Millennium Magazine_2ndEd

156 MILLENNIUM-SECOND EDITION E lsa Gomez has advanced through more than 40 years of pharmaceutical quality assurance with immense practice. In her early years, she gained professional experience by being involved in all aspects of pharmaceutical manufacturing and associated quality control systems; a first job as an auditor of companies that provided pharmaceutical products to the United States Department of Defense also helped. In the years since, she’s had a fulfilling career in various roles as a manager, director and vice president of pharmaceutical quality assurance, but her pre-retirement position as the director of quality assurance for research and development for Actavis Inc. saw her making great accomplishments. At Actavis Inc., Ms. Gomez oversaw the research and developmental activities of pharmacists and chemists, ensured the use of proper manufacturing practices in the internal research and development department per regulatory agency guidelines, and prepared for regulatory agency inspections. More time-consuming duties included assisting managers and employees in the research, development and quality assurance departments, ensuring that appropriate quality systems were implemented, and verifying that information and documentation submitted to regulatory agencies met requirements. Ms. Gomez has always held the belief that the main goal of those who work in pharmaceutical quality assurance should be to provide affordable, high-quality products that will enable people to effectively manage their health conditions. This way of thinking has led to opportunities both big and small throughout her career, fromparticipating in the startup of Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc., one of today’s leaders in generic pharmaceuticals, to successfully transferring products between Puerto Rico and England. Ms. Gomez obtained a Master of Science in radiation chemistry and a Bachelor of Science in physical chemistry from the University of Puerto Rico. She is an activemember of the American Society for Quality and the American Chemical Society, and she regularly donates to the Humane Society of the United States and various animal shelters in Puerto Rico. Looking ahead, she’d eventually like to become a consultant. ELSA GOMEZ DIRECTOR OF QUALITY ASSURANCE FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ACTAVIS INC. Corona, CA