The Academia/Family Medicine Pharmacy Fellowship at the University of Illinois Chicago Retzky College of Pharmacy is a 2-year program designed to prepare pharmacists for impactful roles in health professions education, training, and clinical practice. By combining advanced practice, research, and leadership experiences, fellows develop the skills necessary to address complex challenges in pharmacy and health care.
The fellowship is designed to provide broad exposure to a variety of research experiences, with a significant focus on individualizing the program and expectations to each fellow’s ultimate career goals and preparing them to be competitive for whichever career path they choose. Graduates of the program are well positioned to become a full-time faculty member and a leader within health professions education, training, and clinical practice.
Key Features of the Fellowship
- Research Skill Development: By joining ongoing collaborative research endeavors and pursuing their own as principal investigators, fellows develop skills in research methodology, grantsmanship, study design and management, statistical analysis, project dissemination, and leadership. In addition to manuscript publication, the fellow is expected to present research at local and/or national conferences. By the end of the program, past fellows have an average per year of 5 peer-reviewed publications, 2 presentations at national meetings, and 3 grant proposal submissions.
- Teaching: Fellows participate in various interprofessional teaching engagements within the College of Pharmacy and College of Medicine, including facilitating small group discussions, precepting pharmacy and medical residents, and performing classroom lectures.
- Clinical Integration: Fellows have clinical opportunities focused in substance use disorder and family medicine care in inpatient, outpatient, and street medicine settings at UI Health.
- Leadership and Professional Development: Fellows provide service within institutional and national organizational committees. Fellows also have the opportunity to complete master’s degree coursework or a certificate within the Department of Medical Education at the UIC College of Medicine.
Current Fellow Project Examples
- Current projects:
- Developing an online, interactive curriculum for prescribers to develop skills in safe deprescribing in older adults through shared decision-making, patient/caregiver communication, and documentation
- Investigating cultural humility in student pharmacists to explore potential strategies to enrich learning experiences
- Participating in a systematic review studying screening for eating disorders in the outpatient setting
- Examining gender differences in substance use through qualitative interviews with women who use drugs
- Recent and upcoming presentations:
- American College of Clinical Pharmacy Education and Training Practice and Research Network Fall 2024 Newsletter: “In the Literature: Teaching to Identify Misinformation”
- American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Midyear 2024 poster presentation: “Patient Factors Associated with Buprenorphine versus Methadone Use on a Pharmacist-Integrated Inpatient Opioid Use Disorder Medication-Assisted Recovery Consult Service”
- Illinois Council of Health-System Pharmacists Spring Meeting Presentation: “The New ZYN-sation Sweeping the Nation: The Emerging Use of Nicotine Pouches and What Pharmacists Should Know”
- American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy 2025 Annual Meeting: “A Bitter Pill to Swallow: Career Regret in Pharmacy and How to Exit the Cycle”
Reflections from the Current First-Year Fellow
Alexis Coffee, Pharm.D.
- Pharmacy School: UIC Retzky College of Pharmacy
- Residency: PGY1 Endeavor Health
- Fellowship Focus: Academia and Family Medicine
About 3 months into my residency, I knew that I wanted a career in academia, but I had no idea where to start. I wanted more than the elective academia rotation and teaching certificate offered, so I began to research pathways to academia. I was surprised to see that academic fellowships existed and even more surprised to see that one was offered at my alma mater. In addition, the focuses on family medicine and community outreach appealed to me. All of my family is from the South Side of Chicago, and I wanted to serve those in my community and other populations that are medically underserved. This fellowship gives me the opportunity to do that while also giving me the resources to develop my teaching skills and research experience. UIC is one of the best institutions for research and teaching. I’m overjoyed to be back and can’t wait to get more publications and presentations under my belt!
Advice for Future Fellows!
Don’t be discouraged by mistakes! Learning never stops, and mistakes are a big part of learning. A fellowship is still a training program, and you’re still learning despite the increased autonomy. After making mistakes, take the time to process them and then get right back on top of your to-do list.
Contact Information
