Focus On Faculty With Nicole Avant, PharmD

The James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy would like to welcome assistant professor Nicole Avant, PharmD, who will also serve as the college’s Chief Diversity Officer.   

What is your academic background and how did you come to UC?

I obtained my Bachelor of Science in Finance with Honors from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001. In 2012, I graduated with a Doctor of Pharmacy magna cum laude from the University of Illinois at Chicago. I then completed a postgraduate year one community pharmacy residency and postgraduate year two residency in ambulatory care at the University of Oklahoma. UC’s posting of a position that will not only allow me to clinically serve poor urban communities through Kroger but also increase minority representation in pharmacy was directly aligned with my own personal mission statement.  

What are your duties as Diversity Officer?

I work with UC and Kroger to diversify their students and staff, respectively. For the college, I participate in college and university meetings as well as academic health center meetings and initiatives pertaining to diversity. I am a faculty advisor for Student National Pharmaceutical Association (SNPhA). Most importantly, I am in the process of developing and implementing pipeline projects to recruit underrepresented minority high school and college students. I will also serve as a mentor for these students to enhance retention. I will teach in the area of diversity to raise the consciousness of our pharmacy students. Finally, I will participate in research and scholarship to raise awareness of the importance of having a diverse workforce particularly in healthcare.

For Kroger, I will provide educational and training services to Kroger pharmacists and students to increase awareness and understating of diversity while maintaining a clinical practice in an urban community. I will serve as a point of contact in developing partnerships with organizations to serve this community. Finally, I will work with Kroger to design and implement best practices to recruit a diverse workforce.

Why do you think it’s important to have a person designated in this position?

Although Blacks make up about 20 percent of the population in Cincinnati and the surrounding areas, they only make up about 5 percent of our current enrollment in pharmacy school. This contributes to gaps in health care between blacks and whites that is seen across a wide range of health conditions from the treatment of pain to the treatment of HIV/AIDS.  Black individuals and other minority groups receive fewer procedures and receive poorer-quality medical care when compared to their white counterparts even after you control for variations in health insurance, severity of disease, income, education, and comorbidities.

This deficit in care is partly due to unconscious bias by health care professionals. Negative beliefs about non-whites are deeply ingrained in U.S. culture with images devaluing non-white cultures. These images affects clinicians and these levels of implicit bias among clinicians have been directly linked with biased treatment recommendations in the care of black patients, poorer quality of patient-physician communications, and lower quality ratings of the medical encounter. These biases manifest discrimination in other areas such as employment, bank loans, and housing. Although segregation has been illegal since the 1960s, there is still a concentration of blacks in urban poverty. This segregation affects health due to limited access to quality education and employment.

Therefore, efforts should be exponentially increased to enhance diversity in health professions to work towards eliminating discrimination in health and healthcare. The chief diversity officer must implement multiple, ongoing interventions in churches, schools, neighborhoods, and legislation to overcome discrimination in education, employment, and housing. Consequently, the recruitment pool of minorities will significantly rise. 

What does the college do to promote diversity?

Currently the College has a long standing Council on Diversity composed of key leaders in the college as well as many community partners with corporations and organizations. The college also attends national recruiting fairs.

What other duties to you have at the college?

·       Clinical instruction for advanced practice experiences in the doctor of pharmacy program
·       Contribute to continuing education and other graduate programs at the James L Winkle College of Pharmacy
·       Conduct research at my clinical practice
·       Contribute to non-diversity related courses in the curriculum

What might people be surprised to know about you (interests, hobbies, etc.).

I enjoy powerlifting. Currently, I can deadlift 305 pounds and back squat 285 pounds.