Biography

Dr. LaPlante is Dean of the College of Pharmacy and a tenured Professor of Pharmacy, as well as the founding Director of the Rhode Island Infectious Diseases Antibiotic Research Program at the Providence VA Medical Center.

As a licensed clinical pharmacist, LaPlante is an internationally recognized expert on antibiotic use, antimicrobial resistance, as well as health policy implementation. She remains on the frontline of the antimicrobial resistance public health crisis by leading statewide initiatives and serving as an advisor to the Centers of Diseases Control and Prevention, PEW Research Center and The Joint Commission.

She currently serves as chairperson for the Rhode Island Department of Health’s Antimicrobial Stewardship and Environmental Task Force where she led the Rhode Island Antimicrobial Stewardship Expansion Initiative.  In this role, she has created guidance and provided education for Antimicrobial Stewardship across Acute Care, Long Term Care and Urgent Care facilities throughout the State of Rhode Island, specifically for the CVS Minute Clinics Provider meeting at the at CVS National Headquarters in Rhode Island.  During the COVID-19 pandemic, she was appointed to the COVID-19 vaccine subcommittee by the governor of Rhode Island. 

Combining a clinical and scientific career, Dr. LaPlante has published over 120 peer-reviewed research articles, and she has received continuous uninterrupted funding with over 30 successfully awarded grants totaling over 6 million from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and Investigator Initiated Research from Research and Development divisions of pharmaceutical industry

She is also Director of the Pharmacology Core for the Rhode Island NIH-COBRE Center for Antimicrobial Resistance and Therapeutic Discovery (1P20GM121344-01A1), a member of the Antimicrobial Resistance Leadership Group (ARLG), an elected Fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (FIDSA) and the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, and a past president of the Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists (SIDP; 2018-2019).  Her training fellowship (2012-present) awarded from the Office of Academic Affiliations (OAA) at the VHA National Office is one of a limited number of nationally recommended fellowships by the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP).  She is a vice-president at Making a Difference in Infectious Diseases (MAD-ID), and an Associate Editor for Clinical Infectious Diseases.