Program Directors

Dr. Cheatham has developed and led antimicrobial stewardship programs in acute care and post-acute care settings, including multiple skilled nursing facilities.  He practiced at Franciscan Health for 19 years where he developed and managed the local and system-wide antimicrobial stewardship program locally as well as system wide.  The program’s focus on optimal antimicrobial utilization, improved patient outcomes, and the prevention of resistance through collaborative practices between physicians, pharmacists, laboratory, and infection prevention practitioners. The PGY@ Infectious Disease Pharmacy Residency Program he established trained 9 Antimicrobial Stewardship Clinical Specialists that now run programs across the country. In addition, he collaborates with the Indiana State Department of Health and multiple facilities regarding National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) reporting and optimizations for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Quality Measures.  He is also been active in multiple areas of research including antimicrobial use, antimicrobial resistance, and optimizing antimicrobial dosing through pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics. 

The goal of these efforts were to contain bacterial resistance by studying antimicrobial utilization trends, surveying antimicrobial resistance patterns, and educating healthcare practitioners in optimal antimicrobial prescribing and infection prevention practices. Dr. Smith established the first PGY2 Infectious Diseases Pharmacy Residency Program in the state of Indiana that trained 28 residents who now practice across the country.  A flourishing research collaborative has been established with Dr. Michael Kays of Purdue University, which has led to multiple publications in the scientific press.

He has practiced Infectious Disease medicine and participated in research in both academic and private practice settings, as well as programs in multiple skilled nursing facilities. He served as Co-chair of clinical infectious diseases at IU Health Methodist for 10 years. He has also been active in developing hospital-based antimicrobial management programs in both private and academic practice settings. He has lectured both nationally and internationally on the topics of antimicrobial use and resistance. Dr. Wack and Dr. Smith have collaborated for over 22 years in developing programs to combat antimicrobial resistance in hospital settings. He has participated in the training of 28 ID PharmD, contributed to the publications in the areas of antibiotic resistance and appropriate use and dosing.  His efforts have directly contributed to over 35 million in cost saving for member institutions.

At Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, he became Chairman of the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee. He also began his work with Dr. Smith in antimicrobial management, which has now expanded to multiple hospitals. Dr. Yates moved to Texas to begin an infectious disease practice. There he introduced the ARS Program including both acute care hospitals and long term acute care hospitals. Dr. Yates currently is chairman of the P & T committees at three hospitals. He served as Chief of Medicine at East Texas Medical Center for five years. He also serves on the critical care committee and the transplant committee.