ASHP is pleased to announce that Milap C. Nahata, PharmD, MS, FASHP, FCCP, FAPhA, FPPA, is the recipient of the 2023 Harvey A.K. Whitney Lecture Award, health-system pharmacy’s highest honor.
Nahata is professor emeritus of pharmacy, pediatrics, and internal medicine at The Ohio State University (OSU) colleges of pharmacy and medicine. His clinical practice and patient-focused research have fundamentally shaped the field of pediatric pharmacy, encompassing all aspects of providing comprehensive medication management for children. He will receive the award at the ASHP Summer Meetings & Exhibition in June.
Nahata has published over 600 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Notably, his studies with azithromycin were pivotal in its approval by the Food and Drug Administration for use in children. He is an author and co-editor of five books, including Pediatric Drug Formulations, one of the most widely used resources in health-system practice, and Pediatric Pharmacotherapy and Pediatric Pharmacotherapy Self-Assessment. He also contributed to two reports of the Institute of Medicine: Emergency Care for Children: Growing Pains and Safe and Effective Medicines for Children. He is the editor-in-chief of the Annals of Pharmacotherapy.
He has received many honors for his research, including the ASHP Foundation Literature Award for Sustained Contributions, the ASHP Best Practices Award, the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) Russell Miller Award for Sustained and Outstanding Contributions, and the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) and American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists Research Achievement Award in Clinical Sciences. He is also a recipient of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Lifetime Achievement Award, the ACCP Paul Parker Medal, the Pediatric Pharmacy Association (PPA) Sumner Yaffe Lifetime Achievement and Richard Helms Excellence in Pediatric Pharmacy Practice awards, the Ohio Pharmacists Association (OPA) James Beal Award, the APhA Gloria Francke Leadership Mentor Award, and the Ohio Society of Health-System Pharmacists (OSHP) Walter Frazier Award. He is a Fellow of ASHP, ACCP, APhA, PPA, and several other organizations.
In addition to his research and clinical practice, Nahata has received the AACP Distinguished Educator Award, the ACCP Education Award, the OSU Distinguished Teaching Award, and eight Teacher of the Year awards at OSU College of Pharmacy. He also has a long record of service in pharmacy associations. He is a past president of ACCP and AACP. He is a member of ASHP, the Central Ohio Society of Health-System Pharmacists, OSHP, APhA, OPA, and PPA. He is among a select group of elected pharmacist members in the National Academy of Medicine.
Nahata is also the founding director of the Institute of Therapeutic Innovations and Outcomes (ITIO) at OSU. ITIO provides medication therapy management services via telephone to more than 100,000 patients annually. The services are provided by pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and students/trainees.
He received a Bachelor of Science in pharmacy from the University of Bombay, a Master of Science in pharmaceutics, and a Doctor of Pharmacy from Duquesne University School of Pharmacy. He completed a Naresidency at Buffalo General Hospital.
ASHP has administered the Harvey A.K. Whitney Lecture Award — established in 1950 by the Southeastern Michigan Society of Hospital Pharmacists — since 1963. Harvey A.K. Whitney, ASHP’s first president, was an editor, author, educator, practitioner, and leader in hospital pharmacy. The award recognizes significant contributions to the advancement of pharmacy practice. Nominations for the award are made by past recipients and ASHP members. The winner is selected by a majority vote of past honorees.
