Thank you for replying. A few followup questions though:
You mention the Interprofessional Education model, and I agree, this is where education is, and should be, going. However, I don't agree that fitting a model is the correct reason to add a pharmacy program. There are plenty of other established schools in the area with pharmacy programs that don't have the benefit of the large health-science core, why not form a strategic partnership with some of them? St. Louis College of Pharmacy, if I'm not mistaken, has done something similar to that.
You also mention serving students from out of state (which is a unique answer, I'll admit). However, none of those states, aside from rural California, are really experiencing an acute demand. Just look at the hiring packages being offered by the major chains and some of the local folks, and you'll see decreasing salaries, shorter hours and less interns being hired as pharmacists. Hospital markets are, by all measures, no better.
Finally, you go on to mention several specialized careers, such as law, medical writing and research. These all require a unique sort of student and years of postgraduate training. I appreciate that there is a need for pharmacists in these areas, and think it's great that you plan on training folks for those roles. Specifically though, how does RFU plan on directing students into these career paths, especially when the PGY-1 residency market is as depressingly oversaturated as it is?
Please don't take any of these questions as insults - they are honest questions. Again, I think that if any new pharmacy school is to open, it should be at a well-established location such as RFU. I'm just interested in seeing the thought process behind the new school, and how these legitimate concerns are being addressed.
Thank you for taking the time to post.
Hi Praziquantel86,
Thanks for the follow up questions. I'm sorry to say that my answer is likely going to be a bit of a history lesson - so, readers, grab a cup of coffee and take a break from your books.
Our inquiry into opening another program at RFUMS actually started back in 2004! Does that surprise you? Honestly, we didn't just wake up one morning last year and say, hey, we can make a lot of money by educating pharmacists so "let's dooooo it" (in my best Cheech Marin voice!).
We started in 2004 when we updated our strategic plan and vision for the RFU community. Staff, students, faculty and alumni, external constituents (Hospital Administrators, Residency Directors, etc) were a part of our process and all were welcome to contribute to our plan. From that we put together an exploratory committee ('05-'07) who looked at several options for growth. One of the most compelling documents the committee found was the 2000 HRSA report on the expected need for pharmacists between now and 2030. We felt, poised as an institution already educating healthcare professional, this was the area we were best positioned to help. And, part of me has to think, that if Rosalid Franklin herself were alive today, she's be proud that we chose a profession that is training 2 out of every 3 graduates who are women!!!
So, next, we established an Advisory Board - folks from our local community (and outside of our local area) who are practitioners, educators and community leaders. Would it surprise you that we consulted with Deans of other colleges of pharmacy, too? C'mon guys, it's a small community -- just under 250,000 practicing pharmacists (that, did you know, on average only work part time by choice? Which I am also sorry to say is what, statistically, is driving down the mean salaries - not oversaturation as some of you believe.).
Part of our reasoning behind Pharmacy is also that we will need many more practitioners who are willing to work in rural areas of our country -- not everyone wants to be in Chicago (I know, shocking to the Native Chicagoans here, but true). As the population increases in age and need for medication, we simply need more PharmD trained practitioners who can replace the existing workforce - one that has just as many baby-boomer practitioners as every other healthcare profession who plan on retiring between now and 2020.
And, the final thing I want to say this morning is that, while I welcome the current student questions, my intent to is to be able to answer
pre-
pharmacy student questions... I fear if the tone of the thread continues in this vein, we won't be able to talk about admissions and curriculum and outcomes... so, please, if you are a current pre-pharmacy student, I would love to hear your questions, too!
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