The NLA Welcomes New Leadership

Denver-area clinical pharmacist assumes role during NLA virtual business meeting

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Joseph J. Saseen, PharmD, CLS, FNLA, officially assumed the role of National Lipid Association (NLA) President at the NLA’s annual virtual business meeting on Monday, June 8, 2020 after serving for the past year as President-Elect. He succeeds Houston-based lipidologist Antonio M. Gotto, MD, DPhil, FNLA, who will be the NLA’s Immediate Past President.

Dr. Saseen is a clinical pharmacist based in Denver/Aurora, Colo., and is currently Professor of Clinical Pharmacy and Vice Chair of Clinical and Academic Programs for the Department of Clinical Pharmacy at the University of Colorado. He is also a Professor of Family Medicine and practices as a clinical pharmacist at the University of Colorado Health focusing on chronic disease state management, cardiovascular risk reduction and population health. Dr. Saseen teaches cardiovascular pharmacotherapy and is the PGY2 Ambulatory Care residency program director. Dr. Saseen has been a member of the NLA since 2005 and previously served as an NLA board member.

“I am excited and humbled to serve as the National Lipid Association President,” Saseen said. “It is such an exciting time to be a clinical pharmacist and a member of our organization. Over the next year I look forward to adding on to the foundation that my predecessors have worked so hard to build and we will continue to focus on the incredible education we provide to healthcare professionals all over the world.  In addition, we will put an emphasis on diversity, inclusion and equality; interprofessional teams and lipid management; primary prevention in older patients; and improving our NLA resources and tools for healthcare professionals.”

Dr. Saseen is a Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist, a Board Certified Ambulatory Care Pharmacist, and a Clinical Lipid Specialist. He was a recipient of the NLA Presidents Service Award in 2018 and he was appointed by APhA as a member of the writing committee for the 2018 ACC-AHA/Multisociety Cholesterol Guideline. Dr. Saseen has received awards, most recently the 2016 American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy Teaching Innovations award and the 2020 American Pharmacists Association Daniel B. Smith Practice Excellence Award. His scholarly work includes over 150 peer-reviewed publications, most of which focus on cardiovascular research, review articles and practice innovations.

Other NLA officers for the 2020-2021 term are President-Elect Kevin C. Maki, PhD, CLS, FNLA (Boca Raton, Fla.); Secretary/Treasurer Pamela B. Morris, MD, FNLA (Mount Pleasant, S.C.); Executive Council Chair Edward A. Gill, MD, FNLA (Aurora, Colo.); Executive Council Chair Daniel E. Soffer, MD, FNLA (Swarthmore, Pa.); and Executive Council Chair Kaye-Eileen Willard, MD, FNLA (Racine, Wis.).  Anne C. Goldberg, MD, FNLA (St. Louis, Mo.) takes over the role as Chief Science Officer of the NLA succeeding Peter H. Jones, MD, FNLA (Houston, Texas) who held the position for six years.