Biography
Lydia Tran, Pharm.D., BCPS, graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2011 with a B.S. degree in neuroscience and went on to complete her Pharm.D. degree at the University of Saint Joseph School of Pharmacy. In 2017, Lydia completed her PGY1 pharmacy residency at Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) and joined the cardiology pharmacy team as a cardiology clinical pharmacist. She has been a mentor and clinical preceptor to PGY1 and PGY2 pharmacy residents and students in general cardiology. She has been involved in many clinical, cost-containment, and quality improvement projects. Lydia is currently a cardiovascular senior clinical pharmacy specialist for System Heart and Vascular Clinical Services at YNHH. Lydia is a board-certified pharmacotherapy pharmacy specialist and an adjunct assistant professor at the University of Connecticut School of Pharmacy and is actively involved in giving didactic lectures on cardiology topics for the Yale School of Medicine. Lydia serves on several professional pharmacy and cardiology organizations and is an active member of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) Cardiology PRN and the American College of Cardiology (ACC) in the Cardiovascular Team Pharmacists Education Committee. Lydia has been a board member of the Connecticut Pharmacists Association (CPA) for 5 years and is the current resident.
Please describe your role as a cardiovascular senior clinical pharmacy specialist at Yale New Haven Health-System.
As a cardiovascular senior clinical pharmacy specialist at YNHH, my main role is to ensure we have the most appropriate, safe, and efficacious medication use across our five-hospital health system. I also review and address any safety issues that occur on a day-to-day basis by proposing, drafting, and optimizing our electronic health record system to provide better clinical decision support. In this role, I have become passionate about leveraging technology to prevent patient safety issues.
Another unique aspect of my role is that I establish consistency of care for heart and vascular clinical services across our entire health system by providing the highest quality of care across the care continuum, minimizing system variation, and ensuring equitable care processes and outcomes.
Additional responsibilities include being a project manager for quality improvement, medication safety, and clinical research projects. Clinical projects can answer important clinical questions that translate into performance improvement initiatives and enhance patient outcomes. Adding to the relevant body of literature also allows us to share our work with the cardiology community.
As an interviewer for residency candidates, what advice would you give to students interested in residency?
As a residency candidate, you will often be submitting applications before you get a face-to-face interview. My first piece of advice is to determine how you want to stand out, including what makes you unique, your experiences, and your strengths. Often, programs look for well-rounded students who have at least some exposure to working on projects or evaluations they would be expected to participate in as a resident. Learning more about a resident’s role also helps with interviews because programs look for candidates who are a good fit.
My second piece of advice, whether it be in your professional pharmacy career or your residency program, is that it is important to remember that there is no set formula for how to get there. The world is your oyster – where you start in your career is only a stepping stone to where you will be. Keep an open mind and welcome new opportunities because you never know where they will take you.
Additional tips for residency interviews include putting your best foot forward. Whether on clinical or nonclinical rotations, don’t be afraid to do more than what is expected of you. Your rotation requirement checklist is only a base framework. Practice, practice, practice. Remember to formulate your interview answers to be concise and impactful. I recommend the STAR method: introduce a Situation, describe the Task and the Action carried out, and delineate the Result or overall impact of the intervention made.
What types of experiences do you think students should seek if they wish to pursue a career in cardiology pharmacy?
Shadowing – I suggest shadowing and exploring the various career avenues of being a cardiology pharmacist. There is diversity in this specialty area; a cardiology pharmacist in one setting may not be the same in another.
Clinical research projects – There are opportunities to get involved in clinical research projects. At YNHH, we actively look for student involvement in activities, including performing literature review, data collection, and subgroup analyses and presenting in-services or education. Not only do these experiences add to your portfolio, but they also provide insight into the stages of cardiology clinical research projects.
Cardiology community – The cardiology community is full of individuals dedicated to improving the cardiovascular health of patients. I suggest following and engaging in social media accounts and podcasts for cardiology-related discussions about landmark clinical trials and other conversations. In other therapeutic areas, trials often consist of a small subset of patients. But in cardiology, many trials enroll at least 5000–10,000 patients, which is almost unheard of in other fields. This occurs because much of the population is affected by cardiovascular health conditions. There are so many interesting cardiology trials – follow them! The best way to better analyze your own clinical research pursuits is to see what literature and studies exist. Professional organizations are another way to engage in the cardiology community. These include the ACCP Cardiology PRN, ACC, and the American Heart Association. I have been a member of the ACCP Cardiology PRN community for 5 years. PRN member forums provide a great platform to share information, ask questions, and collaborate on initiatives. I highly recommend joining this PRN.
In addition to your role at YNHH, you were recently appointed as president of the CPA. What motivated you to get involved in state pharmacy associations and what excites you the most about your position?
Although cardiology will always be my passion, I am also an advocate for pharmacy practice as a whole. State and national pharmacy associations play a major role in supporting the advancement within our profession and the downstream impact it can make for a cardiology pharmacist. Ultimately, these umbrella associations represent pharmacists from all practice settings to facilitate conversations on a high level, including legislation. There is strength in numbers, so it is important that state pharmacy associations collaborate on these larger goals. I am proud to be a clinical pharmacist in the pharmacy profession because it has given so much to me. Getting involved in professional organizations provides me with an avenue to pave it forward to shape the future of pharmacy for the next generation of pharmacists. I am excited to serve as president of the CPA this year and am honored to support advancing the pharmacy profession through advocacy and education.
How has being a member of ACCP enhanced your professional growth and development?
During my 5 years as an ACCP member, I have served on the ACCP Cardiology PRN and Education Committee. I have found the Cardiology PRN an invaluable open forum of cardiology pharmacy specialists; I have learned new practice ideas and collaborated with my counterparts at other institutions on cardiology projects. We also develop cardiology-related programming for ACCP members on the Education Committee. The ACCP Annual Meetings congregate all of the PRNs and provide a platform for clinical pharmacy partnership. We are witnessing the emergence of cardiology pharmacy as a pillar, with more and more hospitals recognizing the value of cardiology clinical pharmacists. In addition, ACCP offers publication opportunities through the Journal of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (JACCP). Many of the JACCP articles that I have found useful share pharmacy practice advances from other institutions. I have had the opportunity to publish a JACCP manuscript with my team to contribute to the body of literature and share it with other pharmacy colleagues.
What do you like to do in your free time?
As much as I love cardiology and being a clinical pharmacist, I also really enjoy the outdoors and activities in creative outlets to stimulate the right side of my brain. Outside work, I enjoy hiking with friends, making hand-thrown pottery, traveling to new places, and volunteering as a puppy trainer for Guiding Eyes for the Blind.