Ambulatory Care

Postgraduate Year 1

The PGY1 Pharmacy Practice Residency at USC provides residents with comprehensive pharmacy practice training and experience in a variety of ambulatory care settings. The program prepares residents to:

  • Practice as clinical pharmacists with the ability to initiate a new disease state / medication therapy management program or contribute to the success of an existing program in any outpatient setting, e.g., community clinics, government-run healthcare organizations, outpatient pharmacies, and managed care organizations.
  • Serve as an adjunct professor for schools of pharmacy, and progress towards joining the faculty of a school of pharmacy. Completion of this residency program will result in the development of basic skills in clinical practice, teaching, and research, all of which are consistent with the requirements of university employment.
  • Enter into a PGY2 Residency Program or fellowship program to continue developing skills and knowledge necessary for specialty practice and related expertise.

Graduates of the program have pursued careers in a broad variety of organizations including safety net clinics, government health care systems, community hospitals, teaching medical centers, private physician practice groups, managed care organizations, pharmaceutical industry, and academia.

Required Learning Experiences

General chronic disease state management and practice management / administration (~4.5 months)

General chronic disease state management training is provided through two sets of training sites: (1) The Edward R. Roybal Comprehensive Health Center (ERRCHC), one of the largest outpatient clinics in the Los Angeles County system that includes a multitude of medical subspecialty services, and (2) USC-affiliated safety net clinics including the Center for Community Health, Community Health Alliance of Pasadena, Lincoln Heights Pharmacy, and QueensCare Family Clinics.

These sites have several commonalities including service to patients with the most common chronic illnesses (diabetes mellitus, hypertension, dyslipidemia, asthma / COPD, heart failure), little to no insurance, low income, and low health literacy. In addition to clinical services, the ERRCHC operates a state-of-the art pharmacy using the P2000 pharmacy dispensing system. This fully computerized system includes multiple stages of technology-supported verification of medication accuracy and safety, and an intake / counseling area where potential medication errors are clarified. The resident will have the opportunity to participate in all stages of the medication fill process, particularly the intake / counseling area to serve as the reconciler of potential prescription problems. The end result is that the resident will be able to function as a pharmacist in a contemporary outpatient pharmacy. In the safety net clinics, additional emphasis is placed on managing chronic illnesses for patients who cannot afford to pay for medical services or medication. Our safety net clinics have been recognized by 3 national organizations for clinical pharmacy practice excellence (ASHP, APhA, AACP). In addition, our safety net clinic pharmacists are actively involved in the Health Resources and Services Administration Patient Safety & Clinical Pharmacy Services Collaborative (PSPC), the first-ever government-led effort to spread clinical pharmacy across the nation. A pharmacist and physician from one of our clinics serve as founding and current faculty members for PSPC.

Disease / medication-focused clinics (Between 3 weeks and 3 months, spread longitudinally)

Required experiences in disease / medication-focused clinics include anticoagulation, HIV, and geriatrics / depression. The majority of these experiences take place at the Los Angeles County (LAC)+USC Medical Center. Goals for these learning experiences are subsets of the goals listed above for general ambulatory care, but focused on the particular disease or drug involved. These goals are specified in the ResiTrak learning description system and are consistent with the individual preceptor syllabi.

Required Longitudinal Learning Experiences

Teaching

All residents in the School of Pharmacy program participate in various patient care, teaching and educational activities, including:

  • Coordinating courses with faculty mentors
  • Giving lectures and conducting small group discussions to first, second and third year pharmacy students
  • Serving as a preceptor and role model for the students during their clinical clerkships

In addition, a teaching certificate is offered which requires specific teaching activities and evaluation of these activities (see attached). The teaching certificate offered by USC is consistent with national pharmacy education standards.

Research

Research classes and seminars are provided to residents. During the year, residents are required to:

  • Complete a residency project
  • Present the project's findings at the Western States Conference for Pharmacy Residents, Fellows and Preceptors
  • Submit a manuscript for publication prior to the end of the residency

Elective Learning Experiences

Numerous elective learning experiences are available both within USC and outside USC, with local ASHP-accredited residency training programs. These include Community Pharmacy Practice, Psychopharmacy, Cardiology, Emergency Medicine. Syllabi and learning goals for these experiences are provided directly from the primary preceptor. In addition, new site are added each year to the program, including a managed care component and a private community pharmacy MTM practice.

Electives are integrated into the longitudinal schedule (e.g., 1 day per week for 12 weeks) or provided as a separate block (e.g., 3 to 4 weeks at the elective practice site), depending on the particular elective. Residents may choose up to 2 elective experiences, but more may be provided depending on each resident’s particular goals.

Resident Training Seminars

Residents in the USC programs receive expert training on a variety of important topics through weekly residency seminars. These seminars include:

  • Instruction on being an effective teacher and small group discussion leader
  • Research design and methodology, including presentation skills
  • Physical assessment skills
  • Journal clubs

Contact Us

If you have questions or need additional information, please contact:

Steven Chen, PharmD, FASHP, FCSHP
Program Director, Pharmacy Practice Residency-Ambulatory Care
Associate Professor of Clinical Pharmacy
Faculty Fellow, Center for Excellence in Teaching
1985 Zonal Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90089-9121
Telephone: (323) 442-1556
Email: chens@usc.edu

For an application packet, please write or email:

William C. Gong, PharmD, FASHP, FCSHP
Director, Residency and Fellowship Training
Associate Professor of Clinical Pharmacy
University of Southern California
School of Pharmacy
1985 Zonal Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90089-9121
Telephone: (323) 442-2625
Email: wgong@usc.edu, Res-Fellow@pharmacy.usc.edu