Cepheid Medical Liaison and Chair of the American Society of Health System Pharmacists, Lucas Schulz

We are honored to spotlight one of Cepheid’s industry leaders, Lucas Schulz, as he engages with health-system leaders and policymakers to advance healthcare. Lucas is a Medical Science Liaison at Cepheid. He is also the Chair of the American Society of Health System Pharmacists (ASHP), Section of Inpatient Care Practitioners Executive Committee, a nonprofit/independent professional society whose mission is to support the personal and professional development of members and to promote optimal patient outcomes. 

Lucas is a pharmacy leader with experience in infectious diseases, solid organ transplant, experiential education, and pharmacy practice advancement. He’s a scholar with over 200 publications, posters and abstracts, book chapters and multiple funded research grants. Experienced in leading professionals and learners through the medication use and medication evaluation processes, he’s active in national and regional leadership and dedicated to studying and improving medication use throughout the process.  

Leading Change as ASHP Chair for Inpatient Pharmacists 

As Chair of the ASHP, Lucas represents over 20.000 inpatient pharmacists across a diverse range of settings, including small and rural hospitals to large tertiary academic medical centers and from inpatient specialists like infectious diseases and oncologists to operations and medication safety pharmacists.  

Lucas shares, “It is my honor to serve ASHP and the Section of Inpatient Care Practitioners this year as Chair. My goal is to highlight the amazing work the pharmacy department does to improve patient outcomes and create value for hospitals and health systems. Supporting our pharmacists and technicians by shining a light on their contribution to optimizing care goes a long way to fighting burnout and supporting resilience.” 

This role highlights Luke’s depth of knowledge, influence, and the impact he has on driving positive health outcomes. He connects policy and resolutions with patient care stories and real-world experience to support legislation that benefits healthcare. He adds, “I’m very excited about showcasing how diagnostics improves antimicrobial selection and improves patient care and quality.”  

Lucas Visits Capitol Hill for Cures 2,0 Health Legislation 

Lucas recently attended a policy week meeting in Washington DC for the ASHP, where he spent time on Capital Hill meeting with staffers for Wisconsin Senators Tammy Baldwin and Ron Johnson and WI Representative Bryan Steil.  

ASHP member and pharmacist Nisha Mathew, BE, PharmD, MBA, BCPS, CPh, added “Today, Lucas Schulz shared as part of our ASHP Section of Inpatient Practitioners orientation Section Advisory Group, ‘Don't be shy, ask anyway ... Read up, Show up, Speak up,’ inspiring each of us inpatient pharmacy practitioners to be visible and share our stories on the work we do daily! If we add some empathy and support with that, we could cure burnout, and support resilience and growth as well!” ¹ 

The Fight to End AMR and Defend against Drug Shortages 

 Lucas had the opportunity to share his Infectious Diseases and Solid Organ Transplant patient care experiences with each staffer and emphasized the importance that antimicrobial resistance plays in the care of patients, including the role that diagnostics play in determining correct antimicrobial therapy.   

ASHP is especially focused on is Equitable Community Access to Pharmacist Services (ECAPS) Act (H.R. 1770/S. 2477), an important bipartisan bill that ensures patients maintain access to essential pharmacist services, including diagnostic testing and treatment for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV in pharmacies.  If pharmacies do not get paid for the services they provide, there is a risk that services will go away. 

Another topic Lucas discussed was drug shortages. He shared the importance of the PASTEUR act in developing new antibiotics and also the importance of supporting development of new diagnostics to help stewardship programs ensure optimal antimicrobial selection. There is encouragement to support the Strategic National Stockpile. While not specifically discussed with congresspeople, there are many commonalities between addressing shortages and a robust stockpile, especially since the stockpile specifically calls out antibiotics, antivirals, and vaccines associated with these diagnostic tools. 

As Chair of the Section, Lucas aims to raise awareness about the impact and importance pharmacists play in the care of hospitalized patients. “From compounding medications to care of the critically ill patient, from safely and efficiently delivering medications to leading administrative service lines, including supply chain and informatics, pharmacists play a critical role in optimizing patient outcomes,” said Lucas. The scope of health-system pharmacists continues to expand, often filling gaps when patient care demands it.  This includes roles in antimicrobial stewardship influencing and improving diagnostic evaluations and aiming for diagnostic excellence.