Residency Showcase Program Listings

Website: https://www.va.gov/durham-health-care/work-with-us/internships-and-fellowships/pharmacy-residents-and-trainees/

The ASHP-Accredited Postgraduate Year Two (PGY2) Geriatrics Residency Program at the Durham VA Health Care System (DVAHCS) has been developed in cooperation with the Duke Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development and the Durham Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC). The residents will work with experienced clinicians, educators and researchers from the Durham VA HCS and Duke University School of Medicine. The residency provides trainees experiences in practice areas across the continuum of care including long term care (LTC), ambulatory care, home based care, and hospital settings. Interested DVAHCS PGY1 residents may apply for early commitment into the program.

Practice Settings

The primary practice settings of this residency program include LTC in the DVAHCS Community Living Center (CLC) and Ambulatory Care in the Geriatric Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT). The CLC is a VA LTC facility that offers long term care, rehabilitation, respite care, and hospice/palliative care services to our nation’s Veterans. Geriatric PACT offers enhanced ambulatory care and interdisciplinary expertise for managing community-dwelling Veterans with challenging healthcare needs due to multiple chronic diseases, coexisting cognitive and functional decline, and psychosocial factors. The resident’s rotation schedule is developed at the beginning of the residency year based on the interests and career goals of each resident. Schedules may be tailored throughout the year based on resident’s professional goals.

Required Learning Experiences (Duration)

• CLC Short Stay and Rehab I and II (2 months)
• LTC CLC Monthly Pharmacy Assessments I and II (12 months total)
• Models of Care (1 month)
• Geriatric PACT I and II (12 months total)
• Geriatric Pharmacotherapy and Professional Development (12 months)
• Geriatric Psychiatry (1 month)
• Home Based Primary Care-HBPC (1 month)
• Hospice and Palliative Care (1 month) 
• Orientation (1 month) 
• Medical Writing (12 weeks) 
• Research Project (12 months)
• Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting (12 weeks)
• Staffing (12 months, ~5 weekends per year under dual appointment)

Elective Rotational Experiences (All rotations have a one-month duration)

• Academic Detailing
• Ambulatory Care
• Cardiology
• Emergency Medicine
• Endocrinology
• Formulary Management/Pharmacy Administration
• Infectious Disease
• Internal Medicine
• Oncology
• Pain Management
• Pharmacogenomics
• Pulmonary
• Senior PharmAssist

Additional Learning Experiences

Additional rotations outside of the above-mentioned will be authorized on a case-by-case basis based on the learning opportunity.

Teaching Responsibilities

The resident is expected to assist with precepting PGY1 residents on their geriatric clinical rotation. The resident will assist in teaching Duke University School of Medicine geriatric medicine fellows’ principles of geriatric pharmacotherapy and have numerous teaching opportunities incorporated within rotational experiences.

Geriatric Conferences and Education Opportunities

A variety of geriatric educational opportunities are available through Duke Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development and the DVAHCS GRECC to enhance the resident’s geriatric knowledge base and foster professional relationships within the geriatric professional community. The resident is expected to attend scheduled conferences, seminars, and workshops, as permitted, during the year.

Select Geriatric Conferences and Education Opportunities

• Pharmacy Clinical Conference
• Geriatric Grand Rounds
• Geriatric Friday Morning Conference
• Geriatrics Excellence in Teaching Series
• Geriatric Core Curriculum
• Geriatric Evidence Based Medicine Course
• Advance Course in Long Term Care Series

Program Benefits
The Veterans Health Administration sets annual residency stipends (currently $47,167) and benefits for all VA residency programs. Each resident is offered 13 days each of accrued vacation and sick leave/family care, 10 paid federal holidays, and a health care benefits package. Pharmacy residents may also receive educational leave with pay to attend and present at local and national conferences. The resident may also be eligible for a faculty appointment with the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy.

Accreditation Status

The PGY2 Geriatric Pharmacy Residency Program was originally accredited in 1993. The program has been continually re-accredited since then, most recently in 2017, and has a full 8-year accreditation from ASHP.

Eligibility Requirements

Qualified applicants are required to possess a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from an accredited college of pharmacy, be a citizen of the United States, have an active pharmacy license in any state by the first day of the residency, and have completed an accredited Pharmacy Practice or PGY1 Residency training program.

How to Apply:

By January 6, 2023, interested individuals should submit an application through PhORCAS with the following components:

1. Letter of intent indicating why advanced training through a geriatrics residency program at the Durham VA is desired
2. Curriculum vitae
3. Professional transcripts
4. PhORCAS recommendation form from three references

About Durham VA Health Care System

The Durham VA Health Care System (DVAHCS) - Medical Center is a 271-bed tertiary care referral, teaching and research facility affiliated with Campbell University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, the University of North Carolina Eshelman School of Pharmacy, and the Duke University School of Medicine. The Medical Center provides general and specialty medical, surgical, psychiatric inpatient and ambulatory services, and serves as a major referral center for North Carolina, southern Virginia, northern South Carolina, and eastern Tennessee. Special programs at Durham include a comprehensive Women’s Health Center, a Home Based Primary Care program, a Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), the VISN 6 Mental Illness, Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC), the Center for Health Services Research in Primary Care, the Southeast Epilepsy Center of Excellence, and the Epidemiology Research and Information Center (ERIC). Pharmacy Residents at the Durham VA will practice under the guidance of a department of over 100 staff members with a team of over 40 Clinical Pharmacy Specialists (CPS). The department provides 24-hour centralized services in additi...on to clinical support provided by our CPS team. The CPS provide progressive, multi-disciplinary, patient-centered care in a wide variety of clinical areas under a scope of practice that grants prescriptive privileges. In addition to their clinical responsibilities, many of our residency program preceptors also serve as preceptors for the regional schools of pharmacy, conduct clinical research projects, participate in scholarly activities, and serve as leaders for numerous state and national pharmacy organizations. The department also offers a VA Learning Opportunities Residency (VALOR) program for pharmacy students. Beyond the traditional learning experiences of a residency program, our residents will also have the opportunity to participate in teaching certificate programs, co-precept pharmacy students on APPE rotations, and serve as a teaching assistant for a clinical practice lab at UNC. Residents will also receive support and guidance from the Residency Program Director, the Residency Advisory Committee, the Research Advisory Committee, and a formal mentorship program.

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