Judith J Saklad Memorial Award
Jerry McKee PharmD, MS, BCPP, FAAPP
North Carolina Association of Pharmacists – Psychiatric Pharmacist Consultant and Project Manager
CEO and Chief Clinical Officer-Psychopharm Solutions
Morganton, NC
From a Nominator: Jerry’s passion, insights and commitment to psychiatric pharmacy and patient care has been evident from the beginning of his career. In particular, he has contributed significant leadership in state psychiatric hospital practice, mentorship, and scholarship. In addition, he has contributed substantially to the development of AAPP.
Dr. Jerry McKee is a Board-Certified Psychiatric Pharmacy (BCPP) specialist with more than 42 years of leadership experience across public mental health, inpatient psychiatry, residential IDD services, academia, and behavioral-health managed care in North Carolina, Texas, and Tennessee. He completed both his undergraduate and graduate pharmacy training at the University of North Carolina.
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Dr. McKee currently serves as CEO and Chief Clinical Officer of Psychopharm Solutions LLC, a behavioral-health pharmacy consulting and management firm based in Morganton, North Carolina. In this role, he is the project manager for the North Carolina Association of Pharmacists–Alliance Health (NC Medicaid Behavioral Health I/DD Tailored Plan) Community Pharmacy Transformation Grant. His work focuses on closing reimbursement gaps and expanding the capacity of community pharmacies to support individuals with serious mental illness, substance use disorders, and intellectual and developmental disabilities.
A past president of the American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists, Dr. McKee has served two terms on the Board of Pharmacy Specialties Psychiatric Specialty Council and two terms on the Board of Pharmacy Specialties Executive Council. He is a frequent author, speaker, and expert witness on psychopharmacology and psychiatric pharmacy practice.
Dr. McKee is also a certified Adult Mental Health First Aid instructor and has dedicated the past decade to reducing stigma surrounding mental illness within community pharmacy, primary care settings, and pharmacy education.
Early Practitioner Award
Zoe A. Karavolis, PharmD, MPH, BCPP
Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner
Phoenix VA Health Care System
Phoenix, AZ
From a Nominator: Zoe’s independent clinical initiatives have transformed care delivery on our inpatient detoxification unit. She conceptualized, implemented, and continuously improved our take-home naloxone program, which has since sent hundreds of patients and staff home with doses of naloxone at no cost to the institution. She spearheaded the implementation of a low-dose buprenorphine induction protocol, criteria for use for phenobarbital for detoxification at a free-standing psychiatric hospital, and pharmacist-driven protocol for initiation of HIV PrEP — all of which have measurably improved patient outcomes. Her leadership in these areas is not only innovative but deeply compassionate, reflecting her dedication to nonjudgmental, stigma-free care for individuals with substance use disorders.
Zoe Karavolis is a Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner in inpatient mental health at the VA Phoenix Healthcare System. She earned her PharmD and MPH from Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts and completed both her PGY1 and PGY2 Psychiatry Residency training at UPMC in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She has served AAPP in multiple capacities, serving on both the Student and Substance Use Disorder Committee, authoring toolkits, presenting at annual meetings, and co-leading the Substance Use Disorder Community.
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Outside of AAPP, Zoe has developed and implemented a take-home naloxone program which has served over 1,000 patients, participated in multidisciplinary research, authored multiple papers, and developed protocols and guidelines on the treatment of substance use disorders. Her professional interests focus on substance use disorders, harm reduction, and expanding access to care for underserved populations, including providing community-centered naloxone education.
Aaron Salwan, PharmD, MPH, BCPP
Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, Behavioral Health
Montefiore Nyack Hospital
Nyack, NY
From a Nominator: Dr. Salwan is always searching for opportunities to promote the profession of psychiatric pharmacy through publications, lectures, and in his own practice. He very successfully established his current role as the first psychiatric pharmacist at Nyack. His boundless energy and enthusiasm for patient care have helped him to launch several protocols and expand the clinical reach of pharmacists at his practice site to significantly improve patient outcomes. He also took on the incredible initiative of starting a PGY-2 Psychiatric Pharmacy residency program and will graduate his first resident this year.
Aaron Salwan is a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist in Psychiatry at Montefiore Nyack Hospital, where he also serves as the Founding Director of the PGY2 Psychiatric Pharmacy Residency. A 2017 graduate of the Ohio Northern University Raabe College of Pharmacy, he completed a research fellowship in addiction and behavioral health at East Tennessee State University, earning his Master of Public Health, followed by a specialty residency in neuropsychiatry at Rutgers University.
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Dr. Salwan has authored or co-authored more than a dozen publications focused on harm reduction, psychopharmacology, and pharmacist-led mental health services. His research and leadership have advanced pharmacist involvement in behavioral health education and patient-centered psychiatric care. He also holds a faculty appointment as Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at East Tennessee State University.
He is deeply grateful for the love and support of his wife, Jessica, and the joy brought by their son, Royce.
Mental Health Clinician Recognition
MHC Citation Milestone Award
- Jing E, Straw-Wilson K. Sexual dysfunction in selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and potential solutions: A narrative literature review. Ment Health Clin [Internet]. 2016;6(4):191-6. DOI: 10.9740/mhc.2016.07.191.
MHC Editors’ Choice Award
- Paxos C. Moving beyond first-line treatment options for OCD. Ment Health Clin [Internet]. 2022;12(5):300-8. DOI: 10.9740/mhc.2022.10.300.
- Beauregard ER, Maguire EG. Opioid-positive urine drug screen during treatment with oral naltrexone and the clinical implications. Ment Health Clin [Internet]. 2024;14(2):102-6. DOI: 10.9740/mhc.2024.04.102.
- VandenBerg AM. An update on recently approved long-acting injectable second-generation antipsychotics: Knowns and unknowns regarding their use. Ment Health Clin [Internet]. 2022;12(5):270-81. DOI: 10.9740/mhc.2022.10.270.
Outstanding and Trusted Peer Reviewers
Outstanding Peer Reviewers
- Joseph Michael Cusimano, PharmD, BCPP
- Jennifer Gemmellaro, PharmD, BCPP, BCPS
Trusted Peer Reviewers
- Sarah Benner, PharmD, BCPS, BCPP
- Nicole Bosse, PharmD, BCPP
- Justin Ellison, PharmD, BCPP
- Bri Englett, PharmD, BCPP
- Jordan Haygood, PharmD, BCPP
- Donna Lisi, PharmD, BCPS, BCP, BCGP, BCACP, BCMTMS, FASCP, FAAPP
- Rebecca Reiss, PharmD, BCPP