UC College of Pharmacy Skills Center Dedication

A ceremony to dedicate the University of Cincinnati (UC) James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy’s newly installed Pharmacy Practice Skills Center will take place from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 25, on the second floor of the Health Professions Building, 3225 Eden Ave.

Although the setup is much like a modern pharmacy, a major and somewhat hidden component of the new skills center is the infusion of technology. The college began using electronic and Web-based feedback tools and assessments in 2011, but the technology embedded in the Skills Center takes innovation in the Winkle College of Pharmacy to the next level.

Set up throughout the space are video cameras, which will be used to record students as they practice their skills at medication preparation and pharmacist-patient interaction. These videotaped sessions and other evaluation tools will be available for student review on iPads or other tablets or computers, and will play a key role in self-assessment and evaluation.

The skills center is being named for J. Richard "Dick” Wuest, PharmD, who dedicated his life to the education of pharmacists and development of the practice of pharmacy. A Cincinnati native, Wuest recently donated $500,000 to the UC pharmacy college where he earned all three of his degrees: BS in Pharmacy (’58), MS in Hospital Pharmacy Administration (’68) and PharmD in 1971.

Wuest served as a faculty member at the Winkle College of Pharmacy from 1967 until his retirement in 2001, when he was awarded professor emeritus status. In 2011, Wuest was the recipient of the William Howard Taft Medal for Notable Achievement, recognizing his lifelong excellence in his career, the highest honor bestowed upon an alumnus of the university.

This installation is part of a nearly three-year, $2.5 million renovation to the historic Health Professions Building, which dates to 1911. In addition to the skills center, projects include a new collaborative classroom, updated furniture, doubling the size of the computer lab, wireless throughout the building and upgraded seminar/small group teaching spaces.