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Cardiology

Cardiology

About this PGY2 Pharmacy Residency Program

Group picture of cardiovascular medicine team
Cardiovascular Medicine Team

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 residents, students, and technicians; nurses) throughout the residency year. Upon completion of the residency, residents will be equipped to practice in a variety of settings.

Program Purpose

PGY2 residency programs build upon 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 PGY2 residency programs are prepared for advanced patient care or other specialized positions, and board certification in the advanced practice area, if available.

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 40-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.

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.

Required Learning Experiences

Learning Experience Duration
Orientation 4 weeks
General Cardiology 4 weeks
Cardiac ICU/Advanced Heart Failure I 4 weeks
Cardiac ICU/Advanced Heart Failure II 4 weeks
Cardiothoracic Surgery 4 weeks
Cardiovascular ICU 4 weeks
Heart and Lung Transplant 4 weeks
Heart Failure and/or General Cardiology Clinic 4 weeks
Clinical Faculty Rotation 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
Cardiac ICU/Advanced Heart Failure III 4 weeks
Heart Failure and/or General Cardiology Clinic II 4 weeks

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, 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 swing (1400-2230) and weekend shifts (typically every 3rd weekend) and required holiday shifts (1 major and 2 minor). 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 will attend Mountain States Conference (MSC). The resident may have the opportunity to attend the American College of Cardiology (ACC) Annual Scientific Sessions depending on the availability of department travel funds.

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 college of pharmacy and have completed a PharmD or equivalent experience. For PGY2 residency, applicants must be on track for graduation from an ASHP-accredited PGY1 residency. Residents must be eligible to work in the the state of Utah. Residents must be eligible for Utah pharmacist licensure and are expected to obtain temporary Utah licensure by 2 weeks prior to starting the residency year and be fully licensed as a pharmacist in Utah within 90 days of starting the program.

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)
    For applicants from schools with no GPA, a class rank must be submitted to the program director.

The deadline for application submission is 2359 (EST) January 2, 2024.

Interviews

Interviews for 2024-2025 candidates will be held virtually in February 2024.

Program Director

Contact Information

Teshia Sorensen, PharmD, BCPS, BCCP, AACC
Clinical Pharmacist - Cardiovascular Medicine
Teshia.Sorensen@hsc.utah.edu

Program Coordinator

Contact Information

John Dechand, PharmD, BCCP
Clinical Pharmacist – Cardiovascular Medicine
John.Dechand@hsc.utah.edu