Student pharmacists to pledge commitment in White Coat Ceremony

Eighty-two student pharmacists will recite the Oath of a Pharmacist at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy’s (DKICP) White Coat Ceremony in the UH Hilo Performing Arts Center on October 18. The event, which takes place from 2-4 p.m., is open to the public.

The ceremony signifies a rite of passage for individuals entering their first year in the professional program. Students will be cloaked with a white coat symbolizing their student status and the promise to uphold the values of the profession, including altruism, responsibility, honor and respect.

Ka Haka ʻUla O Keʻelikolani College of Hawaiian Language will perform the mele ho’okipa, or welcoming chant, Ua Ao Hawaiʻi.

The keynote speaker is Dee-Ann Carpenter, M.D., a Native Hawaiian internal medicine physician in the University Health Partners Lau Ola Clinic of the Department of Native Hawaiian Health at the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) on Oʻahu. Carpenter is a preceptor and teaches fourth-year student pharmacists about ambulatory, or outpatient, care.

The students will also be addressed by UH Hilo Chancellor Donald Straney and DKICP Interim Dean Carolyn Ma.

Three new pharmacy residents will be recognized along with the Pharm.D. candidates. These residents earned their Pharm.D. degree and are continuing their training with DKICP faculty on Kauaʻi and Oʻahu. Beginning first-year residencies at Wilcox Memorial Hospital are Jasmine Kimura and Laurie Uehara. Beginning her second-year residency specializing in critical care at The Queens Medical Center on Oʻahu is Lauren Peck.

The event is sponsored by Walgreens. Brent Wolford, RPh, the Waipahu Store Manager of Walgreens, will make a presentation.