Impact of Incorporating Pharmacy Residents Into a Pharmacist-Managed Culture Review Service During Weekend Staffing Commitments

Abstract

Background: Clinical pharmacy continues to rapidly evolve as does the need to incorporate unique learning opportunities in pharmacy residency training (eg, transitions of care). Objective: To describe the impact of incorporating pharmacy residents into a pharmacist-managed emergency department culture review service (CRS). Methods: This retrospective study included 500 cultures with positive results evaluated by a pharmacy resident during weekend staffing shifts for patients discharged from the emergency department or urgent care center (UCC). The primary outcome of this study was the number of interventions performed by pharmacy residents. Results: Of the 500 cultures evaluated, 275 (55%) required action by the pharmacy residents, resulting in 233 interventions. Modification of antimicrobial therapy occurred 70 times. When surveyed, a majority of residents strongly agreed that the CRS had a positive impact. Based on evaluations, residents achieved mastery of pertinent residency performance objectives. Conclusion: Incorporation of pharmacy residents into a pharmacist-managed emergency department CRS promotes safe and effective medication use to patients discharged from an emergency department or UCC while providing residents additional experience in designing a therapeutic regimen, providing education to patients, and communicating with health-care teams to manage medication therapy.