Caring professional pharmacist; successful entrepreneur; wide ranging volunteer organization leader; regulatory and enforcement official and unique patient advocate and medication management counselor. Couple these roles with tireless community servant leadership, and one can begin to appreciate our colleague — Mario Casinelli, Jr.
Mario is a 1953 Bachelor of Science graduate of the Rhode Island College of Pharmacy and Allied Science, the predecessor to the University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy. He is, in fact, one of the most visible and enduring links from the “old” college of pharmacy to the “new.” A fixture of the Rhode Island healthcare community for over 60 years, Mario has often been referred to as the “Dean of Pharmacy” in Rhode Island. As owner of Oaklawn Pharmacy in Cranston for 38 years, he was the very definition of the indispensable family pharmacist.
Before there was a standard of interdisciplinary healthcare, there was Mario’s approach to collaborative and compassionate patient care. Decades before it was the norm, he engaged a variety of healthcare providers to more effectively and efficiently improve the lives of his patients. Examples include his service on the Boards for the Visiting Nurse Association, CODAC substance abuse treatment organization, the Cranston Community Mental Health Board and the RI Alliance for VD Control. Mario has achieved national recognition for his collaborative professional practice innovation and commitment as illustrated by his awarding of the Daniel B. Smith Award in 1982. This recognition is the American Pharmacists Association premier award to recognize pharmacy practice performance.
As a volunteer for the RI Department of Health, Mario committed himself to raising the standards of pharmacy practice and protecting the public health of the citizens of Rhode Island. While serving as Chair of the Board of Pharmacy for many years, he tirelessly fought for regulations that enhanced the care and treatment of patients, lobbied for state-wide public health initiatives and safeguarded the health of our most underserved and fragile populations. Again, his work garnered national attention, and he was recognized through his service as Honorary President of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy in 1997-1998.
Mario is a committed servant leader in his city and state. He has taken a leadership role in many different venues, from Boy Scouts to his church to his hometown of Cranston, RI. This volunteer activity exemplifies his big heart and concern for those in his community. A true civic leader, he was honored by the declaration of “Mario Casinelli Day” in Cranston in 1997.
As Mario would be quick to admit, his success in life is attributable to his lifelong partnership with his wife, Ronnie. We have all been blessed through our association with this very formidable couple.
We are all proud to call Mario our friend, mentor and colleague. Through his actions, he has made us all better professionals, better leaders and better humans.
-Paul Larrat
Dean
URI College of Pharmacy