Harriot College Alumni Profile: Ryan Cook
ECU “40 Under Forty” Leadership Recipient
Ryan Cook, Chemistry alumnus (BS, ‘13) who lives in Jacksonville, FL, is one of ECU’s 2022 “40 Under Forty” Leadership Awardees.
“I take great pride in representing East Carolina University in my personal and professional life,” he said. “Through this recognition, I am privileged to be able to highlight the opportunities afforded to me because of my time at ECU. The academics, extracurricular activities, and mentorship have had a lasting impact on my life.”
Cook’s #HarriotCollegeMajor is helping him #MakeAMajorDifference as an emergency medicine clinical pharmacist for the Baptist Medical Center in downtown Jacksonville, where he makes evidence-based recommendations in drug selection, dosing, and medical plan development within a multidisciplinary team. He also responds to bedside medical emergencies, manages drug pharmacokinetic consultations, and performs medication reconciliation, antimicrobial stewardship, pain/sedation monitoring, and medication discharge counseling.
“I enjoy the fast-paced environment and variety of patients I help care for on a day-to-day basis,” Cook said. “I am in a unique position to use my clinical training to make pharmacotherapy recommendations to physicians in real-time, while also helping facilitate and implement medical care at the bedside.”
During his time as an ECU student, Cook said leadership opportunities and relationships outside the classroom helped him develop leadership and interpersonal skills that have led to his successes.
“Building relationships with professors within the Department of Chemistry, outside the classroom, had as much of an impact on my career as the material I was learning in the lecture hall,” he said. “My professional path would look very different without their friendship and guidance.”
A little-known fact Cook shared about himself pertains to a quote that says the definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results. He said, “I always believe that next year is the year that the Dallas Cowboys are going to the Superbowl.”