PLEASE NOTE: Cardiology will not be recruiting for the 2023-2024 year.
About this PGY2 Pharmacy Residency Program
The cardiology pharmacy residency program at University of Utah Health (UUH) offers a specialized training experience in which residents are fully integrated into multidisciplinary teams that include physicians, advanced practice clinicians (e.g. physician assistants, advanced practice nurses), nurses, respiratory therapists, physical therapists, dietary specialists, case managers, and social workers. The program develops clinically strong practitioners with the knowledge and skills needed to provide comprehensive medication management to patients with diverse cardiovascular conditions. Residents will enhance their leadership skills and practice management in a cardiovascular medicine environment. Residents will provide formal and informal education to a variety of learners (e.g., physicians, pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, nurses) throughout the residency year. Upon completion of the residency, residents will be equipped to practice in a variety of settings.
Program Purpose
Our PGY2 pharmacy residency programs build on Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) education and PGY1 pharmacy residency training to develop pharmacist practitioners with knowledge, skills, and abilities as defined in the educational competency areas, goals, and objectives for advanced practice areas. Residents who successfully complete our PGY2 residency programs are prepared for advanced patient care or other specialized positions, and board certification in the advanced practice area, if available.
Program Description
The cardiology pharmacy residency program at University of Utah Health (UUH) offers a specialized training experience in which residents are fully integrated into multidisciplinary teams that include physicians, advanced practice clinicians (e.g. physician assistants, advanced practice nurses), nurses, respiratory therapists, physical therapists, dietary specialists, case managers, and social workers. The program develops clinically strong practitioners with the knowledge and skills needed to provide comprehensive medication management to patients with diverse cardiovascular conditions. Residents will enhance their leadership skills and practice management in a cardiovascular medicine environment. Residents will provide formal and informal education to a variety of learners (e.g., physicians, pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, nurses) throughout the residency year. Upon completion of the residency, residents will be equipped to practice in a variety of settings.
Site Description
UUH is one of the premier cardiovascular institutions in the United States and the flagship academic medical center for the Intermountain West. UUH inpatient cardiovascular care is high-volume and high-throughput. It consists of a 35-bed cardiovascular medicine unit, 20-bed cardiovascular intensive care unit, 3 heart catheterization labs, and 2 electrophysiology labs. The Cardiovascular Center (CVC) serves 100-150 patients per day in its subspecialty clinics (general cardiology, heart failure and transplantation, cardiothoracic surgery, interventional cardiology, electrophysiology, congenital heart disease, vascular surgery, cardio-oncology, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, amyloid, sarcoid, and pulmonary hypertension clinics).
Click to learn more about the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and the Department of Pharmacy Services.
Program Educational Outcomes, Goals, and Objectives
The program teaches and evaluates the five required ASHP Competency Areas, Goals, and Objectives for PGY2 cardiology pharmacy residencies (i.e., R1-R5). Elective Competency Areas, Goals, and Objectives (i.e., E1-E6) may be selected for individual resident(s), and if selected, will be evaluated quarterly as part of the resident’s development plan.
Requirements
Required Learning Experiences
| Learning Experience | Duration |
|---|---|
| Orientation | 4 weeks |
| General Cardiology | 4 weeks |
| Cardiothoracic Surgery | 4 weeks |
| Cardiac ICU/Advanced Heart Failure I and II | 4 weeks each |
| Cardiovascular ICU | 4 weeks |
| Heart and Lung Transplant | 4 weeks |
| Heart Failure and/or General Cardiology Clinic | 4 weeks |
| Pulmonary Hypertension Clinic - physician precepted | 4 weeks |
| Cardiovascular Imaging, Testing, and Procedures | 2 weeks (knowledge gathering experience) |
| Leadership and Preceptorship | 12 months (longitudinal) |
| Presentations and Education | 12 months (longitudinal) |
| Project Management | 12 months (longitudinal) |
| Service Commitment (Staffing) | 12 months (longitudinal) |
Elective Learning Experiences
| Learning Experience | Duration |
|---|---|
| Electrophysiology – physician precepted | 3 weeks |
| General Cardiology II | 4 weeks |
| Heart Failure and/or General Cardiology Clinic II | 4 weeks |
|
Subspecialty Clinic (may select 1-2 clinics)
|
6-12 months (longitudinal) |
Note: Alternative electives may be developed. Any rotation offered at UUH may be considered, but must be approved by RPD.
Research Project
Residents will complete their required research/quality improvement project within a collaborative, interdisciplinary environment, and as such, residents have the opportunity to meet regularly with other collaborators (e.g., physicians, nurses, etc.) to enhance their overall research design. Residents are also supported by one of the preeminent Drug Information Services in the country, which is readily accessible within our pharmacy department.
This residency utilizes the flipped research model approach:
- Data collection, interpretation, and manuscript writing in the Fall/Winter
- Project selection and proposal to RAC and IRB in the Winter/Spring
- Formal presentation, manuscript submission to at least one journal, and value summary (if applicable) in the Spring
Service Commitment (Staffing)
The resident will complete their service commitment primarily on the Cardiovascular Care Unit through a combination of decentralized weekend shifts (typically every 3rd weekend) and required holiday shifts (1 major and 2 minor). In addition, all PGY2 residents will be scheduled some central swing shifts (1500-2330) to advance their proficiencies in central operations and meet the staffing needs of the pharmacy department. Following successful completion of the Cardiac ICU/Advanced Heart Failure I rotation, the resident will also be eligible to staff decentralized cardiology swing shifts (1400-2230). The resident is expected to cover an average of 4 shifts per month in a staffing role (48 shifts for the year and ~34 hours per month).
During decentralized weekend shifts and required holiday shifts, the resident will be responsible for providing comprehensive pharmaceutical care to all patients on the assigned teams. The resident is expected to attend daily rounds with the assigned team as well as be the primary pharmacy contact person for each assigned team. Residents are also expected to perform thorough medication and vaccination histories on each patient and communicate pertinent patient information through documentation in the electronic chart.
Professional Meetings
The resident is expected to attend ASHP Midyear Clinical Meeting / Vizient and Mountain States Conference (MSC), and will have the opportunity to attend the American College of Cardiology (ACC) Annual Scientific Sessions.
Fringe Benefits
Residents accrue 18 days of paid time off (PTO) and 10 paid holidays per year, but are asked to limit vacation and interview days to 10 total per year. Residents staff 3 holidays per year. Residents are classified as regular, full time, exempt employees and receive health, dental, and life insurance, and staff discounts.
Qualifications
Applicants must be graduates of an ACPE-accredited pharmacy program and have completed a PharmD or equivalent combination of education and clinical experience. Applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.1 on a 4-point scale. For PGY2 residency, applicants must have completed or be on track to complete an ASHP-accredited PGY1 residency. Residents must be eligible to work in the U.S. (UUH does not sponsor visas). Residents must be eligible for Utah licensure and are expected to obtain temporary licensure at least 2 weeks prior to starting the residency year and be fully licensed as a pharmacist by the Department of Professional Licensing (DOPL) in Utah by September 30th of the program year.
Recruitment and Selection
All residency programs at UUH use the Pharmacy Online Residency Centralized Application Service (PhORCAS) and participate in the ASHP Resident Matching Program. No paper applications will be accepted. Completed applications in PhORCAS are reviewed, and competitive applicants are invited to a full-day interview. The following items are required:
- Completed application - apply via PhORCAS
- Curriculum vitae
- Letter of intent
- Three recommendations using the PhORCAS standard form
- College of Pharmacy transcripts (minimum acceptable GPA = 3.1/4.0 scale)
The deadline for application submission is 2359 (EST) December 31, 2021.
Interviews
Interviews for 2022-2023 candidates will be held virtually on February 7th and 9th, 2022.
Program Director
Teshia Sorensen, PharmD, BCPS, BCCP, AACC
Clinical Pharmacist - Cardiovascular Medicine
Teshia.Sorensen@hsc.utah.edu
Program Coordinator
John Dechand, PharmD, BCCP
Clinical Pharmacist – Cardiovascular Medicine
John.Dechand@hsc.utah.edu