Pharmacy Practice Residency Program

Pharmacy Practice Residency Program

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The Pharmacy Practice Residency Program at Valley Medical Center is an ASHP-accredited twelve-month postgraduate training experience designed to provide residents with advanced instruction in all aspects of pharmacy practice: acute patient care, ambulatory patient care, drug information, drug use policy development, and practice management. Since 1989, VMC has provided a systems-based approach with outcomes consistent with ASHP’s Pharmacy Practice Residency Standard:

1. Manage and improve the medication use process
2. Provide evidence-based, patient-centered medication therapy management with interdisciplinary teams
3. Exercise leadership and practice management skills
4. Demonstrate project management skills
5. Provide medication and practice-related education/training
6. Utilize medical informatics

Rotations vary in format from block to longitudinal, and are designed to provide structure and guidance with the flexibility to tailor learning experiences to each resident’s personal and professional needs.  Emphasis is placed on establishing a personal philosophy of practice, developing leadership and teaching skills, utilizing performance self-evaluation, and exhibiting commitment to the profession.

The ultimate goal of the VMC Hospital Pharmacy Residency PGY1 Program is to produce a competent clinical pharmacist in general medicine.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the requirements for application?
2. What are the core rotations?
3. What types of elective rotations are available?
4. Can I do an elective rotation at a different site?
5. How much staffing is required of the residents?
6. Will Pharmacy Residents have an opportunity to teach?
7. Do Pharmacy Residents go to educational meetings?
8. When do I need to be licensed?
9. What types of health benefits are available for Pharmacy Residents?
10. How many days of vacations/holidays available for Pharmacy Residents?
11. How many Pharmacy Residents train at VMC each year?
12. Who do I contact for more information?

Past Residents

Examples of career paths of Valley Medical Center’s graduate PGY-1 Pharmacy Residents:

1. Residency project established Emergency Department Pharmacists
2. Residency Program Coordinator
3. NICU/Pediatric specialist
4. PGY-2 Pharmacy Residency in Ambulatory Care
5. Established and managed an Anticoagulation Clinic
6. Professor for a School of Pharmacy

As well as practicing in various clinical pharmacist positions within the Puget Sound area and outside of Washington State

Minimum Requirements

To be considered for PGY1 residency position at Valley Medical Center, the following criteria must be met.

1. Must be attending or graduated from an ACPE accredited College of Pharmacy at time of application 
2. Must have achieved a minimum overall GPA of 3.0 or have passed all classes up to the point of application for schools with Pass/Fail assessments
3. Must be United States citizen
4. Must have all the following application materials completed no later than the deadline date specified on the online application form:

• Application Form
• A letter of intent stating reason(s) for applying to the Valley Medical Center Residency Program (uploaded online preferably in PDF format)
• An updated curriculum vitae (uploaded online preferably in PDF format)
• One copy of college transcripts (mailed or sent electronically directly from the university or college where pharmacy school was/is being attended)
• Three letters of professional recommendation on facility letterhead (sent electronically originating from email addresses of recommenders supplied on application form – preferably in PDF)

Core Rotations

Core learning experiences at VMC are designed to help residents develop the necessary skills for providing optimal pharmaceutical care to patients in a variety of care settings.  The resident’s first rotation will be spent orienting and training with the drug distribution components of the Department of Pharmacy Services.  During this time, residents will also begin training and demonstrating competency in VMC’s inpatient prescriptive authority protocols including but not limited to anticoagulation, pain management, parenteral nutrition, hyperemesis gravidarum, and antibiotics and pharmacokinetic consults. Core rotations length can be decreased or extended to accommodate for the residents’ interests.

*Tailored to the resident's interest

Elective Rotations

Elective rotations are four-week block learning experiences chosen by the resident based on his/her interest.  Rotations in resident interest areas not offered at VMC may be acquired off-site at area Puget Sound healthcare facilities.

• Infectious Disease
• Nephrology
• Neurology
• Oncology

Staffing

Resident staffing commitments are every other weekend and may involve centralized or decentralized order entry and/or clinical services. Residents are expected to respond to cardiopulmonary codes and ACLS and PALS training will be provided.

Project Management

Each resident is expected to participate in a project that enhances these learning objectives: developing criteria, seeking approval of the criteria from the medical staff, collecting and summarizing the data, analyzing the results, and presenting the findings. To fulfill this requirement at VMC, each resident must complete a pharmacotherapy project, a medication use evaluation, and an administrative project completed in publishable form.

Teaching Experience

Each resident will earn an appointment with the University of Washington School of Pharmacy as an Affiliate Clinical Instructor. Residents will serve as preceptors for pharmacy students on clinical clerkships.

Practice Management

Each resident will attend leadership seminars and complete a practice management rotation. This combination of practice management rotation, administrative project and management seminars and scheduled discussions will be used to provide the resident with an appreciation for the elements of successful practice management and the issues facing pharmacy managers.

Presentations

Each resident will have multiple opportunities to present at local, regional and national levels. Seminar presentations to pharmacy staff will occur frequently, as will presentation at Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee and Subcommittee meetings. Residents are required to present a poster at the ASHP Midyear Clinical Meeting and present the results of his/her pharmacotherapy project at Western States Conference among other requirements. Additional public speaking instruction (Toastmasters) is available at VMC for residents interested in this program.

Seminars and Meetings

Each resident is expected to attend the University of Washington Residency Showcase, Director’s Roundtable, ASHP Midyear Clinical Meeting, and Western States Conference.  Financial compensation is provided by VMC for these educational expenses.

Mentoring

In order to provide guidance and continuity during the entire year, each resident will select a mentor who will provide professional guidance, serve as a resource, and offer suggestions on self-management.

Licensure

Applicants must hold or be in the process of obtaining a Doctor of Pharmacy Degree from an ACPE-accredited college of pharmacy.  Applicants must be licensed to practice pharmacy in Washington State by July 31st.

Salary / Vacations / Holidays

2011-2012 salary compensation is $50,000. Each resident will be given 10 days of vacation / personal leave for the entire year. 9 paid holidays will also be provided to each resident.

Insurance

VMC provides individual health and dental insurance.

Position Availability

VMC currently offers two positions in our pharmacy residency program.

More Information

If you have any questions or would like any additional information, please contact:

Vivian Nguyen, Pharm.D.
Residency Program Coordinator
Department of Pharmacy
Valley Medical Center
400 South 43rd Street
P.O. Box 50010
Renton, WA  98058-5010
(425) 251-5164
Email