Kris Ravin, Pharm.D., Director of Pharmacy for Community Care Partnership of Maine, recently received the Pharmacy Practice of the Year Award, awarded by the Maine Society of Health System Pharmacists in recognition of outstanding performance and innovation in the field. Ravin, who also serves as the Pharmacy Operations Manager for Penobscot Community Health Care (PCHC), received the award in acknowledgment of his work on the Controlled Substance Stewardship (CSS) program at PCHC.

The CSS work at PCHC includes a CSS committee that meets weekly to review patients who are taking chronic opioids, benzodiazepines, and/or stimulants. Patients are referred to the committee by their primary care provider or as a result of reports assessing for high-risk prescribing. The pharmacy department, including Ravin, review and present patient cases to the committee, which then assesses the appropriateness of therapy and offers recommendations for a treatment plan. Ravin plays a crucial role in the CSS program by orchestrating the case review process, developing safe taper plans and educating students, pharmacy residents, and other pharmacists in the process.

Ravin is a graduate of Husson University School of Pharmacy. Prior to his dual role as Director of Pharmacy for CCPM and Pharmacy Operations Manager for PCHC, he completed his pharmacy residency with PCHC, where he demonstrated a strong interest in addressing high risk controlled substance prescribing. In his role as the Director of Pharmacy at CCPM, Kris continues to prove himself an innovator in the field by developing robust disease management education and workflows and leading the charge on pharmacy data analytics.