Dr. Michael Hambuchen

Career background:

I joined Marshall in the summer of 2018. Previously, I was a non-tenure track instructor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences School of Medicine.

Educational background:

After completing a Pharm.D. at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, I immediately started work on a Ph.D., in which I was trained in preclinical drug development testing novel immunotherapeutics (monoclonal antibodies and vaccines) intended to treat methamphetamine use disorder.

Going into my post-doctoral work, I was involved in the development of novel immunotherapeutics intended to treat substance use disorder involving the illicit stimulants known as “bath salts.”

Can you tell us the basics of what your job entails?

I have found our School of Pharmacy to be an amazing academic playground for research and teaching, as my supervisors and the school have provided so much freedom and support in pursuing my passions and interests in teaching, research and even service. I was hired to teach the pathophysiology and pharmacology of psychiatric and neurological disease states (which completely overlaps with my research interests) and eventually took over the pharmacokinetics course, a biological math course that helps pharmacy students understand the concepts of drug dosing and how drugs enter, move throughout and exit the body. I'm particularly excited about my new undergraduate elective, “Pharmacology of Illicit Drugs,” in the fall of 2025 as it will be an opportunity to teach Marshall students the underlying science of the serious issue of substance use disorder in the United States and particularly Appalachia, and to compare the reality of the issue with its depiction in media and popular culture.

My current research is focused on adapting existing medications for the treatment of the consequences of the illicit polysubstance use, in which individuals purposely or accidentally misuse multiple drugs at once.

Former Huntington Fire Chief Jan Rader mentioned the challenge of reversing fentanyl intoxication in individuals concurrently on methamphetamine. The idea of solving this issue in controlled studies in the lab intrigued me, and a few years later a university John Marshall Scholars intramural grant provided an amazing opportunity to pursue this idea. I feel that the knowledge gained from my teaching responsibilities and interactions with clinicians (especially the clinicians and clinical researchers at Marshall Health Addiction Medicine) have helped me to leverage my pharmacy background into my research program and design studies more relevant and hopefully beneficial to human health.

My favorite service involves interviewing prospective pharmacy students and meeting potential new students for our bachelor's, master's and Pharm.D. programs. Much of this involves teaching demo sessions simulating an interactive class session at the school.

Tell us how you make learning engaging for the students, and why you think that's important.

I believe one can't expect a student to be engaged in a topic if the instructor doesn't present the topic with some degree of enthusiasm. Essentially, I love talking about pharmacology and drugs in general and even more so when students actively participate in the discussion.

When I look back at my graduate coursework, many classes that were objectively quite challenging didn't seem so difficult in retrospect as the professor explained the content in an amusing way and/or offered a unique way to independently learn. Minus my occasional in-class ukulele nonsense, mostly I prepare each session in a straightforward manner, but present it without being overly serious. I also break up lectures with questions and activities that students work through as groups. They learn by teaching each other.

Tell us about your ukulele-playing.

When did you start playing, why do you enjoy it, and how did you come to realize that you could tie it into teaching? There are several talented musicians on both sides of my family, but I never really went anywhere with guitar and bass lessons during high school. When my family and I were at home during COVID, I started learning some songs on an old guitar that belonged to my grandfather, who rocked out with his buddies until about two weeks before his death at 95. My wife reminded me that she had bought me a ukulele several years prior, and I figured that it would be fun to play and a bit less loud for the rest of my family as we were cooped up in the house. I found it quite amusing to work out covers of songs that I enjoy (which aren't usually thought of as ukulele songs) with a goal of making them recognizable.

I also found that intermittently playing to get my eyes off the screen in my work and home offices made me more productive. My favorite active learning involves assigning groups of students a key topic and having them teach it back in a nontraditional way, using unique figures, skits, songs, etc. As I don't want to ask my students to do something I wouldn't do myself, I always kick off the activity.

What do you hope is the impact of your work?

I hope that my research makes some small contribution to improving the quality of life for individuals suffering from substance use disorder, and that my teaching in the classroom and laboratory plays a part in motivating and facilitating talented aspiring clinicians and researchers to make contributions to society vastly surpassing my own.

What do you love about your job?

I enjoy the freedom to pursue my academic interests with a talented group of like-minded individuals in the MUSOP “pharmily,” which would be impossible without the support of my wonderful wife and daughters.

What have you learned that you wish everyone knew?

While obtaining a degree is, of course, an important technicality for one's career, I'd like to encourage our students to remember the real focus should be on the knowledge and skills gained during the educational process. In addition, while the saying “If you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life,” is a bit of an exaggeration, a love of one's job certainly makes it more pleasant and fun.