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By Steve Seepersaud

Ed Kuffner '87 says he was drawn to medicine because it uses science to help people. His work deals with some of the "what ifs" in life.

What if a young child gets into a medicine bottle when it is not kept out of their reach? What if an error is made when dosing a medicine? These are not pleasant thoughts, but they happen.

Kuffner is proud of his work to help prevent these types of mistakes. He has led efforts to add flow inhibitors to bottles containing pediatric liquid acetaminophen. If a kid gets through the first line of defense ― the child-resistant cap ― the inhibitor limits the amount of medicine he or she can drink or remove from the bottle. The flow restrictor can be the difference between a small ingestion and one that requires a trip to the emergency department and even hospital admission. 

It's part of his work as chief medical officer for the consumer health division of Johnson & Johnson (J&J), where he and his team work to keep patients and consumers safe by providing medical and safety oversight. He works with healthcare professionals and experts within and outside the company to, among other things, develop strategies to prevent medication errors, decrease accidental unsupervised ingestions and prevent overdoses. Kuffner has been with J&J for 15 years, following earlier work as an emergency physician and medical toxicologist working in emergency rooms and at a poison center.

“Becoming a medical toxicologist allowed me to build upon my emergency medicine skills and become an expert in diagnosing and treating poisoned patients,” Kuffner said. “I enjoy the public health aspect of toxicology, which includes assessing the adverse effects of medicines and occupational, biologic and environmental exposures, and working to prevent people from becoming patients.  

"We've worked across the industry, with regulators and public health agencies and with many devoted groups to find ways to better communicate dosing information. This includes standardizing how dosing information on labels of liquid medicines is communicated to patients and consumers. You used to see different concentrations of pediatric liquid acetaminophen being sold. There is only one concentration now. That prevents confusion and helps to keep kids safe."

Because even small interventions can keep people safe, Kuffner advises people to always read carefully ― and not deviate from ― instructions on medicine labels, to not take more than the recommended dose, and to immediately close containers and place them high and out of a child's sight and reach after every use.  

Kuffner says his career path is an example of what makes ������ý special; the University offers a broad-based education that can position a German major to become a physician and senior leader with a healthcare company impacting public health on a global scale.

“What has been most influential was learning early on from my professors that there really is no one right path, and it's okay to blaze your own trail,” Kuffner said. “It’s rare to go to medical school from the German and Russian Studies Department. My time at ������ý gave me confidence that I could pursue a range of academic passions including science, medicine, language and culture. I was one of the first medical toxicologists to go into the pharmaceutical industry. That probably wouldn’t have happened without those experiences at ������ý. Learning I could thrive after taking risks and truly embracing non-traditional paths and approaches has had a profound impact on my career and life.

“Science is at the heart of medicine, but understanding people while you are caring for them is really what it’s all about. I was able to travel abroad through the German and Russian Studies Department in my junior year, and that experience not only further opened my eyes to the world but helped me become more empathetic and inclusive. Learning to appreciate and respect all people, especially those different from myself, has really helped me when caring for individual patients at the bedside and when caring for millions of patients around the world with my work at J&J. Those international experiences have made me a much better doctor.” 

Though Kuffner's division at J&J isn't directly involved with the COVID-19 vaccine, he's proud to be with a company addressing the biggest healthcare crisis in our lifetime, and he appreciates the efforts of all ������ý alumni who have worked tirelessly to address community needs during the pandemic.

“I am proud of the thousands of professionals who started their healthcare journeys at ������ý ― doctors, nurses, pharmacists and researchers,” he said. “I give a big shout-out to all of our alumni who have been using their skills and knowledge to serve the public health needs of this country and the world. I'm thankful for what they've given, and grateful to be among them as a ������ý alumnus working to support public health.”