Residency Showcase Program Listings

Program Purpose and Information

The purpose of the VAMC Memphis PGY-2 Ambulatory Care Pharmacy Residency Program is to build on the Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) education and PGY-1 pharmacy residency program to contribute to the development of clinical pharmacists in Ambulatory Care. Residents will have opportunities to function independently as practitioners and work collaboratively as a member of the healthcare team by conceptualizing and integrating accumulated experience and knowledge and incorporating both into the provision of patient care that optimizes medication therapy. The PGY-2 Ambulatory Care resident will exercise proficiency in communication and education of other health care professionals, patients and the community. Upon completion of the PGY-2 Ambulatory Care residency, the resident will be prepared to establish collaborative interdisciplinary ambulatory care practices, possess competencies that qualify them for clinical pharmacist and/or faculty positions and position them to be eligible for attainment of board certification in Ambulatory Care (BCACP).

The VAMC Memphis has a long-standing tradition of providing clinical pharmacy services to the medical center and training highly qualified pharmacy residents. The PGY1 program was first accredited in 1963 and over 250 residents have completed training. The PGY2 Ambulatory Care pharmacy residency program has been accredited since 2016.

Pharmacy residency training program at the VAMC Memphis has allowed residents to train at an advanced level of practice in a progressive pharmacy environment. Sixteen ambulatory care clinical pharmacy specialists contribute to clinical services throughout the medical center. Clinical Pharmacy Specialists provide a wide variety of clinical pharmacy experiences including heart failure service, emergency medicine, practice management, pharmacoeconomics, psychiatry, ambulatory care and home based primary care. Longitudinal clinic experiences include hypertension, hyperlipidemia, pain management, heart failure, emergency medicine, neurology, rheumatology, hematology/oncology, geriatrics, infectious disease, and Hepatitis C.

The VAMC Memphis PGY-2 Ambulatory Care Pharmacy Residency is a 12-month training program. This program is a post-Doctor of Pharmacy program to be completed after an ASHP accredited PGY1 residency. The goal of this residency is to facilitate pharmacist growth and develop the clinical knowledge and experience necessary to provide pharmaceutical care to ambulatory patients. The resident will function independently and collaboratively with team members to achieve optimal drug therapy outcomes. The resident will have the opportunity to create and implement a clinical service, develop practice management skills, participate in several educational programs, provide lectures, precept students and participate in the teaching learning program. Residents will also participate in projects that will improve patient care. Training schedules include flexibility to allow residents to pursue areas of personal interest.

Program Structure:

Core required learning experiences:
- Pharmacotherapy Clinic I (8 weeks)
- Pharmacotherapy Clinic II (8 weeks)
- Pharmacotherapy Clinic III (8 weeks)
- Home Based Primary Care/SCI (4 weeks)
- Anticoagulation (4 weeks)
- Outpatient Mental Health (4 weeks)
- Pharmacy Practice Management (4 weeks)

Available specialty clinics:
- Hypertension Clinic
- Lipid Clinic
- Heart Failure Clinic
- Pain Clinic/Pain Coping Group
- GI/Hepatitis Clinic
- Nephrology Clinic
- Endocrinology Clinic  
- Women's Clinic

Elective rotations (4 weeks):
- Repeat required rotation
- Inpatient Cardiology
- Palliative Care/Pain Management
- Hematology/Oncology
- Internal Medicine/Transitional Care
- Geriatrics (long-term care)
- Mental Health Inpatient/Transitional Care 
- Outpatient Pain Management                  

Required, year-long, continuous learning experiences
- Adverse Drug Reaction Monitoring
- Formulary Management
- Outpatient Operational Staffing on a rotating basis
- Transitions of Care Staffing on rotation basis
- Management of outpatient clinical consults
- IRB approved research project with opportunity to publish results
- Case report publication or poster presentation
- Pharmacotherapy Presentations (2 hours)
- Resident Pharmacotherapy Clinic
- Teaching/Precepting
- Mentoring for the University of Tennessee Teaching and Learning Program
- Applied Therapeutics
- Population Management
- On a rotating basis, each resident serves as Chief Resident concurrent with other rotations.

For more information about our residency programs:
Visit our website: Pharmacy Practice Residency Programs | VA Memphis Health Care | Veterans Affairs

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For information about Memphis, TN: 
https://wearememphis.com/explore/travel/
https://choose901.com/

 APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS:

• General application requirements:
• U.S. Citizenship
• Pharm.D. from ACPE-accredited College of Pharmacy
• PhORCAS application requirements:
• Curriculum Vitae
• College of Pharmacy transcripts
• Letter of Intent
• Minimum of three letters of recommendation (preferred from clinical rotation preceptors)

NOTE: Submit all completed PhORCAS documents by 1/1/2024

NMS code: 735465

About Lt. Col. Luke Weathers Jr. VA Medical Center - Memphis, TN - PGY2 Ambulatory Care Pharmacy Residency

The Memphis VA Medical Center (VAMC) is a fully accredited tertiary facility with 240 beds and an additional 60 spinal cord injury beds. The facility offers a full range of acute medical, surgical and specialty care services. The VAMC Memphis serves over 196,000 Veterans in a 53 county wide area of West Tennessee, Northern Mississippi and Northwest Arkansas. Outpatient services are provided at nine VA staffed and contracted Community Based Outpatient.

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