Hospital Pharmacy - April 2018 - 96

756659
research-article2018

HPXXXX10.1177/0018578718756659Hospital PharmacyGazda et al

Director's Forum

Development and Implementation of
a Combined Master of Science and
PGY1/PGY2 Health-System Pharmacy
Administration Residency Program at a
Large Community Teaching Hospital

Hospital Pharmacy
2018, Vol. 53(2) 96-100
© The Author(s) 2018
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https://doi.org/10.1177/0018578718756659
DOI: 10.1177/0018578718756659
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Nicholas P. Gazda1,2, Emily Griffin3, Kasey Hamrick4,
Jordan Baskett5, Meghan M. Mellon6, Stephen F. Eckel2,
and Robert P. Granko1,2

Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this article is to share experiences after the development of a health-system pharmacy administration
residency with a MS degree and express the need for additional programs in nonacademic medical center health-system
settings. Summary: Experiences with the development and implementation of a health-system pharmacy administration
residency at a large community teaching hospital are described. Resident candidates benefit from collaborations with other
health-systems through master's degree programs and visibility to leaders at your health-system. Programs benefit from
building a pipeline of future pharmacy administrators and by leveraging the skills of residents to contribute to projects
and department-wide initiatives. Tools to assist in the implementation of a new pharmacy administration program are also
described and include rotation and preceptor development, marketing and recruiting, financial evaluation, and steps to
prepare for accreditation. Conclusion: Health-system pharmacy administration residents provide the opportunity to build
a pipeline of high-quality leaders, provide high-level project involvement, and produce a positive return on investment (ROI)
for health-systems. These programs should be explored in academic and nonacademic-based health-systems.
Keywords
management, residency/training programs, education-pharmacists

Introduction
The publishing of "Will There Be a Pharmacy Leadership
Crisis?" an ASHP Foundation Scholar-in-Residence report
written by Sara White in 2005, brought to light a widening
gap surrounding the future of pharmacy leadership.1 White
cited a significant lack of pharmacy managers and specifically a lack of available training programs for future pharmacy leaders. While many institutions have succeeded in
filling this gap with successful and competitive postgraduate
administration and management training, disparity remains
between those large academic medical centers and their community hospital and health-system counterparts.1,2 According
to the ASHP Residency Directory, there are currently only 41
programs that offer a PGY1/PGY2 in pharmacy administration combined with a master's level degree. Of these programs, only four identify as community hospitals or provide
significant administrative experiences as part of a network of
community hospitals. In contrast, as of 2013, there were
5724 hospitals in the country and approximately 400 of those

were academic medical centers.3 This brings to light the fact
that the majority of pharmacy leadership opportunities will
be available in the community hospital setting.

Background
The profession of pharmacy requires transformation due to a
combination of increasing complexity of medication regimens and financial constraints, all in an evolving health care
1

Cone Health, Greensboro, NC, USA
UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
3
The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
4
University of California, Sacramento, CA, USA
5
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
6
Harris Teeter, Matthews, NC, USA
2

Corresponding Author:
Nicholas P. Gazda, Cone Health, 1200 North Elm Street, Greensboro,
NC 27401, USA.
Email: nick.gazda@conehealth.com
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