Timothy S. Lesar, BS, PharmD, is the director of clinical pharmacy services and a patient care service director at the Albany Medical Center in Albany, New York. He received a BS in pharmacy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a doctor of pharmacy degree from the University of Minnesota-Minneapolis. Lesar's research and practice has focused on understanding and improving the medication-use process, particularly on medication-use errors and deficiencies. He has participated in numerous patient safety initiatives, and is member of the Joint Commission Medication Safety Advisory Group and the FDA Drug Safety and Risk Management (DSARM) Advisory Committee. Lesar is the recipient of the ASHP Award for Achievement in the Practice of Pharmacy in Health Systems (1991 and 1998) and the ISMP Cheers! Award (2000).