East Coast residencies and reputations

[SRTM]

Hi all,

I just finished my P3 year (yay!) and am starting to try and narrow down the list of residencies I might want to apply to next year. It seems that one of the easiest places to start is location, and I'm interested in moving to the East Coast (specifically New York) after I graduate.

However, I keep hearing that residencies on the east coast are somehow not as good or not as highly ranked as the ones in the midwest (where I am now) or the west coast. I've even heard that pharmacy in general on the east coast is "a little behind the times." So my questions are:

1. Is it true that the residencies on the east coast, in general, have a lower reputation than those in other areas?

2. Would that affect my job prospects or competitiveness for a PGY2 residency, as long as it's accredited? Do employers look more at which hospital you did your residency at, or do they only care that you have done a residency?

Thanks in advance!

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[bigpharmD]

Depends where on the east coast...you are prob referring to the "northeast" which prob is behind the times..but this is mostly due to ivy league trained physicians working in these areas...but if you go down to UNC, or MUSC they are progressive in terms of pharmacy...so it just depends on location....overall i would say it depends more on the hospital and the pharmacy department more than geographical location

 

[KARM12]

First off, there is no ranking of pharmacy residencies. I'm not sure where you are getting this idea. There are good programs scattered throughout the country. A program is not necessarily better because of th geographical location. I will agree that the west is generally more progressive than the East. It really is program specific. For example, there are some really great hospitals in the Boston area.. very good reputation, but their pharmacy departments aren't very strong. The best residency program in Boston is at the city hospital (lower reputation as a hospital) that has almost 20 clinical pharmacy specialists. Don't just go by hospital reputation, go by the program specifically.


I can't help you with programs in NY. I know nothing about them.

Yes, where you do a residency does make a difference. The quality of the program says a lot for how good your training will be.

 

[DrugRX]

First off, there is no ranking of pharmacy residencies. I'm not sure where you are getting this idea. There are good programs scattered throughout the country. A program is not necessarily better because of th geographical location. I will agree that the west is generally more progressive than the East. It really is program specific. For example, there are some really great hospitals in the Boston area.. very good reputation, but their pharmacy departments aren't very strong. The best residency program in Boston is at the city hospital (lower reputation as a hospital) that has almost 20 clinical pharmacy specialists. Don't just go by hospital reputation, go by the program specifically.


I can't help you with programs in NY. I know nothing about them.

Yes, where you do a residency does make a difference. The quality of the program says a lot for how good your training will be.

Do you mind sharing the name of the city hospital in Boston that you are referring to? I am in Boston area and most of city/community hospitals here don't have that many clinical pharmacy specialists unless most of them are school professors. I am just curious which one has that many specialists....

 

[KARM12]

Do you mind sharing the name of the city hospital in Boston that you are referring to? I am in Boston area and most of city/community hospitals here don't have that many clinical pharmacy specialists unless most of them are school professors. I am just curious which one has that many specialists....

Boston Medical Center. I think only one or two of their pharmacists are faculty members.

 

[bigpharmD]

Dang they do have quite a few

 

[nikkai]

Depends where on the east coast...you are prob referring to the "northeast" which prob is behind the times..but this is mostly due to ivy league trained physicians working in these areas...but if you go down to UNC, or MUSC they are progressive in terms of pharmacy...so it just depends on location....overall i would say it depends more on the hospital and the pharmacy department more than geographical location

Translation.

If you interview at an institution where people wear really short shorts and have sweaters tied around their waists/neck: Run.

 

[PharmaTope]

be careful of what places tell you. i can tell you from personal experience that a lot of bull**** is fed to resident applicants that paints a total different picture than the actual residency.

 

[MdBrndPhrmcst]

Depends where on the east coast...you are prob referring to the "northeast" which prob is behind the times..but this is mostly due to ivy league trained physicians working in these areas...but if you go down to UNC, or MUSC they are progressive in terms of pharmacy...so it just depends on location....overall i would say it depends more on the hospital and the pharmacy department more than geographical location

I agree with this guy....northeast in general not as progressive...take a look at VA programs they tend to have pretty strong residencies.. but also I've been told going south or going west is going to get you better training

 

[billsbills]

I have completed two-years or residency on the east coast. In hindsight, I wish I had pursued my residency education in the mid-west or west coast.

Do I feel like I am biased against when I am applying for jobs? No, I had multiple job offers after completing my residency. I also only applied for jobs on the east coast.

You want to be able to gain experience in practice in areas where clinical pharmacy is more progressive and you are given a certain degree of autonomy. Regardless of what anyone may tell you certain areas of the country are much more progressive in terms of pharmacy. Why deny yourself those opportunities? You can always move back to the east coast after completing your residency.

 

[rrr10]

I don't think that doing a residency east or west will hurt. I think it depends more on what you are looking for. The west tends to be pretty progressive, but there are also places in the east that are too, including the large academic teaching hospitals. Also, places near pharmacy schools tend to have strong clinical pharmacy programs (at least, I know the places near my pharmacy school were), but that might not be true for all(?). My hospital isn't in the west but is pretty progressive and has one of the most competitive residency programs in the nation. Some of our residents are/were from CA schools.

On another note, where you do your residency will provide you with networking capabilities, so if you are in the east but want to live out west, doing a residency out west can be beneficial - you will have preceptors and coworkers who know other pharmacists in the west that can help you find a job or point you in the right direction after residency. I would tell you to look at which location you prefer or must be at and also look at which programs you like best, hopefully there are some that will fit both criteria for you. If one aspect is more important than the other for you, you can rank accordingly.

If you want to do a PGY2 residency in say, oncology, the highest ranked onc centers in the US are in Seattle, Hopkins, MD Anderson, Sloane-Kettering, and others- that are scattered over the country. I believe those places also have strong pharmacy residencies... So it also depends on what your residency is in.