First-Year Residency Candidates' Experience in Various Areas of Pharmacy Practice

Am J Pharm Educ. 2008 February 15; 72(1): 6.

PMCID: PMC2254231

First-Year Residency Candidates' Experience in Various Areas of Pharmacy Practice

Kristen Garris, PharmD,^a Marlea G Wellein, PharmD,^b Andrea Wessell, PharmD,^b Dominic Ragucci, PharmD,^c and Melissa M Blair, PharmD^d

^aUniversity of Tennessee College of Pharmacy

^bSouth Carolina College of Pharmacy - Charleston

^cMedical University of South Carolina Medical Center

^dCoastal Area Health Education Center, Wilmington, North Carolina

Corresponding author.

Corresponding Author: Marlea G Wellein, PharmD, BCPS; South Carolina College of Pharmacy, 280 Calhoun St. PO Box 250143, Charleston, SC 29425; phone: 843-792-0822; fax: 843-792-8368; e-mail: wellein/at/musc.edu

Received May 11, 2007; Accepted September 1, 2007.

This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.

Abstract

Objective

To determine the extent of experience or exposure pharmacy residency candidates had in various areas of hospital pharmacy practice and to identify any candidate-specific variables that correlated with a larger extent of experience.

Methods

Over a 3-year period, a self-assessment survey instrument was administered to 116 postgraduate first-year (PGY1) pharmacy practice residency candidates to evaluate their extent of experience within various areas of hospital pharmacy practice such as patient care activities, drug information, and drug distribution/control.

Results

The residency candidates reported the greatest amount of experience in patient counseling, working with pharmacy databases, taking medication histories, pharmacokinetics, and outpatient dispensing procedures. They had less experience with medical emergencies, parenteral nutrition, and intravenous admixture techniques. Overall, there was no correlation between class rank, advanced pharmacy practice experiences, geographic region, or year of interview and the extent of candidates' experience in any specific area of pharmacy.

Conclusion

PGY1 residency candidates in this sample reported minimal experience in areas necessary for hospital pharmacy practice and this suggests possible deficiencies in the PharmD curriculum. PGY1 residency programs in acute care settings should recognize these educational deficits and assure that residents have exposure to and develop proficiency in critical areas such as medical emergencies, parenteral nutrition, and intravenous admixture techniques.

Keywords: pharmacy practice, residency, assessment, survey

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