[Rx2021] PGY1 Residency Opportunity In Winchester VA

[Borrelli, Marcia]

Hello class of 2021!

My name is Charisa Flaherty. I am the residency program director for the PGY1 residency at Winchester Medical Center (WMC). WMC is a growing 495 bed facility in Winchester, VA. It provides the communities it serves with quality health care that is easy to access, well-coordinated, and responsive to its patient’s needs. WMC houses a Level II Trauma Center, a Level III NICU, and it is a Magnet Designated Hospital.

Our residency involves many different learning experiences in both block and longitudinal format. The current required block rotations are orientation, internal medicine, antimicrobial stewardship, practice management and leadership, a teaching rotation of your choice, and adult ICU (there are three ICU rotations to choose from: cardiac, neuro, and medical). Longitudinal experiences are transitions of care at our CHF clinic, formulary management, community service/career development, and staffing. Your staffing requirement will be every third weekend and one major holiday (Thanksgiving or Christmas).  Currently we are offering 2 electives. Electives offered include critical care (in addition to the required rotation), NICU/Pediatrics, anticoagulation, emergency medicine, neurology, behavioral health, and informatics. We are working on changing the structure of our rotation blocks with the hopes of having 3 elective rotations in the future. If you choose to, you can obtain a teaching and learning certificate through our partnership with Shenandoah University (SU).

WMC is one of 9 residency programs that partner with SU.  The residents from these 9 sites meet monthly for a residency forum and journal club.  The forum includes topics that are helpful to your career and your life.  Some examples of past forums include CV development prior to Midyear and financial planning toward the end of the year.  The forum is followed by journal club where you would partner with other residents to present a relevant journal article. These interactions with other SU affiliated residents provide good networking opportunities and additional support.

There are two large research projects that will be completed during the year: a medication usage evaluation, which is presented at Midyear, and a research project which is presented at Eastern States. Topics that previous residents have looked at for these projects include development of a cellulitis order panel for the ED, pain control with nerve block using liposomal bupivacaine, and appropriateness of our use of IV acetaminophen, among others.  Many of our previous residents have had their research published. After graduating from our program, we have had residents continue on to complete PGY2s or fellowships, while others have become clinical pharmacists, staff- clinical pharmacists, or staff pharmacists at institutional settings.

Winchester is nestled in the heart of the beautiful Shenandoah Valley at the top of Virginia. Winchester has many festivals during the year, the biggest one being the Apple Blossom Festival in May. This is a 10 day event that includes a carnival, parades, a talent show, art festival, wine festival, and other events.  Winchester has an extensive Civil War history with many historical sites in and around the city. The downtown consists of a walking mall with unique restaurants and shops.  Winchester is located 90 minutes away from Washington, DC, two hours from Baltimore, and 45 minutes from Shenandoah National Park where there is a wealth of camping, hiking, and sight-seeing opportunities.

As with all institutions across the country, COVID-19 has affected our hospital and our residency program.  We were only able to have one resident join us this year. However, we are planning on going back to two for the 2021-2022 residency year. Our pharmacy staff continues to be onsite and so is our resident. WMC has taken some protective measures. At this time, all employees have to take and record their temperature daily as well as answer symptom related questions. Everyone who enters the hospital must wear a mask. Going into any patient’s room (regardless of patient’s age) requires eye protection. Pharmacy is not going into any known or rule out COVID-19 patient’s room for any reason.

Many resident actives are now online.  The teaching and learning certificate is all online, including the lecture and small group discussions.  We require you to produce a CE in the spring. This is also online. SU journal clubs and forums are conducted through Zoom. WMC, as an organization, is continually evaluating the current conditions and making the best choices to keep employees safe based on the information we have.

Being more rural of an area, Winchester has not been hit hard with COVID. As of today, the number of COVID cases in Winchester is 490. The surrounding areas have just over 2,500 cases of COVID-19.  The state of Virginia as a whole has 135,101 confirmed cases and 6,909 probable cases.

This year, and upcoming years, may be a little odd for prospective residents. From the beginning of pharmacy school you have, probably, been told that being involved in your community and school is very important to your chances of residency. These opportunities may not exist this year. Many rotations may be virtual. This will not be held against you for our program. Everyone is in a similar situation. We are all in this together.

If you are interested in our program call me at 540-536-3490 or email me at cflahert at valleyhealthlink.com.  I can give you more information about our program, answer questions, get you in touch with our current or past residents, or get you in touch with our preceptors

Thanks,

Charisa Flaherty, Pharm.D., BCPPS
Women and Children's Pharmacist
PGY1 – Pharmacy Residency Program Director
Winchester Medical Center

1840 Amherst St
Winchester, VA 22601
540-536-3490
cflahert at valleyhealthlink.com<mailto:cflahert at valleyhealthlink.com>

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://list.pitt.edu/pipermail/rx2021/attachments/20200924/b741be44/attachment-0001.html>