Pharmacy

Program Structure

Core Learning Experiences

PGY1 Core Learning Experiences

(Note: This list is subject to change based on staffing availability.)

PGY2 Core Learning Experiences:

Elective Experiences

PGY1 Electives in support of the HSPAL program (two months)

PGY2 Electives (two months)

PGY2 Learning Experiences:

Hospital Executive Leadership:

The resident will work directly with the vice president of patient services. The experience provides exposure to the structure and function of executive health-system leadership. It will also include meetings with senior hospital leaders and subordinates, and other divisional leaders. The resident will be involved in Patient Services strategic planning and gain perspective of pharmacy’s role within the health-system.

Divisional Leadership:

The resident work with the chief pharmacy officer to learn the dynamics of leadership of a pharmacy enterprise. They will experience the impact that pharmacy services have on other divisions of the heath-system. The resident will participate in the assessment of departmental activities to assure compliance with applicable legal, regulatory, safety and accreditation requirements. They will be involved in the assessment of customer satisfaction and participate in the development of improvement methods. The resident will develop an understanding of the principles of employee engagement and various aspects of human resources management. They will learn the skills required for developing a business plan for new pharmacy services.

Pharmacy Operational Leadership I:

The resident will work with the director of pharmacy operations to develop an understanding of inpatient operations across the pharmacy enterprise. The resident will lead and participate operational meetings to ensure coordination across multiple pharmacies. The resident will lead and participate in operational projects that impact both the division and external customers. They will be involved in topic discussions regarding drug distribution, automation/technology, regulatory compliance, and leadership development. The resident will also have the opportunity to work with our Epic Willow team on operational changes.

Pharmacy Operational Leadership II: (Satellites)

The resident will work with the director of pharmacy operations and specific pharmacy satellite leaders to develop an understanding of operations in multiple satellite pharmacies including the Operating Room pharmacy, Cancer and Blood Diseases Institute pharmacy, Critical Care pharmacy, and Emergency Department pharmacy. The resident will understand how pharmacy services differ in each of the pharmacy satellites.

Pharmacy Finances:

The resident work with the Senior Business Director will focus on the annual operating and capital budget process of the Pharmacy. They will be involved in the budget preparation meetings as well as an overview of the Hospital budget system. They will be involved in monthly finance meetings which focuses on monthly revenue, FTE analysis, and pharmaceutical spend. This individual will develop an understanding of the financial metrics used for measuring financial health of the pharmacy. The resident will be provided with an overview of the pharmaceutical purchasing and inventory process within the hospital and retail pharmacies. They will meet with the Inventory Manager to develop an understanding of the Inventory systems and process flows. They will be involved in the Medication Savings committee. This will give the resident exposure to Pharmacy cost savings opportunities and the measurement/tracking of the initiatives.

Home Infusion and Specialty Pharmacy:

This rotation will provide valuable insight to Specialty Pharmacy and Home Infusion. The resident will be introduced medication purchasing (including 340b impact and management), storage, dispensing, billing (NCPDP and medical claims), and collaborative efforts with Home Care nursing. They will learn about Specialty Pharmacy specific information, such as URAC and TJC regulatory requirements and data collection elements, cold-chain management and testing, and clinical monitoring and assessments for various medications and chronic illnesses. For Home Infusion Pharmacy, the resident will be taught about ambulatory infusion pumps, supplies, patient education/training, and USP <797>/<800> impact on mixing and delivery and regulatory requirements.

Clinical Pharmacy Services:

The resident will work collaboratively with the director of clinical services, the pharmacy clinical coordinators and other healthcare disciplines to ensure optimal patient care services. The resident will experience the impact legal, regulatory, safety and accreditation requirements have when making decisions regarding system-wide and patient specific medication use. The resident will engage in various multidisciplinary working groups and hospital wide committees addressing the safe and effective use of medication across the continuum of care. The resident will develop an understanding of the formulary system and medication policy management.

Ambulatory Pharmacy Services:

The resident will experience pharmacy services provided in the outpatient setting. They will learn management skills required to operate three ambulatory pharmacy outlets: Main, ED and Liberty outpatient pharmacies. Experiences include personnel management, insurance prior authorization and adjudication, 340b inventory control, dispensing, and regulatory and standards requirements. They will participate in insurance and 340b audits.

Automation and Pharmacy Informatics:

The pharmacy automation and informatics rotation will provide a comprehensive overview of how pharmacy automation and informatics helps drive the medication use process. Hands on learning through targeted automation projects will be supplemented by topic discussions referencing best practices around automation, technology, and informatics in the pharmacy space. Upon completion, residents will be able to demonstrate understanding of how the electronic health record interfaces with pharmacy automation and how to lead operational changes across the digital continuum. Additionally, residents will experience and learn about HL7 interfaces, automated dispensing cabinet optimization, IV workflow systems, carousels, RFID systems, and the exploration and evaluation of novel technologies.

Medication Safety II:

Advanced Medication Safety rotation is designed to provide the resident with opportunities to function independently as a knowledgeable medication safety leader with emphasis on IHI Model for Improvement and Science of Safety. The resident will work closely with medication safety officer, chief pharmacy officer, and medication safety pharmacist. They will have the opportunity to collaborate with hospital safety leaders, risk management and multidisciplinary frontline teams to develop and implement process improvements to address identified medication safety concerns within the health system.