POTSDAM, NY – The newest graduate of Canton-Potsdam Hospital’s (CPH) Pharmacy Residency Program: Postgraduate Year 1 (PGY1) Pharmacy said he learned a great deal of information through the Program that he did not learn in school.
Kyle McMillan, PharmD, attended Wegmans School of Pharmacy at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, NY, and one month after graduating from pharmacy school he joined the CPH program. He noted he chose CPH for a multitude of reasons.
“Both of my parents went to Clarkson University years ago, so I was familiar with the area; however, it was actually a family member who informed me that CPH had a residency program. After doing some research, I felt it was a good fit for me. Learning about the various and unique rotations and opportunities they offered for a hospital of its size truly impressed me,” Dr. McMillan said. “Having grown up in a small town and spending most of my healthcare/pharmacy experience in rural community hospitals, I came to enjoy that style of healthcare - one where all disciplines work together for the patients, and you can build meaningful, trusting relationships with the providers and nursing staff. These factors, in addition to the pharmacy staff I met with during the multiple interviews and recruiting processes, were the biggest draws to CPH for me,”
Dr. McMillan noted he has always wanted to work in a hospital pharmacy, and he believes that completing a residency is the best way to continue on that path. He explained many in the pharmacy world consider the completion of a PGY-1 includes up to five years of clinical experience all wrapped up into one year.
“Residency programs are designed to give the residents various experiences to strengthen their knowledge in multiple areas of medicine. By applying and completing a residency program, I felt I have set myself ahead of other potential candidates during my job search. I also chose residency to continue to learn and gain more confidence in myself. Residency teaches us a great deal of information that we did not learn in school and would otherwise not have learned anywhere else,” he said.
CPH Pharmacist and Pharmacy Residency Director Brett Ouimet, PharmD, oversees the Pharmacy Residency Program and explained that individuals who enter the Program are no longer students, but rather residents. The resident works closely with a pharmacist preceptor, nurses, providers, students, and anyone else involved with providing patient care.
“Our program is accredited by the American Society of Health System Pharmacists (ASHP), and we need to maintain their list of standards to retain that certification. Some examples of our required educational rotations include Infectious disease, hematology/oncology, and acute care. Overall, our program allows our residents to gain exposure in a wide variety of practice specialties, and prepares them for a career as a clinical pharmacist,” Dr. Ouimet said.
Dr. McMillan recently accepted a position as a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist at Bassett Medical Center in Cooperstown, NY, focusing on Infectious Disease. He noted Bassett is a teaching hospital with many medical students and residents, and he will have the opportunity to work with them and pass on the knowledge he has gained through his own experiences.
Throughout his year of residency, Dr. McMillan was employed as a licensed pharmacist providing pharmacy care to patients at CPH. One of the required educational rotations of the program is hematology and oncology, which allowed him to also work in the Center for Cancer Care Pharmacy.
To learn more about CPH’s Pharmacy Residency Program: Postgraduate Year 1 (PGY1) Pharmacy, visit https://stlawrencehealthsystem.org/education/pharmacy-residency
