 7:30 pm.
