Program Overview
The PGY1 pharmacy residency at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is an acute care program designed to prepare pharmacists for impactful roles in any setting. By integrating advanced clinical practice, teaching, and research opportunities, residents develop the skills necessary to provide exceptional patient care and contribute to the advancement of pharmacy practice.
The program allows residents to pursue individual professional interests through elective rotations, research projects, Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE)-accredited continuing education (CE) seminars, teaching certificate programming, and longitudinal ambulatory care clinics. Graduates of the program are prepared to pursue specialized postgraduate training programs (eg, PGY2 residencies, fellowships) and are well positioned for careers in ambulatory care, academia, and acute care clinical pharmacist roles.
Part of UIC, The University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System (UI Health), is a 438–licensed bed tertiary care hospital located in the heart of the Illinois Medical District in Chicago. The PGY1 pharmacy residency provides rotation opportunities at a variety of practice sites, supported by over 90 clinical faculty members. To support the medical center in delivering 24-hour clinical pharmacy coverage to all UI Health patients, residents take part in the on-call program, offering overnight and weekend clinical services. On-call responsibilities generally involve responding to “codes,” answering drug information questions, assessing antibiotic therapy and adverse drug reactions, monitoring pharmacokinetics, and providing parenteral nutrition (PN) support and patient counseling. A component of the on-call program is the Resident Report, a daily educational session during which residents, the residency program director (RPD), and the clinical faculty discuss on-call cases, various disease states, and other topics related to resident growth and well-being.
The PGY1 pharmacy residency at UIC aims to cultivate skilled clinical pharmacists who can practice effectively in any setting by offering exposure to a broad range of pharmaceutical care services while also developing leaders in clinical pharmacy practice and education.
Key Features of the Residency
- Customized Learning Experience
Required rotations include Internal Medicine, Critical Care (eg, MICU, NSICU, Solid Organ Transplant ICU), Pediatrics, Specialty Medicine (eg, Emergency Medicine, Oncology, Cardiology, Hepatology), Drug Information, Pharmacy Systems, and Longitudinal Ambulatory Care Clinic. Residents can choose 5 elective rotations; however, depending on the resident’s interest area, required rotations can also be geared toward specialty interests. The Longitudinal Ambulatory Care experience can be done in many clinics. Residents complete ½ day per week in a clinic of their choice, changing to a new clinic for the second half of the residency. UIC has many specialty ambulatory clinics including pulmonology, infectious disease, HIV, pediatrics, cardiology, transplant, neurology, and anticoagulation.
As part of the on-call program, residents work in-house overnight shifts covering drug information, adult and pediatric codes, and rapid response pagers. Residents are the sole clinical pharmacists in the hospital overnight, with additional staff pharmacists on-site in the centralized pharmacy areas and backup clinical preceptor contacts, if needed. These shifts immerse residents in patient care and increase their critical thinking skills and confidence by making them the pharmacist the team looks to for recommending medications in a timely manner. Residents become more comfortable with efficiently using the resources available to them when answering drug information questions and often evaluate patients at the bedside to get clarity and provide a more holistic recommendation. For operational staffing, 2 residents work a daytime weekend shift providing ICU satellite pharmacy coverage and medication order verification and write orders for total PN (TPN). In addition, these residents cover the drug information, rapid response, and pediatric code pagers. Between staffing and on-call shifts, residents work about 3 to 5 shifts per month.
Because the program is part of a college of pharmacy, students are often on rotation in order for residents to gain more experience with precepting and leading topic discussions. Residents participate in a teaching certificate program, and all sessions are led by faculty at the UIC Retzky College of Pharmacy. All residents complete a 45- to 50-minute ACPE-accredited CE seminar presentation. Residents also create and deliver 3 lectures throughout the year to pharmacy students: 2 about residency training and 1 about a didactic topic of the resident’s choice. In the spring semester, interested residents also have the opportunity to serve as a class co-coordinator to become more familiar with an academic setting. An elective Academia rotation exposes the resident to designing experiential learning for Pharm.D. students, assessing student performance, and creating examinations.
Residents choose their research topics from a compiled list that pharmacists have submitted; if residents are interested in a different research topic, they can suggest their own idea. Residents are responsible for the entirety of the project and assigned a mentor to help guide them. All residents present their research project with a poster at the ASHP Midyear Clinical Meeting and a platform presentation at the Great Lakes Pharmacy Resident Conference.
- Presentation Opportunities
Residents benefit from various presentation opportunities, becoming more comfortable lecturing in larger settings and answering unexpected questions to feel more confident in being the content experts. During residents’ rotations, there may be additional lecturing opportunities because, at UIC, all preceptors are also faculty in the college of pharmacy. In addition, residents complete journal clubs, in-services, and case presentations depending on the resident’s interest and preceptor expectations. These skills build on literature evaluation and interprofessional collaboration.
- Interdisciplinary Collaboration
Residents have immense exposure to interdisciplinary collaboration through the pharmacy practice model at UIC. On rounds, teams expect a pharmacist to actively participate and offer recommendations, answer questions, and dose any vancomycin or aminoglycoside therapies as well as write TPN orders for their patients. Through the on-call experience, residents are also part of the rapid response teams and a resource for answering drug information questions. UIC physicians have expressed their appreciation for pharmacy residents and use their knowledge and expertise to improve patient care.
- Professional Development Support
All residents are paired with an official mentor from the RAC (Residency Advisory Committee); however, throughout rotations, residents start to gain more mentors. Dr Ohler’s office is in the same space as the residents, allowing residents easy access to the RPD to address any concerns they may have. As part of a college of pharmacy, UIC also has opportunities to be involved with student organizations and speak at meetings hosted by student organizations, if the resident is interested.
Current Resident Project Examples
- Assessing Hepatitis A Virus and Hepatitis B Virus Screening, Immunity, and Vaccination in People Living with HIV in the Illinois Department of Corrections
Authors: Nicholas T. Truong (UIC PGY1, 2023-2024), Alex Dang, Hillary Debs, Jennifer Morrow, Huda Kalota, Mahesh Patel, Scott Borgetti, Emily N. Drwiega, Melissa E. Badowski
Publication: American Journal of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, 2024
Highlights: This study assessed the screening, immunity, and vaccination rates of hepatitis A and B among individuals living with HIV in correctional settings. The findings contribute to the development of targeted interventions in vulnerable populations.
Presentation: Data presented at IDWeek 2024 by Nicholas T. Truong
- The Effects of Multimodal versus Opioid-Only Analgesia on Pain Control and Opioid Exposure for Inpatient Acute Pancreatitis: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Emily Hanners (UIC PGY1, 2022-2023), Mathew Thambi, Haley Soni, Julie Jun, Avisek Datta, Dulal Bhaumik, Paul Stranges
Publication: American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy, 2024
Highlights: This retrospective study evaluated the impact of multimodal analgesia compared with opioid-only strategies for inpatient pain management in acute pancreatitis. Results showed no significant difference in pain control with reduced opioid exposure with multimodal therapy, supporting its adoption as a preferred approach.
- Missed Opportunities to Optimize Lipid-Lowering Therapy Following Revascularization in Patients with ASCVD
Authors: Hannah Ayers, Pharm.D. (PGY1, 2023-2024; PGY2 Ambulatory Care, 2024-2025); Vicki Groo, Pharm.D., BS; Elika Hellenbart, Pharm.D.; Stephanie Dwyer, Pharm.D.; Ali Alaraj, MD; David Tofovic, MD; Robert DiDomenico, Pharm.D.
Presentation: Poster presented at the 2024 American Heart Association Scientific Sessions by Hannah Ayers, Pharm.D.
Highlights: This project examined lipid-lowering therapy use after revascularization in patients with ASCVD and identified gaps in treatment optimization. The findings underscore the need for enhanced clinical protocols to improve cardiovascular outcomes.
Reflections from Current Residents
Richard Ramos, Pharm.D., PGY1 Pharmacy Resident
Email: [email protected]
- Pharmacy School: Purdue University
- Clinical Interest Areas: Oncology
Initially, what really drew me to the residency program here at UIC was having a large resident class and the opportunity to teach students. When it came to ranking programs, what mattered to me the most was a diverse set of experiences and the general vibe I got from interviewing. Talking to people from UIC showed me that this program offered everything I was looking for in a PGY1 experience.
Halfway through my PGY1 year, I can confidently say that UIC has lived up to and surpassed my expectations! We are a large family here at UIC, and it is awesome to have such a large support system with our preceptors, coresidents, and of course, our mom Kirsten. Yes, residency is a lot of work, but through being on-call and all the learning experiences here at UIC, it is very fulfilling knowing that I have made leaps and bounds since starting in July. Our program pushes you to be independent, which has allowed me to grow confidence in myself and develop my practice.
Looking onward toward the next half of the year, I hope to match in a PGY2 in oncology, and I feel well equipped to handle any experience that comes my way in the future because of my experience here at UIC!
Laila Hammad, Pharm.D., PGY1 Pharmacy Resident
Email: [email protected]
- Pharmacy School: University of Illinois Chicago
- Clinical Interest Areas: Critical Care
Initially, I was drawn to this residency program for its teaching opportunities being connected to a college of pharmacy as well as the on-call program. While a lot of programs offer a teaching certificate, I felt UIC offered the academic environment I was looking for. Residents have 3 lectures to students, a CE-accredited presentation, and precepting opportunities. I felt that UIC had everything I was looking for in a PGY1 program in preparing me for any situation I might encounter in my future.
One of my favorite parts about residency has truly been my coresidents and my work mom AKA RPD Dr Ohler. Being part of a bigger residency class has allowed us all to grow from each other in how we approach a patient and our thought process, which comes up during our daily resident reports. In addition, patients and residents are switching between services, so talking with my coresidents about mutual patients gives us more continuity of care in following a patient’s hospital course.
Professionally, this program has allowed me to grow in just 6 months, and I think a big part of that is the preceptors and the model of autonomy as a resident. During our on-call program, we serve as the sole clinical pharmacists overnight, and encountering different questions and scenarios has allowed me to feel more comfortable being uncomfortable and truly given me an opportunity to continue to grow and learn from various situations. I am excited to see what this next half of the year brings for my PGY1 and then next year for my PGY2 in critical care.
Advice for Future Residents!
Tom Szwajnos, Pharm.D., PGY1 Pharmacy Resident
Email: [email protected]
- Pharmacy School: University of Illinois at Chicago
- Clinical Interest Areas: Critical Care
When going through the residency application process, I got some great advice, but there were also things I figured out along the way that I hope will be helpful to you as well as you go through this process!
The best residency program for you really depends on what you’re looking for—there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. It’s easy to fall into the habit of trying to check all the boxes to be the “perfect candidate” for a program, but don’t forget that you’re also deciding whether you want to be part of their program.
When I was searching, one thing that drew me to UIC was the large class size and how happy the residents were. During my interview, one of the residents mentioned that although it could be a stressful year, they always looked forward to coming into the office because of the supportive, fun group of coresidents, whereas other programs I looked at didn’t always match that same energy.
At UIC, I was interested in critical care, and I had plenty of opportunities to explore that area through rotations. But there was also a strong emphasis on making the PGY1 year a broad, general training experience, ensuring I got a wide range of experiences beyond my primary interests, and that balance was important to me.
Ultimately, you’ll know if a program is a good fit when you meet or interview with them. The interactions you have will give you a sense of whether you belong there. Just because you don’t feel a connection with a program doesn’t mean it isn’t a good program—it might just not be the best fit for you. Every program will have things you like and don’t like, but in the end, you want to choose one where you feel you’ll thrive, grow, and be trained to become the best pharmacist you can be.
Once you start your residency, get excited! You’ve hopefully matched with a program that aligns with your goals and where you’ll thrive. Transitioning from a student to a resident and an actual licensed pharmacist can be a big leap. Give yourself time and grace to adapt while focusing on learning as much as you can.
In residency, you won’t know the answer to everything, and you’ll probably realize just how much you don’t know. Mistakes will happen, and there may be times when you feel like you look clueless, but that’s all part of the process. Remember, the purpose of residency is to learn and absorb as much as possible. It’s incredible how much you can grow in a short time. Looking back at my first month compared to now, I’m amazed at how far I’ve come.
As long as you stay adaptable, remain open to feedback, and communicate when you don’t know something, you’ll set yourself up for a successful residency and career!
Contact Information
Program Director/Contact Name: Kirsten Ohler, Pharm.D., FCCP, BCPPS
Email: [email protected]
Website: Program website: PGY1 Pharmacy Residency | Retzky College of Pharmacy - Chicago | Rockford | University of Illinois Chicago