Becker’s Healthcare Podcast Integrating Pharmacy Services and Preparing for Change at Michigan Medicine with Karen McConnell, PharmD
Mar 14, 2026
Karen J. McConnell, PharmD, MBA, Chief Pharmacy Officer at Michigan Medicine and associate dean, leads systemwide pharmacy transformation. She discusses unifying services across three campuses. She explains creating a system P&T with many subcommittees and expanding specialty, ambulatory, and research pharmacy. She also covers preparing for rapid industry, policy, and pricing changes.
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Career Path From Clinician To System Pharmacy Leader
- McConnell described her career path from clinical cardiology pharmacist to chief pharmacy officer at CommonSpirit and now Michigan Medicine.
- She highlighted experience at large systems (Common Spirit ~142 hospitals) as background for current integration work at Michigan.
Systemwide P&T Built Around Frontline Subcommittees
- Michigan Medicine formed its first systemwide Pharmacy and Therapeutics (P&T) committee to create one formulary and drug library across three campuses.
- The P&T uses ~16 subcommittees (infectious disease, cardiology, oncology) with frontline physicians and pharmacists from all campuses making recommendations up to system P&T.
Complex Therapies Demand Clinical And Financial Readiness
- High-cost therapies like gene and cell therapies require both clinical readiness and financial expertise.
- McConnell emphasized combining clinical center-of-excellence capabilities with financial acumen (she earned an MBA) to manage these therapies.