Samford University pharmacy professor Charles D. Sands III was named a 2007 Health Care Hero by the Birmingham Business Journal (BBJ) in the annual selection of people making noteworthy contributions to health care.

Dr. Sands was selected because of his efforts to improve access to health care locally and abroad, including missions trips to Asia, the newspaper said. He was recognized along with other Health Care Heroes at a luncheon in Birmingham Dec. 6.

Sands team-teaches a course about the clinical application of drugs and also works each Wednesday at a hypertension clinic at the Perry County Health Department in Marion, Ala. He particularly enjoys the hands-on aspect of the clinic.

"I like classroom teaching, but I prefer clinical because knowledge learned in the classroom is put to use in practical applications with real patients," he told the BBJ.

Sands works with and supervises three or four McWhorter School of Pharmacy students who complete a rotation each month and a pharmacy resident who completes specialty training in public health.

He has taught at Samford since 1984 and has also taught at Yanbian University Medical College in Yanji, China, and Sookmyung University in Seoul, Korea.

He told the BBJ that his work as a teacher and his commitment to improving the health of individuals was something he was called to do.

"I just feel like I am following the purpose of my life," he said.