Mission to Improve Mental Health, Medication Management

Ph.D. Student Finds Purpose in Life-changing Care for Patients with Depression

Born in Warangal, India, and raised in Naperville, a western suburb of Chicago, Ill., Sourab Ganna, Pharm.D. (’22), was always interested in being involved with health care in some way. When it was time to choose where he would attend undergraduate school, University of Houston was calling his name.

“Opportunity, lifestyle, family and diversity are what brought me to UH,” Ganna said. “Being interested in health care and having the Texas Medical Center next door always kept opportunities open. Lifestyle-wise, Houston is simply much more relaxed and slower-paced than Chicago, which is what I prefer. It’s a long way from home, but I had family in the area that made the transition easier for me.

“Regarding diversity, having a variation in who you’re exposed to as a young adult is essential to be able to communicate along with simply being able to exist among peoples’ various upbringings, cultures, religions and values. Diversity helps give insight into the perspectives, struggles and expectations of different groups across health care.”

Interested in health care but unsure of what that looked like as an incoming freshman, Sourab chose biology as his undergraduate major. A lover of science, he knew biology would cover his bases for most prerequisites of other professional or graduate training programs.

Decision Pharm.D.

During the winter break of Ganna’s senior year, an ordinary lunch would prove extraordinary for his future.

"I had a good friend who was already in pharmacy school here at UH,” Ganna said. “Through her, I learned about the Pharm.D. and Pharmaceutical Health Outcomes and Policy programs. After talking with her over lunch, I decided to apply to the pharmacy school at UH that day.”

As his studies in pharmacy school progressed, Ganna grew even more passionate about his role in the field.

“The pharmaceutical world has an enormous impact on the daily lives of people from humanistic, clinical, and economic perspectives,” Ganna said. “It’s quite hard to find an ailment that is managed without any form of pharmacotherapy. I wanted to do my part to help improve the management and vigilance of medication use as there’s an epidemic of abuse and misuse of drugs. I believe this can be curbed by proper interventions sourced directly from health care professionals (HCP), notably pharmacists.”

Got PHOP?

After earning his Pharm.D. in 2022, Ganna entered the Ph.D. program to enhance the care he will be able to provide patients.

“Being trained as a pharmacist provides expertise in clinical knowledge, therapeutics and logistics of providing medications and therapy to patients,” Ganna said. “A pharmacist, along with other HCPs, can use this knowledge and tools to provide care. In choosing to pursue a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences, I saw the next step after my Pharm.D. as taking the responsibility to evaluate such tools, interventions and policies to improve the health, function and quality of life of patients.”

Mental health matters

“Depression can easily creep into your daily life, work, personal and professional relationships, productivity, and many more areas,” Ganna said. “You’re also at a heightened risk of incurring other disease states or complicating any existing disease states. Depression and all other psychiatric disorders are practiced correctly based on the available guidelines which are based on our current level of knowledge. However, we still have a large amount that is unknown or unclear in these disease states, which makes practicing and management very difficult and subjective to the HCPs perspectives, interpretation, or experience.”

In a recent Gallup Poll, it was reported that 29% of U.S. adults have been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lifetime. The percentage of Americans who currently have or are being treated for depression is 17.8%. When choosing his research interest, Ganna knew where he wanted to put his time and effort.

“We must spend much more time and resources to understand the etiology of depression along with new and current therapies to treat depression based on what is feasible, efficacious, and efficient in the short- and long-term settings,” Ganna said. “I would like to explore cognitive behavioral therapy alongside pharmacotherapy management by incorporating aspects of accountability in one’s life, so that patients with depression can start to feel they are taking back control in their lives.”

Guiding principles

From biology to Pharm.D. to Ph.D., Ganna is no stranger to hard work.

“I operate based on responsibility and loyalty, so every decision, thought, action, etc. is rooted in either of those values,” Ganna said. “Responsibility comes in two fronts: self- and societal- responsibility. Looking back on my ancestors, out of respect for their struggles and hardships they’ve undertaken to put me here, I owe it to them to be exceptional.

“This is why I believe I, and we, have a responsibility to help each other. As an individual, I believe I have too much of a responsibility to my ancestors and those who’ve raised me to be physically, mentally, or spiritually restrained.”

Cougar to consultant

After all his studies at UHCOP are complete, Ganna is considering consulting as his long-term career plan.

“In consulting, you work with a variety of experts,” Ganna said. “There are new challenges from contract to contract which constantly has you on your toes, requiring you to learn and adapt to new issues. I also have interests in helping children stay in school and looking at the health and reform of prisoners or those who have been incarcerated. Children are very impressionable, so they are at a heightened risk for mental disorders. A large majority of those in prisons/jails are also diagnosed with psych disorders.”