The Importance of Education and Becoming More: Matthew Hoover

As the controlled substance, surgical services, and pain management pharmacy manager, Matthew Hoover, Pharm.D., M.S. (’16), manages the procurement and logistics of controlled substances at Cleveland Clinic Main Campus.

“We’re finding new ways to better leverage our pain management pharmacists to take innovative approaches towards pain management that do not include opioids. We try to eliminate opioids from the equations, unless absolutely necessary,” he shares.

Dr. Hoover (pictured second from left) also oversees pharmacy operations for nearly 100 operating rooms where he ensures the surgical teams have the medications they need for their patients.

“The Main Campus is about a 59 building, 170 acre footprint. When there is a controlled substance that is dispensed to a patient who is receiving a procedure or admitted to the hospital, it comes through my team. We’re responsible for the procurement, operations and dispensing. I oversee the Diversion Response Team – so any time there is a medication that is missing, I assemble the inter-disciplinary team and we manage the investigation,” explains Dr. Hoover.

Knowledge is power

Even with all his new found responsibility at Cleveland Clinic, Dr. Hoover still had an urge to further his education.

When he graduated with a Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Toledo in 2011, Dr. Hoover knew his journey in education wasn’t over yet. He went on to complete two post-graduate residency training programs shortly after.

Dr. Hoover noted, he always knew he wanted to pursue a master’s degree — he just didn’t know whether he wanted to obtain an M.B.A. or M.S.

With a little encouragement from his at the time NEOMED and Cleveland Clinic colleagues, Dr. Hoover decided to enroll in NEOMED’s Health-System Pharmacy Administration program, a Master of Science degree.

Enabling an education

“The flexibility of NEOMED’s HSPA program allowed me to continue my current career. I went to class in the evening and I never felt like I was overwhelmed where I couldn’t take on more projects at work or get involved in local, state or national organizations. While I was going through the HSPA program, I was able to present clinical work that I was working on at state and national meetings,” says Dr. Hoover.

For Dr. Hoover, balancing a career and an education was possible and he wants his students to remember that, too.

“From a pharmacy perspective, I would tell my students, if they go back and look at where pharmacy was maybe 15 years ago, a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy was enough to practice pharmacy. Then the doctor of pharmacy came along and that was sufficient for a little bit. Then we started with first-year residencies, now we’re doing second-year residencies. Pharmacy is always advancing and as pharmacists, I think we’re a little bit competitive so we’re always looking to become and do better. I think programs like HSPA are the next progression – especially if you want to obtain a formal leadership position.”