Thomas Rust

Background

About Thomas Rust

My name is Thomas (Tommy) Rust, and I am a second year pharmacy resident specializing in infectious diseases at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. I earned my Doctor of Pharmacy Degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy in 2022. My goal is to become a clinical pharmacist specializing in infectious diseases with an additional focus on academia. Why clinical pharmacy? Through clinical pharmacy, I believe I can have a direct, positive impact on the care of my patients. I have seen many people very close to me impacted by medications that were improperly dosed or from adverse events that went unaccounted for. I view clinical pharmacists as a large line of defense and innovation during the process of interprofessional rounding and intervention selection. Through the clinical pharmacist's role, we can suggest treatments and dosing strategies as medication experts. Through these actions, the clinical pharmacist can change the clinical course of a patient and lead to a positive quality of life. I view myself as one of these future pharmacists who can positively impact a patient's treatment.Why infectious disease? I think the world of infectious disease is fascinating with how quickly it evolves and the complexities seen with each case. Every case is like a puzzle that has multiple ways to solve it, but with many roadblocks to overcome. Solving these puzzles and helping to find a way to cure or prevent an infection is what drives me most to pursue this field. I'm passionate about many of the complex microbes and the antimicrobials we use to treat them. I believe that infectious disease pharmacists have a duty to be antimicrobial stewards for every patient they care for and can have a major impact on the appropriate usage of antibiotics. This is something I stand by and hope to accomplish through my career.Why academia? I've always loved teaching my fellow peers, whether this be formally or informally. My first inspiration is drawn from my teaching of a practicum in the Pharmacokinetics course in my second year of pharmacy school. I had filled in for the absent professor and led the class through difficult dosing problems presented to them. I had received overwhelmingly positive feedback from this experience and decided to further develop this potential career path through additional teaching opportunities.Please reach out to me if you have any questions!