Enhanced responsibilities for pharmacy interns at a teaching hospital

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Practice
• Healthcare Administration
• Professional Development

Background:

• Hospital pharmacy departments often have roles that can be adapted for intern development.
• Traditionally, a pharmacist managed medication distribution coordination.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the implementation of a pharmacy intern distribution coordinator position.
• To assess the impact of this role on pharmacy intern professional development.

Main Methods:

• A tertiary academic medical center implemented a pharmacy intern distribution coordinator role in 2009.
• Interns manage medication processing, filling, delivery, inventory, and communication under pharmacist supervision.
• Interns also perform clinical interventions and answer drug information queries.

Main Results:

• The intern distribution coordinator position maximizes pharmacy intern resources and development.
• Interns gain experience in pharmacotherapy, communication, leadership, time management, and critical thinking.
• Interns practice at the top of their licensure, fostering early professional growth.

Conclusions:

• The pharmacy intern distribution coordinator role offers significant professional development opportunities.
• Expanding intern roles enhances pharmacy department resources and intern skill acquisition.
• Institutions should prioritize maximizing intern practice at the highest level of their licensure.