Janet K. Astle, B.S. Pharm, Ed.D., R.Ph. is the Assistant Dean for Student Services for the Duquesne University School of Pharmacy. In her role at Duquesne, she has placed a special emphasis on substance use disorders and is helping to create a new generation of competent, compassionate health professionals.
Each January, she helps coordinate an Interprofessional Substance Use Disorder Awareness Program that is required for students enrolled in the pharmacy, occupational therapy, and physician assistant programs. In 2019, she received a grant from the AmerisourceBergen Foundation/Opioid Resource for the development of a Substance Use Disorder Certificate program for healthcare professionals and students that explores addiction as an illness, the role of stigma as a barrier to treatment, and the identification and referral for at-risk patients. Since its creation, over 700 health professionals have enrolled in the certificate program. A second Certificate Program that examines the treatment of substance use disorders and alternative approaches to pain management is launching September 2021.
Furthermore, she trains students to be advocates. Since 2012, she has led pharmacy students on a class trip to Washington, D.C to discuss policy issues with legislators. Recent visits have focused on the pharmacist’s role in addressing the opioid crisis, prescription drug take back programs, naloxone as rescue medication, and Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs.
Her nomination said simply: “Janet’s dedication to serving students and the community is evident in everything that she does.”