1. Letter of intent – limited to one page, please include career goals, your interests and reasons for pursuing residency training and why you believe the residency program at Valley Medical Center can help you achieve your professional goals
   
   
2. Curriculum vitae  
   
   
3. Transcripts – School of Pharmacy transcripts required.  Undergraduate transcripts only required for candidates attending a School of Pharmacy with Pass/Fail grading system. If Pass/Fail system, please provide class rank if available.
   
   
4. Three letters of reference – completion of the PhORCAS Standardized Reference Form is required. Applicants should encourage reference writers to provide personal commentary when applicable. Separate letters of reference in addition to the PhORCAS Standardized Reference Form are not required.
   
   
5. Interview is required and will take place in February.
   
   

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The PGY1 Pharmacy Residency at Valley Medical Center (VMC) is an ASHP-accredited, twelve-month postgraduate program designed to provide residents with instruction and training in all aspects of advanced pharmacy practice including: acute patient care, ambulatory patient care, drug information, drug-use policy development, and practice management. Learning experiences are structured with flexibility to accommodate the specific needs of the individual. The goal of the program is to provide each individual with the necessary skills and competencies to succeed in a variety of positions including clinical pharmacy specialists, clinical faculty, or continuation of postgraduate training in a PGY-2 program or fellowship.  The program ultimately seeks to prepare individuals to assume leadership roles within the profession.

Valley Medical Center is a 341-bed acute care hospital and is the oldest and largest public district hospital in the State of Washington and serves as the primary teaching site for the PGY-1 residency program.  As an affiliate entity of the UW Medicine Health System, VMC pharmacy residents have the opportunity to complete elective rotation experiences at University of Washington Medical Center, Harborview Medical Center, and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.

Rotations at VMC are designed to assist the resident in developing the necessary skills to be a competent clinical pharmacy practitioner.  Core and elective rotations are taken by each resident and are each 4 weeks in length.  Additionally, there are also some longitudinal experiences as noted below. 

Core Rotations at VMC (9 rotations)

• 1- Orientation and Training
• 2- Internal Medicine/Medicine Subspecialty
• 1- Critical Care
• 1- NICU/Pediatrics
• 1- Oncology
• 2- Ambulatory Care
• 1- Project Month

 

Elective Rotations (3 rotations)
Residents may choose learning opportunities among Valley’s elective rotation offerings or choose elective rotations offered at one of our UW Medicine affiliate institutions. Elective rotations at VMC include: 

• Antimicrobial Stewardship
• Emergency Medicine
• Medication Safety and Quality Assurance
• Transitions of Care

 

Longitudinal Rotations
Year long experiences include integrated services rotations/staffing, specialty pharmacy clinic (1/2 day per week), and pharmacy administration.

• Demonstrate proficiency and leadership through the provision of evidence-based, patient-centered, cost effective medication therapy management as a member of an interdisciplinary healthcare team

• Exercise leadership and practice management skills in all aspects of pharmaceutical care 

• Demonstrate effective teaching skills toward patients and other healthcare professionals

• Demonstrate the ability to make sound clinical judgments, set priorities and assume responsibility

• Demonstrate an understanding of medication use evaluation (MUE), quality improvement and assurance, and project management

• Complete all required and elective rotations

• Complete a clinical service or research project designed to improve the clinical pharmacy services at Valley Medical Center or achieve a specific research goal and present the results at the Western States Conference for Pharmacy Residents and Preceptors

• Complete a MUE and present results to the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee

• Prepare and present drug monographs for the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee

• Participate in teaching activities at the medical center and the school of pharmacy

• Participate in residency meetings

• All residents have an integrated service commitment designed to assure that the resident can function as a pharmacy generalist. To achieve this objective, resident staffing commitments are generally every other weekend and involve both distributive and clinical responsibilities.

To be considered for a position as a PGY-1 resident at Valley Medical Center, all applicants must meet the following criteria:

• The applicant must possess a pharmacy degree from an ACPE-accredited College or School of Pharmacy and be eligible for licensure as a pharmacist in the State of Washington

• Be a United States citizen or permanent resident (VMC does not sponsor visas), and meet VMC eligibility requirements for employment

• Must be registered with the ASHP Resident Matching Program

• Complete all required application materials within the Pharmacy Online Residency Centralized Application Service (PhORCAS™) by the specified deadline.

• Selected applicants will be required to interview

Resident Stipend
Approximately $75,000 annually

Vacation
Residents are provided with 12 vacation days, including 2 floating holidays, during the residency year which may be used following 90 days of employment.

Holidays
Residents will have a majority of Valley-recognized holidays off, but will be expected to work one major holiday. Major holidays include: Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day. Other Valley-recognized holidays include: Independence Day, Labor Day, and Memorial Day.

Project Days
Residents are provided with ~27 project days over the course of the year, including project week in late August/early September, project month in December, and 7 floating project days for use after January.

Benefits
Valley Medical Center is consistently ranked as a “Best Place to Work” and values its’ employees with excellent benefits including medical and dental. Visit our Careers site for more details

Twelve months, beginning on July 1, 2024