Educating Patients and Students: Kunal Amin

Kunal Amin, Pharm.D., moved to Ohio from Mumbai, India, in his mid-teens and has made it his home ever since. Just a little over a year ago, Dr. Amin was recruited to help develop NEOvations Pharmacy Services, LLC (formerly Pharmacy Innovations, LLC), an affiliate of Northeast Ohio Medical University, designed to provide clinical services to patients by improving their healthcare outcomes and decreasing expenditure.

NEOvations Pharmacy Services, conducted a telehealth pilot program by providing patients of a local Northeast Ohio medication therapy management institute. After finding success in the pilot program, Dr. Amin was offered a full-time role at NEOMED as a shared faculty member, serving both as an assistant professor of pharmacy practice and director of clinical services for NEOvations Pharmacy Services.

The future of pharmacy

What is telehealth, anyway? Dr. Amin explains that NEOvations Pharmacy Services aims to improve the health care experience for patients at the convenience of their own time, via computers and mobile phones. NEOvations Pharmacy Services has the capability of improving patient’s wellness and healthcare experience with a touch of a button.

“We educate patients how to take their medications and more importantly, how to take them accurately. More than half of patients take their medications incorrectly or they’re missing doses,” says the director of clinical services. “When they do that, the patients don’t get the therapeutic effect they need. Instead non-adherence can lead to deteriorating health, all of which can be prevented with proper counseling and education. Additionally, we coordinate with the patients’ other health care provider(s) to ensure their medication profile is optimized for their diagnosis, thus helping to improve overall patient outcomes.”

Teaching students the value of financial planning

As an assistant professor of pharmacy practice, Dr. Amin often teaches alongside Scott Wisneski, Pharm.D., in pharmacy management classes. In addition, Dr. Amin teaches therapeutic courses, and will soon teach medication therapy management and immunization certification courses — which are his specialty in pharmacy. He also teaches the College of Pharmacy’s personal finance classes.

“I think it is key for our students to learn how to manage their money. I’ve seen pharmacists who lived lavishly and lost their homes to foreclosure; but I’ve also known pharmacists who have been able to comfortably retire at age 55 or 60. If students learn the basics of personal finance so that they have a good foundation, they’ll know the right questions to ask experts later and be able to manage their own finances,” says Dr. Amin.

With a background in pharmacy management and now entrepreneurial pharmacy, Dr. Amin also proudly leads the Financially Fit Future Pharmacists Club at NEOMED as the student organization’s faculty advisor.

“The biggest reward in teaching is to see students grow from their first year to graduation and beyond. You can never learn enough. There’s a vast pool of knowledge out there, so every day I come with an open mind to learn something new either from the students, other faculty or staff members” says Dr. Amin.