Officials consider plans for pharmacy school in Nevada

Nevada pharmacies need 90 pharmacists a year, and Las Vegas alone can use 20 to 25 pharmacists a year, Nevada State Board of Pharmacy officials said.

"With the growth of the state, particularly the senior citizen population, it's pretty clear we should have a pharmacy school to educate our own students," said David Westfall, a pharmacology professor at the University of Nevada School of Medicine.

Nevada pharmacies must rely on out-of-state trained pharmacists to keep pace with the growing demand. About 20 to 25 Nevada students leave the state each year to attend pharmacy colleges.

Marilyn Struzziery, office manager of Lee's Pharmacy Ltd. in Carson City, said headhunting for pharmacists is expensive.

Her pharmacy spends nearly $10,000 a year to attract pharmacists, while Arlington Clinical Pharmacy in Reno spent more than $20,000 to recruit six out-of-state pharmacists.

"We are always in search of a pharmacist and are always searching out of state," Struzziery said. "Once you do find one they have to want to relocate and that takes time."

Chain drug stores such as Walgreens, Rite Aid and Wal-Mart plan to expand their Nevada operations.

"If this happens then, as the (pharmacy) school develops, we'll be able to recruit from there," said Walgreens spokesman Michael Polzin.

Under the plan, the pharmacy college would enroll 30 students beginning in 2001.

Recognizing the need for pharmacists in Nevada, Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona, Calif., opened an administrative office in Las Vegas last month to recruit Nevada students.

The students will spend three years in Pomona and a fourth year in clinical training in Las Vegas.

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