December 4, 2008

Contact:
Ken Ma
NSU Office of Public Affairs
954-262-5354 Office
954-830-4177 Cell
kennma@nova.edu

Two Florida Drug Inspectors Receive National Patient Safety Award from Nova Southeastern University

FT. LAUDERDALE-DAVIE --- Two Florida drug inspectors received the 1st annual Stephanie F. Aleong, J.D., National Patient Safety Award from Nova Southeastern University last month.

The newly created award, cosponsored by Brand Institute’s subsidiary Drug Safety Institute (DSI) and NSU’s College of Pharmacy, was presented by Brand Institute CEO & President James Dettore and NSU Dean Andrés Malavé, Ph.D, to Gene Odin, Ph.D. and Cesar Arias R.Ph. The first recipients of the award were Florida state drug inspectors who worked on a task force investigating pharmaceutical drug abuse with Stephanie Aleong, a statewide prosecutor from 2000 to 2002.

The team drove counterfeiters of cancer, cholesterol, HIV and organ transplant drugs out of business and into jail. The counterfeiting negatively impacted this nation’s drug supply.

Aleong, a NSU assistant professor of law died in October. The non-fiction book Dangerous Doses by Katherine Eban was written about the tremendous efforts of Aleong and her team of inspectors. The award reads “Recognizing individuals whose unique efforts have significantly advanced patient safety.” The award will be housed in the College of Pharmacy and presented annually.