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Avni Desai, PharmD Avni Desai earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy and Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers University in 2002. After graduation, she completed a postgraduate year 1 (PGY1) Pharmacy Practice Residency at the Veterans Affairs Hospital, New York Harbor Healthcare System. Upon completion of her post-graduate training, she worked as a clinical coordinator for the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, where she worked with clinicians in providing optimal pharmacotherapy, and managed the quality assurance program and investigational studies program. Currently, Dr. Desai is the pharmacy clinical manager at Saint Peter’s University Hospital and serves as director of the PGY1 Pharmacy Residency Program. Along with the director of Pharmacy, she coordinates the department’s clinical and educational operations. As an adjunct faculty member of the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers University, Dr. Desai precepts pharmacy students. She is a member of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) and New Jersey Society of Health-System Pharmacists (NJSHP). |
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Judith Scala, PharmD, BCPPS Judith Scala earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy from the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers University in 1992. She attended St. John’s University, College of Pharmacy in New York, where she received her Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 1994. After graduation, she completed a postgraduate year 1 (PGY1) residency in Pediatric Pharmacy Practice at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and The Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science. Upon completion of her postgraduate training she worked as a clinical pharmacy supervisor and pediatric/neonatal specialist at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York. Dr. Scala joined Saint Peter’s in 2000 as a pediatric/neonatal clinical pharmacy specialist. She collaborates with pediatric and neonatal physicians, residents, nurses, pharmacists and other members of the healthcare team to provide pharmaceutical care to her patient population. Dr. Scala serves as the residency program director for the PGY2 Pediatric Pharmacy Residency Program, which is the only ASHP approved program in New Jersey. Dr. Scala has an adjunct faculty appointment at Rutgers, Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy and is a core faculty member for the Pediatric Medical Residency Program at Saint Peter’s University Hospital. She is a member of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP), the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society (PIDS) and the Pediatric Pharmacy Association (PPA). |
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John Yanoschak, RPh, MBA John Yanoschak earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy from Rutgers University College of Pharmacy in 1982, and his Master of Business Administration degree in Healthcare Administration from LaSalle University in Philadelphia, PA, in 1997. Following graduation from pharmacy school, John worked as a staff pharmacist at Memorial Hospital of Burlington County, Mount Holly, NJ. He has also served as assistant director of pharmacy at the West Jersey Health System (now Virtua Health) in Voorhees, NJ. He has been director of pharmacy at Virtua-Memorial Hospital Burlington County in Mount Holly, NJ; Community Medical Center in Toms River, NJ, and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, NJ. He also has been director of ambulatory oncology pharmacy at Inova Health in Fairfax, VA. John is a past president of both the southern and state chapters of the New Jersey Society of Health-System Pharmacists. He is a member of both the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) and the New Jersey Society of Health-System Pharmacists (NJSHP). |
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Justina Girgis, PharmD, BCPPS Justina Girgis earned her Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Montclair State University, after which she went on to Rutgers University where she earned her Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 2018. Dr. Girgis completed her PGY-1 Pharmacy Residency at Saint Peter’s University Hospital and went on to complete her PGY-2 Critical Care Pharmacy Residency at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, MA. After residency, she joined the critical care team at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in Somerset before joining the team at Saint Peter’s. She joined Saint Peter’s University Hospital as the internal medicine clinical pharmacy specialist, and serves as the co-chair of the Anticoagulation Committee. Her professional interests include anticoagulation, alcohol withdrawal, and mechanical circulatory support. She is a member of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM), and the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP). |
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Maria Cardinale-King, PharmD, BCPS, BCCCP Maria Cardinale earned her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, Rutgers University in 2013. Dr. Cardinale completed her PGY-1 Pharmacy Practice Residency at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston and went on to complete her PGY-2 Critical Care Pharmacy Residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital in New Haven, CT. After residency, she joined Saint Peter’s University Hospital as the critical care clinical pharmacy specialist and is a clinical assistant professor at the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, Rutgers University. She works in collaboration with a multidisciplinary team in order to optimize pharmacotherapy outcomes in critically ill patients. She is also coordinator of the Anticoagulation Committee and participates in various other committees with the goal of improving patient care. Dr. Cardinale’s research interests include cardiology and critical care. She is an active member of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP), American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN), Society of Simulation in Healthcare (SSH) and the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM). |
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Peter Chiodo, RPh, MS Peter Chiodo graduated from St. John’s University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy in 1986. He practiced as a staff pharmacist at South Beach Psychiatric Center for four years and Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH) before becoming a supervisor there. Peter received a Master of Science degree in Pharmacotherapy from Arnold and Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy while working at SIUH. After completing the master’s program, he then accepted a position as operations manager at Community Medical Center in Toms River, NJ. Peter was the director of Pharmacy at Community Medical Center for four years before coming to Saint Peter’s University Hospital. Peter served as lead pharmacist at Saint Peter’s University Hospital before transitioning to the role of pharmacy informatics coordinator. He works collaboratively with information services as well as physicians, residents, nurses and other members of the institution to develop and support a hospital wide information system that includes computerized physician order entry, a pharmacy informatics system, online documentation, and barcode medication administration. |
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Olga Ginsberg, PharmD, BCPS Olga Ginsberg earned her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, Rutgers University. She pursued her postgraduate training at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center in New Jersey, where she completed a post graduate year 1 (PGY-1) pharmacy practice residency. Dr. Ginsberg joined Saint Peter’s University Hospital in 2011 as a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist for Emergency Medicine. She works as part of a multidisciplinary team of doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals to provide optimal pharmaceutical care in the Emergency Department. Dr. Ginsberg has an adjunct faculty appointment at the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy and precepts pharmacy students. She’s a member of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP). |
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Tomi Thoonkuzhy, RPh Tomi Thoonkuzhy earned his BS in Pharmacy from the Arnold and Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences at Long Island University (LIU) in 2000. Following graduation from LIU, he worked as a staff pharmacist at Saint Peter’s University Hospital for 17 years, before being promoted to Lead Pharmacist of Operations in June of 2017. He also has an adjunct faculty appointment for the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, Rutgers University, and precepts IPPE as well as APPE students. Mr. Thoonkuzhy precepts pharmacy students from the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy and Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. He has rotations in both the PGY- 1 and PGY-2 Pharmacy Residency Programs. Mr. Thoonkuzhy is a member of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP). |
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Emily McGrath, PharmD, BCPPS |
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Catherine Vu, PharmD, BCIDP Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, Infectious Diseases Catherine Vu earned her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers University in 2018. After graduation, she completed a PGY1 at Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia, PA and an Infectious Diseases PGY2 at UF Health Shands in Gainesville, FL. Upon completion of her post-graduate training, she worked as an Infectious Diseases Clinical Pharmacy Specialist and ID PGY2 Coordinator at University Medical Center, New Orleans, LA. Currently Dr. Vu is the Infectious Diseases Clinical Pharmacist at Saint Peter’s University Hospital and leads the Antimicrobial Subcommittee. She works in collaboration with infectious diseases providers to optimize anti-infective pharmacotherapy on patient care rounds as well as through stewardship initiatives. Her professional interests include antimicrobial stewardship, PK/PD optimization, and mechanisms of resistance. She is an active member of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) and Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists (SIDP). |
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Rhonda Abouelela, PharmD Rhonda Abouelela earned her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Rutgers University Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy in 2021. She then completed a postgraduate year 1 (PGY1) Pharmacy Residency within Atlantic Health System at Morristown Medical Center and Overlook Medical Center. She also completed a postgraduate year 2 (PGY2) Internal Medicine Pharmacy Residency at Temple University School of Pharmacy/Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with a large academia component teaching at the school of pharmacy. She has since joined St. Peter's University Hospital as the Internal Medicine Clinical Pharmacy Specialist. She is passionate about multidisciplinary collaboration, and actively works with internal medicine physicians, residents, nurses, pharmacists and other members of the healthcare team to provide optimal patient care. Dr. Abouelela has professional interests in teaching and education, anticoagulation, heart failure, and diabetes . She is an active member of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP), the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) and the New Jersey Society of Health-System Pharmacists (NJSHP). |