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Pharmacy program to celebrate 50 years by Mary Helen Yarborough Public Relations The pharmacy residency program at MUSC  enters its 50th anniversary next year as it celebrates one of the most established pharmacy residency training traditions in America.   With 13 programs, including a new transplant pharmacy program and an average of between 20 and 23 students a year, MUSC’s Pharmacy Residency Program is also one of the nation’s largest, according to Paul Bush, PharmD, director of Graduate Pharmacy Education.   There are 20 first- and second-year residents in MUSC's Pharmacy Residency Program. The pharmacists who train in the residency program are driven and seek advanced training to attain their goals. Most of these residents will become clinical practitioners, with approximately 80 percent working in a health system setting and 20 percent working in an academic setting.   They may one day work in an emergency department advising doctors and nurses on life and death situations. They may round with physicians and collaborate in a patient’s treatment plan, or become specialized in pediatrics, pharmacotherapy, psychiatry or hematology. Or, they may become managers, directors or researchers.   After completing their residency, these pharmacists are sought by employers from across the country. “My residency training at MUSC allowed me to assume a very rewarding clinical position at MUSC,” said Wendy Bullington, PharmD, a clinical pharmacy specialist. Two years ago, Bullington started and now heads the Pharmacy’s Emergency/Pulmonary Medicine program. She also is the director of the Pharmacotherapy Residency Program.   A preceptor to residents, Bullington has spent most of her time in the Emergency Department preparing drips and medications, and advising doctors on what medicine to give and avoid in patients. “There’s always something new, something different, and it’s exhilarating getting involved and making a contribution,” Bullington said.   Meanwhile, the desire to be a part of the residency program continues to grow.   “Each year, we receive about 200 applications from all over the country and we invite 60 of those applicants for an interview,” Bush said.   Pharmacy residents will have earned their PharmD degrees, and will spend either one or two more years in the program accredited by the American Society for Health System Pharmacists.   The first-year residents, called PGY-1, generally come from all over the country and will become clinical pharmacy generalists after spending a year in various clinical rotations.   The second-year residents, or PGY-2, will become specialized. They will have completed the PGY-1 program and will spend another year in extensive training in their selected specialties.   Residents also take electives based on their professional interests, and they all learn teaching skills and take an active role in the education of students under the direction of pharmacy faculty. They participate in drug use review, drug policy development and management, and they teach clinicians and patients about drug therapy.   MUSC has more than 35 pharmacy specialists. Many of these specialists lead one of the 13 residency programs or they become preceptors, or a kind of a mentor and advisor, to the residents.   Since it began in 1958, MUSC’s residency program has trained 466 pharmacists.   The program will turn 50 after January, which will be celebrated during the pharmacy residency certificate ceremony in June. Pharmacy residents experience clinical, management training A pharmacist’s career path can require expertise that depends upon the drive and success of the individual. At MUSC, phar-macy residents have the opportunity to investigate and experience an array of specialties that mirror most key services of a large hospital system.   PharmDs Carolyn Smith, Michael DeCoske and Brian McKinzie have vastly different interests.   Smith, a second-year  resident, graduated from Albany College of Pharmacy. She also earned a master's degree in heath systems administration from Union Graduate College. She seeks a career in pharmacy administration.   DeCoske, the first-year chief resident and Duquesne University pharmacy school graduate, likes research and hopes to work in the field of oncology. “I am interested in clinical pharmacy research, and the genetic and translational research in oncology,” said DeCoske. The Pittsburgh native also aspires to become a pharmaceutical expert for mass media.   Like their 17 fellow residents, they have a lot of training to do before they graduate. All first-year residents must rotate in psychiatry, pediatrics, adult medicine, ambulatory care, critical care, drug information, and practice management. All residents must complete research suitable for publication in addition to at least two one-hour-long lectures to preceptors, peers and faculty, including an Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education-accredited seminar. Residents also participate in medication-use evaluations to spot potential errors and cost savings, as well as make recommendations for improvements in those areas.    Currently, Smith and DeCoske are rotating in pharmacy practice management. “During this month, residents learn about the leadership and management skills needed to operate a pharmacy department.  We have the opportunity to learn about ongoing projects, as well as the collaborative work that goes into keeping a hospital running efficiently,” Smith said.   As the newly elected  second-year chief resident, Brian McKinzie works with DeCoske to act as an intermediary between the residency committee, preceptors, and his co-residents, in addition to being an advocate.   An imposing figure with a gregarious nature, McKinzie thrives on a fast pace and rapid critical thinking. As a result, he  has selected trauma and critical care as areas to pursue.   Meanwhile, he hopes to inspire an appreciation and consideration for fields in health system pharmacy. “I want to get people more excited about clinical pharmacy so they know there are many options other than Walgreens and CVS,” said McKinzie, a St. Louis College of Pharmacy graduate. “Working in clinical pharmacy offers a more proactive approach to patient care as opposed to the reactive care in retail pharmacy.”     Friday, Sept. 21, 2007 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. 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