Dr. Sarah Thomason, chair and professor of Pharmacy Practice at East Tennessee State University Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy, is president-elect of the American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists (AAPP) Board of Directors for the 2027-29 term.  

The position will oversee a national body of nearly 3,000 psychiatric pharmacists who specialize in caring for people living with psychiatric disorders, including substance use disorders. These professionals bring specialized expertise in medication treatment and collaborate with medical and mental health teams to support evidence-based, patient-centered care.  

Thomason was elected by AAPP members and will assume the position July 1, 2027. In this role, she will help guide the organization’s leadership and advance its mission to strengthen the reach and practice of psychiatric pharmacy.  

AAPP’s mission is to ensure a future in which everyone living with a psychiatric or substance use disorder has a care team that includes a psychiatric pharmacist who helps ensure optimal medication therapy.  

“AAPP has been my professional home for more than two decades, and I am honored by the trust our members have placed in me,” Thomason said. “Psychiatric pharmacists make a measurable difference in access, safety and outcomes for people living with mental illness and substance use disorders.  

“I look forward to working alongside our board, staff and members to develop the next generation of psychiatric pharmacy leaders, demonstrate the value of our profession, and ensure psychiatric pharmacists are represented wherever decisions about mental health and substance use care are made.”  

Thomason’s election recognizes her leadership in pharmacy practice and her contributions to the profession. As chair and professor of Pharmacy Practice at Gatton, she helps lead the college’s academic and professional efforts to prepare future pharmacists to serve patients and communities.  

An AAPP member since 2003, Thomason previously served on the organization’s board of directors and as treasurer from 2022 to 2023, when she helped guide its transition from the College of Psychiatric and Neurologic Pharmacists (CPNP) to AAPP.  

She served for more than a decade as chair and senior editor of AAPP’s Recertification Editorial Board, developing continuing education for board-certified psychiatric pharmacists, and has served on committees spanning substance use disorders, government affairs, strategic planning and professional development.  

ETSU Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy is one of the university's five health sciences colleges that comprise Tennessee's largest public Academic Health Sciences Center. ETSU prepares future health professionals through an interprofessional model that brings together students and faculty from multiple disciplines to learn with, from and about one another.    

Learn more at etsu.edu/pharmacy.