Farah Khorassani
Health Sciences Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Clinical Pharmacy Practice
School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences
School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences
B.A., University at Buffalo, 2008, Chemistry
Pharm.D., Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences-Worcester, 2011
Pharm.D., Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences-Worcester, 2011
ORCiD: 0000-0003-2506-2921
Email: fkhorass@uci.edu
University of California, Irvine
Irvine, CA 92697
Irvine, CA 92697
Research Interests
psychiatry, serious mental illness, student mental health, long acting injectable antipsychotics, antipsychotics
Short Biography
Dr. Farah Khorassani is a Board-Certified Psychiatric Pharmacist and Health Sciences Associate Clinical Professor at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences. She also serves as a Clinical Pharmacist in Psychiatry at UCI Health, where she provides direct patient care across inpatient psychiatric services while precepting pharmacy students and residents.
Dr. Khorassani earned her Doctor of Pharmacy from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and completed her PGY-1 residency at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital at Weill Cornell Medical Center and Columbia University Medical Center, followed by a PGY-2 specialty residency in psychiatric pharmacy at the University of North Carolina Hospitals and Clinics. Over the course of her career, she has held academic and clinical appointments at St. John’s University, Bellevue Hospital Center, and The Zucker Hillside Hospital.
Dr. Khorassani serves on the Board of Pharmacy Specialties Psychiatric Pharmacy Specialty Council and holds committee appointments with the American College of Clinical Pharmacy and the American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists. She is also a certified Mental Health First Aid instructor and a passionate advocate for mental health awareness and suicide prevention.
Her primary clinical focus is serious mental illness with an emphasis on optimizing pharmacotherapy for inpatients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other refractory psychiatric conditions. Her research focus centers on optimizing psychotropic use, particularly antipsychotics, promoting equitable psychotropic prescribing, and pharmacy learner mental health.
Dr. Khorassani earned her Doctor of Pharmacy from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and completed her PGY-1 residency at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital at Weill Cornell Medical Center and Columbia University Medical Center, followed by a PGY-2 specialty residency in psychiatric pharmacy at the University of North Carolina Hospitals and Clinics. Over the course of her career, she has held academic and clinical appointments at St. John’s University, Bellevue Hospital Center, and The Zucker Hillside Hospital.
Dr. Khorassani serves on the Board of Pharmacy Specialties Psychiatric Pharmacy Specialty Council and holds committee appointments with the American College of Clinical Pharmacy and the American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists. She is also a certified Mental Health First Aid instructor and a passionate advocate for mental health awareness and suicide prevention.
Her primary clinical focus is serious mental illness with an emphasis on optimizing pharmacotherapy for inpatients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other refractory psychiatric conditions. Her research focus centers on optimizing psychotropic use, particularly antipsychotics, promoting equitable psychotropic prescribing, and pharmacy learner mental health.
Publications
Espejo G, Khorassani F. Clozapine Revisited: Updates to the Gold Standard. Psychiatric News, May 2025
Khorassani F, Entsuah N, Sayer M, Ozaki A. Racial disparities in mood stabilizer prescribing in mania in nonpsychotic, hospitalized patients with bipolar I disorder. J Clin Psychiatry 2025;86(1):24m15524.
Khorassani F, Azevedo R, Farokhpay R. Therapeutic drug monitoring vs. pharmacogenetic testing in the context of elevated olanzapine concentrations and prior clozapine intolerability: a case study. BMC Psychiatry 2024;24:885-90
Khorassani F, Jermain M, Cadiz C. Pharmacogenomic testing to guide treatment of major depressive disorder: a systematic review. Curr Treat Options Psych 2024: DOI 10.1007/s40501-024-00316-x.
Khorassani F, Espejo G. Evaluation of the impact of pharmacist-driven physician naloxone training on an inpatient psychiatric unit. Academic Psychiatry 2024;1-5.
Khorassani F, Hassani B, Conry J, Espejo G. Evaluation of anxiety in Doctor of Pharmacy students in their first through fourth professional years. Curr Pharm Teach Learn 2021;13(6):628-34.
Khorassani F. Battle of the bulge: antipsychotic-induced weight gain. The Carlat Hospital Psychiatry Report (TCPR) 2021;1 (5);1-12.
Khorassani F. Vesicular Monoamine Transporters for Tardive Dyskinesia. The Carlat Hospital Psychiatry Report (TCPR) 2021;1 (3);1-8.
Khorassani F, Espejo G. The impact of pharmacy-driven physician naloxone training on an inpatient psychiatric unit. Ment Health Clin [Internet] 2021;11(2):101.
Khorassani F, Hassani B, Conry J, Espejo, G. Evaluation of anxiety in Doctor of Pharmacy students in their first through fourth professional years. Curr Pharm Teach Learn 2021;13(6):628-34.
Khorassani F, Sousonis F, Lopez L. Risperidone and paliperidone-induced hepatotoxicity: case report and review of literature. Am J Health Syst Pharm 2020; 77(19);1578-84.
Khorassani F, Talreja O. Esketamine: a novel agent for treatment-resistant depression. Am J Health Syst Pharm 2020; 2020;77(17):1382-1388.
Khorassani F, Talreja O, Luther K. Valbenazine and deutetrabenazine: vesicular monoamine transporter 2 inhibitors for tardive dyskinesia. Am J Health Syst Pharm 2020 Jan 24;77(3):167-174.
Ng K, Khorassani F. Options for managing treatment-resistant depression. US Pharmacist. Online Continuing Education Program, November 1, 2019.
Kennedy ML, Khorassani F. Eating disorders: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorders. PharmacotherapyFirst: a multimedia learning resource. Nov 2019.
Khorassani F, Hassani B, Ramchandani D. CPNP 2019 Annual Meeting Poster Abstracts. Evaluation of doctor of pharmacy students in their first through fourth professional years. Ment Health Clin [Internet]. 2019;9(3):156-7.
Khorassani F, Saad M. Intravenous olanzapine for the management of agitation: review of the literature. Ann Pharmacother 2019; 53 (8); 853-59.
Luther K, Fung GM, Khorassani F. Cost comparison of atypical antipsychotics: paliperidone ER and risperidone. Hospital Pharmacy 2018; 54 (6): 389-92.
Khorassani F, Kaufman M, Lopez LV. Supratherapeutic serum clozapine concentration after transition from traditional to electronic cigarettes. J Clin Psychopharmacol 2018 Aug;38(4):391-392.
Khorassani F, Tellier S, Tsapepas D. Pharmacist's role in improving medication adherence in transplant recipients with comorbid psychiatric disorders. J Pharm Pract 2018;32 (5): 568-78.
Luther K, Khorassani F. Movie Review: Requiem for a dream. CPNP Perspectives 2017;4:19.
Khorassani F, Kaufman M, Lopez L. College of Psychiatric and Neurologic Pharmacists 2017 Poster Abstracts. Supratherapeutic serum clozapine concentration after transition from traditional to electronic cigarettes. J Pharm Pract 2017; 30(4) NP17-NP90.
Shirazian S, Grant CD, Aina O, Mattana J, Khorassani F. Ricardo A. Depression in chronic kidney disease and end stage renal disease: similarities and differences in diagnosis, epidemiology, and management. Kidney Int Rep 2017;2:94-107.
Khorassani F, Ahmed M, Su M. College of Psychiatric and Neurologic Pharmacists 2016 Poster Abstracts. Comparison of rehospitalization rates after receiving paliperidone palmitate versus long-acting injectable risperidone in patients with schizophrenia. J Pharm Pract 2016; 29(3) 270-341.
Khorassani F, Misher A, Garris S. The past and present of anti-obesity agents: a focus on monoamine modulators. Am J Health Syst Pharm 2015;72:697-706.
Hillman A, Khorassani F. Symptomatic and disease modifying treatment options for multiple sclerosis. Pharmacy Times 2014;3(2):7-9.
Martin C, Fischer M, Khorassani F. Movie Review: Drugstore Cowboy. Ment Health Clin 2013;3(6):100.
Khorassani F, Hilas O. Bapineuzumab: a novel investigational agent for alzheimer’s disease. P&T 2013;38(2):1-3.
Khorassani F. Vesicular Monoamine Transporters for Tardive Dyskinesia. The Carlat Hospital Psychiatry Report (TCPR) 2021;1 (3);1-8.
Khorassani F, Espejo G. The impact of pharmacy-driven physician naloxone training on an inpatient psychiatric unit. Ment Health Clin [Internet] 2021;11(2):101.
Khorassani F, Hassani B, Conry J, Espejo, G. Evaluation of anxiety in Doctor of Pharmacy students in their first through fourth professional years. Curr Pharm Teach Learn 2021;13(6):628-34.
Khorassani F, Sousonis F, Lopez L. Risperidone and paliperidone-induced hepatotoxicity: case report and review of literature. Am J Health Syst Pharm 2020; 77(19);1578-84.
Khorassani F, Talreja O. Esketamine: a novel agent for treatment-resistant depression. Am J Health Syst Pharm 2020; 2020;77(17):1382-1388.
Khorassani F, Talreja O, Luther K. Valbenazine and deutetrabenazine: vesicular monoamine transporter 2 inhibitors for tardive dyskinesia. Am J Health Syst Pharm 2020 Jan 24;77(3):167-174.
Ng K, Khorassani F. Options for managing treatment-resistant depression. US Pharmacist. Online Continuing Education Program, November 1, 2019.
Kennedy ML, Khorassani F. Eating disorders: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorders. PharmacotherapyFirst: a multimedia learning resource. Nov 2019.
Khorassani F, Hassani B, Ramchandani D. CPNP 2019 Annual Meeting Poster Abstracts. Evaluation of doctor of pharmacy students in their first through fourth professional years. Ment Health Clin [Internet]. 2019;9(3):156-7.
Khorassani F, Saad M. Intravenous olanzapine for the management of agitation: review of the literature. Ann Pharmacother 2019; 53 (8); 853-59.
Luther K, Fung GM, Khorassani F. Cost comparison of atypical antipsychotics: paliperidone ER and risperidone. Hospital Pharmacy 2018; 54 (6): 389-92.
Khorassani F, Kaufman M, Lopez LV. Supratherapeutic serum clozapine concentration after transition from traditional to electronic cigarettes. J Clin Psychopharmacol 2018 Aug;38(4):391-392.
Khorassani F, Tellier S, Tsapepas D. Pharmacist's role in improving medication adherence in transplant recipients with comorbid psychiatric disorders. J Pharm Pract 2018;32 (5): 568-78.
Luther K, Khorassani F. Movie Review: Requiem for a dream. CPNP Perspectives 2017;4:19.
Khorassani F, Kaufman M, Lopez L. College of Psychiatric and Neurologic Pharmacists 2017 Poster Abstracts. Supratherapeutic serum clozapine concentration after transition from traditional to electronic cigarettes. J Pharm Pract 2017; 30(4) NP17-NP90.
Shirazian S, Grant CD, Aina O, Mattana J, Khorassani F. Ricardo A. Depression in chronic kidney disease and end stage renal disease: similarities and differences in diagnosis, epidemiology, and management. Kidney Int Rep 2017;2:94-107.
Khorassani F, Ahmed M, Su M. College of Psychiatric and Neurologic Pharmacists 2016 Poster Abstracts. Comparison of rehospitalization rates after receiving paliperidone palmitate versus long-acting injectable risperidone in patients with schizophrenia. J Pharm Pract 2016; 29(3) 270-341.
Khorassani F, Misher A, Garris S. The past and present of anti-obesity agents: a focus on monoamine modulators. Am J Health Syst Pharm 2015;72:697-706.
Hillman A, Khorassani F. Symptomatic and disease modifying treatment options for multiple sclerosis. Pharmacy Times 2014;3(2):7-9.
Martin C, Fischer M, Khorassani F. Movie Review: Drugstore Cowboy. Ment Health Clin 2013;3(6):100.
Khorassani F, Hilas O. Bapineuzumab: a novel investigational agent for alzheimer’s disease. P&T 2013;38(2):1-3.
Grants
Grant #: 1H79TI026020-01 (completed)
Agency/Organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration (SAMHSA)
Amount Awarded: $944,138
Award Period: September 2015 - September 2018
Project Title: St. John’s University Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) Student Training
Roles: Education and Training Consultant, Faculty Healthcare Partner, Residency Coordinator- PGY2 Academia and Community Health
Other Experience
PGY-1 Residency
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital- Weill Cornell Medical Center & Columbia University Medical Center 2011—2012
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital- Weill Cornell Medical Center & Columbia University Medical Center 2011—2012
PGY-2 Psychiatric Specialty Residency
University of North Carolina Hospitals and Clinics 2012—2013
University of North Carolina Hospitals and Clinics 2012—2013
Link to this profile
https://faculty.uci.edu/profile/?facultyId=7116
https://faculty.uci.edu/profile/?facultyId=7116
Last updated
09/24/2025
09/24/2025