PGY2 Critical Care Residency

The PGY2 Critical Care Residency is an American Society of Health System Pharmacists (ASHP) accredited twelve-month program that transitions the PGY1 Pharmacy Practice resident to a specialized practice within critical care. The program provides experiences in medical, surgical, trauma, burn, neuroscience, cardiothoracic surgery, cardiology, code response, and emergency medicine populations. The critical care resident will participate in quality improvement projects, institutional committees, didactic lectures, and other educational activities to foster the knowledge, skills, leadership, and attitudes to competently participate in a contemporary multidisciplinary critical care team.

Purpose Statement

PGY2 pharmacy residency programs build on Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) education and PGY1 pharmacy residency programs to contribute to the development of clinical pharmacists in specialized areas of practice. PGY2 residencies provide residents with opportunities to function independently as practitioners by conceptualizing and integrating accumulated experience and knowledge and incorporating both into the provision of patient care or other advanced practice settings. Residents who successfully complete an accredited PGY2 pharmacy residency are prepared for advanced patient care, academic, or other specialized positions, along with board certification, if available.

Qualifications

Applicants must be Doctor of Pharmacy graduates from an ACPE-accredited school or college of pharmacy; have completed an accredited PGY1 Pharmacy Practice Residency; be licensed or eligible for pharmacist licensure in Virginia; and possess requisite patient care training or experience. The successful applicant must possess exceptional knowledge, clinical problem-solving, communication skills, and leadership qualities.

Residency Goals

To develop essential clinical competencies in the care of complex critically ill patients.
To develop teaching, assessment, and communication skills necessary to provide education to multidisciplinary critical care providers and trainees.
To develop proficiency in institutional policies, systems, and critical care pharmacy practice.
To provide experience in quality improvement and research.
To enhance written and oral communication skills to enable the resident to contribute professionally through presentation and publication.
To enhance organizational and leadership skills.

Program Structure

The program is comprised of six (6) required, and three (3) elective rotation experiences. The rotations are generally five weeks in duration; however, the Staffing & Administration rotation is longitudinal over the course of the year and occurs within three critical care pharmacy satellite locations. Additional longitudinal experiences include completion of a research/quality improvement project, a medication use evaluation, presence on institutional committees, didactic and clinical precepting, and emergency response. Each resident will co-precept an APPE pharmacy student from the VCU School of Pharmacy on one rotation under the guidance of that rotation preceptor if the scheduling allows (Clinical Teaching learning experience). Longitudinal experiences are completed in conjunction with required and elective rotations.

Required Rotations (6)

Critical Care CORE 1 & 2
Critical Care CORE 3 & 4
Critical Care CORE 5 & 6

Critical Care CORE Rotations Include:

Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit (CSICU)
Coronary Care Intensive Care Unit (CICU)
Emergency Medicine
Medical Respiratory Intensive Care Unit (MRICU)
Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit (NSICU)
Surgical/Trauma/Burn Intensive Care Unit (STICU/BURN)

The order of rotations is customized to the resident’s experience and areas of interest.

Elective Rotations (3)

Critical Care CORE 7 & 8 & 9 (includes a repeat of any required ICU experiences listed above and/or Clinical Toxicology)

Longitudinal Experiences

Staffing & Administration
Operational staffing (every third weekend, ~17 weekends per year, plus 1 minor and 1 major holiday)
Committee attendance and observation (~8 meetings per year)
Emergency Response Coverage (from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM every other rotation block, ~4 rotation blocks per year)
Emergency Medicine On-Call Program (~15 On-Call sessions per year)
Research/Quality Improvement Project
Medication Use Evaluation

Presentations

Continuing Education
Journal Club
Case Conference
VCU School of Pharmacy Didactic Lectures

Teaching

PGY2 Critical Care Residents are given an academic faculty appointment as a Clinical Instructor in the VCU School of Pharmacy and have opportunities to provide didactic instruction (e.g., lectures, team-based learning sessions, case conferences) and experiential training (e.g., APPEs) for Doctor of Pharmacy students from the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Pharmacy. Residents may participate in an elective teaching and learning certificate program.

Research and Quality Improvement

Each resident is responsible for initiating and successfully completing a research project, with presentation at an internal residency research symposium and at a national meeting (ASHP, Vizient, SCCM). Residents are encouraged to submit their projects for publication. An advisor and additional support guide the resident through the process. Potential critical care research projects are presented to the residents at the start of the residency program.

Program Leadership

Program Director
Lisa Kurczewski, PharmD, BCCCP
Clinical Specialist, Neurocritical Care
Clinical Assistant Professor of Pharmacy
PharmD, State University of New York at Buffalo
Residency in Pharmacy Practice, Yale-New Haven Hospital
Residency in Critical Care, West Virginia University

Preceptors

Cassandra Baker, PharmD – Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit (CSICU) and Coronary Care Unit (CICU)
Gretchen Brophy, PharmD, BCPS, FCCP, FCCM, FNCS, MCCM – School of Pharmacy
William Cahoon, Jr, PharmD, BCPS, BCCP, BCCCP – Coronary Care Unit (CICU) and Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit (CSICU)
Greg Chenault, PharmD, BCCCP – Surgical and Trauma Critical Care (STICU/Burn ICU)
Kailey Denny, PharmD – Emergency Medicine
Brittany Hardek, PharmD – Medical Respiratory Intensive Care Unit (MRICU)
Lisa Kurczewski, PharmD, BCCCP – Neurosciences Intensive Care Unit (NSICU)

Accreditation

This program is accredited by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists and participates in the ASHP/NMS PGY2 Matching Program and PhORCAS. For details, visit the ASHP PhORCAS website.

Recruitment

Visit our Application and Recruitment page for more information on our virtual sessions and ASHP showcase and Personal Placement Service participation.

Salary and Benefits

The salary for PGY2 pharmacy residents at VCU Health System is $60,000.

Duration of Appointment

The pharmacy resident's contract at VCU Health System will begin on July 1 of the program year. The pharmacy residency will be completed on June 30 of the subsequent year.

Leave and Benefits

Two weeks (10 days) of paid vacation or personal leave are granted. Additionally, 9 days of paid holiday leave and 5 days of paid sick leave are provided. Residents also receive 2 days of family/self-care leave and 10 days for educational or professional leave.

Health Benefits

The VCU Health System provides a health insurance policy, including outpatient physician visits, lab tests, and optional dental, vision, and family coverage.

Liability Insurance

VCU Health System provides professional liability (malpractice) insurance for each pharmacy resident. The policy covers professional service within the institution.

Moonlighting

Residents may pursue additional paid staffing within VCU Health System upon program director approval, not exceeding 16 hours weekly.

Office Space and Resources

Office space and remote access to patient and drug information are provided for residents.

Health and Recreation Facilities

Residents have access to VCU recreational facilities at a reduced membership fee.

Parking

Parking and health-system shuttles are available on the VCU Medical Center campus at no cost.