From the Desk of the ACCP President
May 04, 2017
Marcia L. Buck, Pharm.D, FCCP, FPPAG, BCPPS
Congratulations to All Incoming Residents and New Clinical Pharmacists
Marcia L. Buck, Pharm.D, FCCP, FPPAG, BCPPS
I’d like to congratulate all the new graduates who will be starting their PGY1 residency in July, as well as those who will be continuing their training in PGY2 residencies or fellowship programs.
What a wonderful yet bittersweet time of year—saying good-bye to friends, classmates, and professors and meeting new colleagues and mentors.
According to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, a record 5,752 individuals applied for the opportunity to fill one of 4,592 residency positions in the 2017 Match.
Moreover, since 2012, the number of residency positions has grown by more than 30%, with much of that increase in ambulatory care residencies.
These statistics reflect the growth in recognition of the value of advanced training for clinical pharmacists in the past 5 years.
ACCP has a long-standing interest in residency training,
as articulated in its 2006 position paper calling for postgraduate pharmacy residency training to be a prerequisite for pharmacists providing direct patient care.
In the decade since the paper’s publication, ACCP’s vision has come closer to reality, with residency training now a requirement for clinical pharmacy positions in most hospitals and a growing number of ambulatory care settings across the United States.
As part of its commitment to postgraduate training, ACCP has a variety of resources for residents, fellows, and graduate students:
ACCP’s Resident Survival Guide, developed to help residents navigate the opportunities and challenges of this intensive period of training,
includes information on taking responsibility for patient care, advancing your skills as an educator and a scholar, and determining your career direction.
I think you’ll find the sections on balancing your personal and professional priorities and developing your professional networking and career advancement skills particularly valuable—and something you’ll refer to even after completing your training.
As your residency year progresses, I invite you to take advantage of ACCP’s On-Demand CV Review Service.
This perennial favorite provides students and postgraduate trainees with a “fresh set of eyes” to evaluate their CV before applying for their first professional position.
You may submit your CV to the CV Review Service at any time of the year and have it reviewed by up to two volunteer reviewers.
At this website, you’ll also find a link to a 30-minute presentation on preparing your CV, as well as a list of pearls on writing a CV that fully represents your knowledge and skills.
For those of you completing your training who will begin careers as faculty or clinical pharmacists and serve as student and/or resident preceptors,
participation in the ACCP Academy’s Teaching and Learning Certificate Program will provide many opportunities to enhance your skills and add to your credentials as an educator.
For although your residency training will help you gain experience in teaching and precepting, developing your expertise as an educator will require you to continually expand and refine these skills.
Another available resource that provides insights to guide you in a successful career as a clinical faculty member is ACCP’s Clinical Faculty Survival Guide.
This text offers new clinical faculty practical information, advice, and encouragement for succeeding in the roles of practitioner, teacher, researcher, and scholar.
One last piece of advice: residency is the perfect time to join the ACCP PRN in your specialty—or more than one PRN if you’re still trying to decide on your career pathway.
For example, membership in the Education and Training PRN is an excellent way to meet and interact with almost 600 experienced educators and share in their work to support and mentor students and residents.
Come to a PRN networking session at an ACCP meeting and talk with clinical pharmacists in your field; you’ll build new professional relationships, and you may even meet a future mentor!
In closing, I again offer my congratulations to all the new residents, fellows, and clinical pharmacists and hope that you have the opportunity to celebrate your accomplishments with family and friends.
Moreover, I hope that ACCP’s programs and services will serve as essential tools in your training and professional development and that your involvement as an ACCP member will continue to benefit you now as well as throughout your career.