title: Characteristics of Postgraduate Year 1 Pharmacy Residency Programs at Veterans Affairs Medical Centers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although the characteristics of pharmacy postgraduate year 1 (PGY1) residency programs have been examined among large academic medical centers, there are no identified studies comparing the attributes of individual programs in the Veterans Affairs (VA) Health Administration System. The primary objective of this study was to describe and contrast characteristics of VA PGY1 residency programs.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a cross-sectional survey of VA pharmacy residency programs. An online survey was distributed electronically to residency program directors of VA PGY1 residencies.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Responses from 33 (33%) PGY1 programs were available for the analysis. Programs reported growth over the previous 2 years and expected continued expansion. There was a wide variety of learning opportunities, although experiences were customizable based on residents' interests. Notably, many programs allowed residents to seek rotations at other locations if specific experiences were not available on-site. Additionally, most programs had a mandatory staffing component and required residents to present the results of residency research projects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is a high degree of variability among individual VA facilities with regard to the requirements and opportunities available to PGY1 pharmacy residents. This assessment is able to characterize the currently established residency programs and allows for an active comparison of programs in a nationally integrated health care system.
authors: Pharmacy Service, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA Department of Geriatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors: Jennifer G
authors: JG
authors: Naples
authors: Pharmacy Service, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA.
authors: Tracie
authors: T
authors: Rothrock-Christian
authors: Pharmacy Service, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA jamie.brown2@va.gov.
authors: Jamie N
authors: JN
authors: Brown
mesh_terms: D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D064172:Pharmacy Residencies / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010607:Pharmacy Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013339:Students, Pharmacy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs
keywords: Veterans Affairs; leadership; pharmacy practice; postgraduate training; residency