SUNY is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States, educating more than 412,000 students in 6,688 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses.
The award signifies that the recipient's accomplishment represent commitment and dedication to the State University of New York and its mission of Excellence in Education, Upstate Medical University President Dr Gregory Eastwood said in letter to Guharoy.
"We are proud to have a dedicated professional of your caliber as an integral part of the Upstate Medical University (at Syracuse),' Eastwood said in the letter sent prior to the award ceremony held during the recent convocation.
"I am very pleased ... that I was the recipient of SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Professional Services this year," Guharoy, who is also associate professor at the College of Medicine and College of Nursing, told India Abroad. "I was delighted to receive it," especially since it is a SUNY-wide award, he said.
In 2004, he received the SUNY President's award for outstanding faculty services. He was also the recipient of the Faculty of the Year honor in 2003 from the Wilkes-Barre University, and Pharmacist of the Year award from the New York Society of Health System Pharmacists in 2000.
Guharoy, who holds a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Minnesota and an MBA degree from Claremont Graduate School in California, is also a clinical instructor for Doctor of Pharmacy students at the Albany College of Pharmacy and Wilkes-Barre University. The Infectious Disease Training Program, which he directs at Upstate, is one of the highest rated courses among students; only the top students are selected for his clinical rotation, a release said.
Referring to his contributions to patient care and patient safety, the award citation said that since his arrival at Syracuse in 1998 as director of pharmacy services, he has devoted his scientific knowledge, management skills and years of experience to improving the pharmaceutical care services provided in Upstate New York and beyond.
He is one of a few pharmacy administrators in an academic hospital who maintains an active clinical practice. A nationally recognized infectious disease pharma co-therapist, Guharoy also serves as the hospital's adult infectious disease pharmacist.
Leading an interdisciplinary approach to patient care, he has developed a unique collaboration between the pharmacy, the department of medicine and nursing services.
One of his main achievements has been to establish a completely automated drug system that results in usage accountability, revenue recovery, a decrease in drug administration time, and increased nursing and patient satisfaction.
Guharoy is a pioneer in developing a non-punitive medication occurrence reporting system for patient safety. It is a system designed to systematically identify errors in the process of medication ordering, transcribing, dispensing and administration, the citation noted.
In addition to being constantly educating the medical staff on the appropriate use of medications, Guharoy also gets involved in teaching new residents, infectious disease fellows, attending physicians, and medical as well as nursing students.
Guharoy participates in research projects as well, and has made numerous presentations at international and national meetings. He is the author of over 200 publications and presentations including, most recently, on the emergence of the West Nile Virus infection in North America.
He is also a delegate of the American Society of Health Pharmacists, United States Pharmacopoeia and vice chairman of Physicians Advisory Committee of the University Health Consortium.
He is also among the few pharmacists across the country who has achieved fellow status from three professional societies: the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, American College of Clinical Pharmacology, and the American Society of Health System Pharmacists.
Under his stewardship, the Medication Management Program at University Hospital was judged the best performer among all academic medical centers by the University Health Consortium in 2005. In 2004, the New York State Department of Health recognized his medication error reporting system with its Excellence in Patient Safety Award.
He was also selected for Upstate's President's Award for Faculty Service.
Guharoy obtained his Master of Pharmacy degree from Jadavpur University, India and also completed fellowship programs in executive management at the Leonard Davis Institute, Wharton School of Business and Boston University School of Management.