Pharmacy Faculty Make Hand Sanitizer for Community Partners

For the past seven years, Dr. Vivek Dave has taught his students in the Wegmans School of Pharmacy how to create a hand sanitizer gel.

Dave, an associate professor, teaches the course, Applied Pharmaceutics, to train the future pharmacists in compounding pharmaceutical preparations. Last week, he used that expertise and supplies from the School to help meet the demand for hand sanitizer in Monroe County.

Dr. Kobi Nathan, a colleague in the School of Pharmacy who is a practicing pharmacist and preceptor at Monroe Community Hospital, approached Dave with a request for sanitizer for the hospital and UR Home Care.

Dave and Dr. Todd Camenisch, chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, had already talked about preparing sanitizer for the campus community, but with the College shifting to online course delivery, they had empty labs and enough raw material to make a supply to fulfill the requests from the county and UR Home Care. The duo has also placed orders to help meet future need.

“In the current unfortunate and unprecedented situation, health care providers working on the frontlines are as much at risk as the patients themselves,” Dave said. “I consider it a privilege that my knowledge and expertise in compounding can be of use.”