PGY2 Ambulatory Care Pharmacy Residency

Program Purpose

Midwestern University College of Pharmacy, Downers Grove offers an ASHP-accredited postgraduate year two (PGY2) ambulatory care residency program with a primary practice site at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, IL.

PGY2 pharmacy residency programs build on the Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) education and PGY1 pharmacy residency programs to contribute to the development of clinical pharmacists in advanced or specialized 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 that improves medication therapy. Residents who successfully complete an accredited PGY2 pharmacy residency should possess competencies that qualify them for clinical pharmacist and/or faculty positions and position them to be eligible for attainment of board certification in ambulatory care.

The residency is designed to provide diverse experience in ambulatory care practice settings and disease states. Additionally, considerable time is spent in academia and education, providing residents with a foundation of the principles of teaching and learning - and practical experience to implement what residents have learned.

To accomplish this, residents typically spend four days per week at their clinical site and one day per week on campus involved in academic activities. Over the course of the year, the resident spends 8 months at their primary practice site and 4 months completing elective learning experiences.

Program Description

Outcomes

Upon completion of this residency, the resident should be able to:

• Provide patient-centered comprehensive medication management services within a variety of settings in an ethical and compassionate manner that results in positive patient outcomes.
• Demonstrate a commitment to teaching and the advancement of the profession of pharmacy.
• Effectively communicate, verbally and in writing, with providers, patients, students, and other healthcare professionals.
• Demonstrate skills needed to conceptualize, develop, and improve ambulatory care pharmacy services.
• Demonstrate commitment to quality and professionalism through self-monitoring and self-assessment.

Specific Program Features

Throughout the year, the resident will practice at one primary site (8 months of the year) and supplement this experience with elective learning experiences (4 months of the year). Longitudinal learning experiences are incorporated throughout the year.

• Orientation: The Residency Program Director (RPD) will provide an orientation to the primary practice site. The RPD will orient the resident to Northwestern Medicine and Midwestern University and provide expectations for successful completion. At the completion of this rotation, the RPD will collaborate with the resident to complete the customized development plan.
• Ambulatory Care: Ambulatory Care rotations 1-4 occur at the primary practice site. Patient care services include the comprehensive management of heart failure, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, asthma, COPD, anticoagulation, smoking cessation as well as other outpatient internal medicine disease states. Residents will have an opportunity to practice under a collaborative practice agreement and develop ongoing relationships with patients and other healthcare providers.
• Research Project: Each resident must design and is expected to complete a research project under the guidance of a faculty preceptor who will be identified with the assistance of the program director. The project must relate to ambulatory care or pharmacy education and can be original research and/or enhancement or evaluation of patient care services. 
  
   Examples of Resident Research
   
• Teaching and Learning Activities: The PGY2 resident is engaged in expanding the knowledge attitudes and skills they need to be an effective teacher through individualized mentorship with a teaching mentor. Discussions are customized to the needs of the resident and designed to build upon any previous Teaching and Learning Curriculum experience. Required elements include development of a personalized evidence-based teaching philosophy and completion of an academic journal club. Residents implement what they have learned through the TLC by teaching in didactic and experiential settings. Residents provide instruction in small-group workshops and large-group didactic settings. In the second half of the residency, the resident serves as a preceptor for students on an Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience rotation.

Rotation Sites

Primary Clinical Practice Site

Northwestern Medicine
Galter Pavilion, 675 North St. Clair Street , Chicago, IL 60611

Ambulatory Care (AC) Learning Experiences 1-4
Length of Learning Experiences - AC 1: 1.5 months; AC 2: 2 months; AC 3: 3 months; AC 4: 1 month
Northwestern Medicine - Chicago, IL
Preceptor: Christie Schumacher, Pharm.D., BCACP, BCPS, BCCP, CDCES, BC-ADM, FCCP

This is a primary care practice in which pharmacists provide comprehensive medication management for a variety of chronic diseases through a collaborative practice agreement. Pharmacists are responsible for assessing and managing chronic disease states, including but not limited to, heart failure, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, asthma, COPD, anticoagulation and smoking cessation. Other responsibilities include answering drug information questions from patients and healthcare professionals, providing medication management consultation to physicians during primary care physician visits, providing medication reconciliation during post-hospital follow-ups, assisting in urgent care patient management, and providing in-services on various pharmacy-related topics.

Elective Practice Sites

Advocate Medical Group – Evergreen Center 
Chicago, IL 60643

Advocate Medical Group - West
Aurora, IL 60506  

Midwestern University Multispecialty Clinic
Downers Grove, IL 60515

Northwestern Medicine - Chicago
Chicago, IL 60611

Rush University Medical Center
Chicago, IL 60612

Additional elective practice sites may be developed based on resident interest and preceptor availability.

Related Information

Duration

The 52-week residency begins on July 1 and ends on June 30 of the following year.

Salary and Benefits

Each resident will receive a competitive stipend and benefit package. Support for attending regional and national professional meetings and conferences is also available. Memberships in ASHP and AACP are provided. 

Faculty Appointment

Each resident will receive a faculty appointment as a Visiting Instructor in the Midwestern University College of Pharmacy Department of Pharmacy Practice.

Accreditation Status

The residency program in PGY2 Ambulatory Care Pharmacy conducted by Midwestern University College of Pharmacy, Downers Grove is accredited by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP).

Qualifications of the Resident

Applicants must have graduated with the Doctor of Pharmacy degree, completed a PGY1 residency program and be eligible for pharmacist licensure in Illinois. The applicant must be motivated, self-directed and have excellent communication skills. An interest in teaching is essential.

Application Materials

Midwestern University College of Pharmacy, Downers Grove uses PhORCAS for submission of application materials for all of its residency programs.  The PGY2 Ambulatory Care Pharmacy Residency applications require the submission of a CV, letter of intent, transcript and three references using the standard PhORCAS recommendation form. For more information, visit the PhORCAS website. All application materials are due by January 5, 2025.

The match number for the PGY2 Ambulatory Care Pharmacy Residency Program is #710690.

Currently, we do not sponsor visas for foreign pharmacy residency or fellowship applicants.

Notice regarding the Resident Matching Program: This residency site agrees that no person at this site will solicit, accept, or use any ranking-related information from any residency applicant.

Contact

Christie Schumacher, Pharm.D., BCACP, BCPS, BCCP, CDCES, BC-ADM, FCCP 
Professor of Pharmacy Practice
Residency Program Director, PGY2 Ambulatory Care Residency Program
Midwestern University College of Pharmacy
555 31st Street
Downers Grove, IL 60515
cschum@midwestern.edu