Pharmacy Practice Residency Program
Class of '09 Pharmacy Residents:
Lydia Zou (L) and Viet Lam (R)
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:
- Manage and improve the medication use process
- Provide evidence-based, patient-centered medication therapy management with interdisciplinary teams
- Exercise leadership and practice management skills
- Demonstrate project management skills
- Provide medication and practice-related education/training
- 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.
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 six inpatient prescriptive authority protocols: anticoagulation, pain management, parenteral nutrition, hyperemesis gravidarum, alcohol withdrawal, and antibiotics and pharmacokinetic consults.
Core Rotation | Length of Rotation |
| Internal Medicine | 8 weeks |
| Critical Care | 8 weeks |
| Pediatrics / Neonatal Intensive Care | 4 weeks |
| Ambulatory Care | 8 weeks |
| Anticoagulation Clinic | 4 weeks |
| Practice Management | Longitudinal |
| Drug Policy / Drug Information | Longitudinal |
| Quality Assurance | Longitudinal |
| Staffing / Drug Distribution | Longitudinal |
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.
- Nephrology
- Oncology
- Neurology
- Emergency Medicine
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 Grand Rounds topic at the medical center, present a poster at the ASHP Midyear Clinical Meeting, and present the results of his/her pharmacotherapy project at Western States Conference. 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 Career Day, 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 or be eligible for licensure in Washington State.
Insurance
VMC provides individual health and dental insurance.
Vacations / Holidays
Each resident will be given 10 days of vacation / personal leave for the entire year. Nine paid holidays will also be provided to each resident.
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
