This is a 6-week rotation, and the resident will be responsible for managing patient health care needs in the following clinics:

• Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT)
• Anticoagulation
• Geriatrics
• ESA/renal
• Immune HIV clinic

The resident will evaluate drug regimens for efficacy, adherence and adverse effects, make appropriate adjustments in the medication regimen, and order necessary laboratory tests.

This is a weekly, one half-day longitudinal clinic rotation, and the resident will be provided with training in comprehensive medication management for patients with diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and congestive heart failure within a Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) clinic.

The resident will create one Grand Rounds presentation during residency on a topic related to pharmacotherapy or pharmacy practice.

The resident will have an opportunity to sharpen ability to critically analyze the literature and reach conclusions based on the available literature.

This is a 6-week rotation running concurrently with the medication safety rotation.

The resident will participate in adjudicating prior authorization drug requests (PADR), completing a formulary tool-related project, and completing a medication use evaluation.

The goal of these projects is to facilitate improvements to the health care system medication use process.

This is a 6-week rotation, and the resident will be assigned to one of the three Community Living Centers (CLC).

Each CLC utilizes an interdisciplinary team approach to the care of its Veterans. Depending on the location, the CLC accommodates long-term care, short stay/rehabilitation, palliative care, hospice care, or respite patients.

Residents will learn to conduct monthly medication reviews and attend weekly geriatric seminars.

This is a 6-week rotation, and the resident will play an active role in managing patients admitted to the medicine service.

The resident will provide the medicine team with drug information and patient-specific medication recommendations with the goal of improving patient outcomes.

Other activities include participating in daily rounds, monitoring patient medication therapy, reporting adverse drug reactions, pharmacokinetic monitoring, performing admission and discharge medication reconciliation, discharge counseling. and performing patient admission interviews.

This is a 6-week rotation running concurrently with the formulary management rotation.

The resident will learn the medication-use system and the administrative roles pharmacists serve. Residents will review external literature to identify improvement opportunities for the medication-use system and present recommendations.

Residents may also facilitate improvements and assist with medication safety performance measurement.

This is a longitudinal rotation throughout the year with monthly meetings and committee participation.

The residents will participate in monthly leadership discussions regarding pharmacy management. Leadership topics include leadership philosophy, LEAN, staff management, effective communication, pharmacy budget, accreditations, and more.

Additionally, each resident will participate in a committee throughout the year.

This is a longitudinal rotation, and the resident will be responsible for the development, execution, and timely completion of the project.

Residents will present their projects at Western States Conference.

This is a longitudinal weekend rotation, and the resident will spend half the year staffing in the outpatient pharmacy and the other half staffing in the inpatient pharmacy.

Outpatient pharmacy staffing responsibilities include verifying outpatient prescriptions including discharge orders, conducting medication reconciliation, dispensing outpatient prescriptions, counseling patients, and entering appropriate progress note documentation of clinical activities.

Inpatient pharmacy staffing responsibilities include verifying inpatient orders, checking unit dose packages and IVs, and answering drug information or pharmacy-related questions from other health care providers.

• Academic detailing
• Ambulatory care
• Critical care
• Emergency medicine
• Infectious diseases
• IV room
• Oncology
• Pain management
• Pharmacoeconomics
• Polytrauma/rehabilitation
• Population health management
• Psychiatry

Each core block rotation is 6 weeks long (e.g., ambulatory care, internal medicine, geriatrics, formulary and medication safety management). Each longitudinal rotation is about 11 months long (e.g., staffing, research/QI, leadership, ambulatory care clinic).

Elective rotations are either 3 weeks or 6 weeks long, depending on the rotation. Residents get a total of 18 weeks of electives.

Our research projects are quality improvement in nature. Project ideas are reviewed and discussed with project preceptors and pharmacy leadership to ensure feasibility, innovation, and quality. The project ideas are then presented to the residents during orientation, allowing residents to select a project based on their interests.

Residents and the project preceptors meet regularly to discuss the project throughout the year. Residents have many opportunities to present their projects and receive feedback before presenting at the Western States Conference.

The longitudinal leadership rotation consists of 2 learning activities:

1. Monthly leadership conference, and
2. Committee participation

Residents meet with the residency program director and a guest speaker from pharmacy leadership on a monthly basis to discuss a leadership topic (e.g., leadership philosophy, embracing change, staff management, communication).

Residents also participate in a committee of their interest as an active member throughout the year. Committees include Medication Management Committee (P&T), Anticoagulation Oversight Team, Veteran Health Education Committee, Antibiotic Stewardship Program Committee, Clinical Pharmacy Practice Council, and Residency Advisory Committee.

During orientation, residents will be asked to rank electives based on interest and plans for applying to PGY2 programs.

On a quarterly basis, residents have the opportunity to discuss their schedule with the residency program director if interests change.

Yes, VA Palo Alto residency program offers a teaching certificate program through the University of the Pacific School of Pharmacy, and it is optional.

VA Palo Alto is the regional APPE site of UOP for the Palo Alto/South Bay region. There are many opportunities to teach and precept APPE students throughout the year.

Residents staff approximately 20 weekend days throughout the year in outpatient and inpatient pharmacy.

Outpatient pharmacy responsibilities include order verification, medication reconciliation, patient counseling, and documentation of clinical activities.

Inpatient pharmacy responsibilities include unit dose and IV order verification, checking unit doses and IVs, and answering drug information or pharmacy-related questions from other health care providers.