Site/Location
UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital, Pittsburgh PA
Program Purpose
PGY1 pharmacy residency programs build on Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) education and outcomes to contribute to the development of clinical pharmacists responsible for medication related care of patients with a wide range of conditions, eligible for board certification, and eligible for postgraduate year two (PGY2) pharmacy residency training.
Mission
To provide personalized training that will prepare graduates of the program to practice across all care settings, including acute inpatient, ambulatory, as well as academia. Training will focus on providing patient-centered care as part of an interdisciplinary team to ensure safe, effective, and evidence-based pharmacotherapy for individuals with medical and psychiatric disorders. Upon successful completion of the residency program, graduates will be prepared to continue post-graduate training or to pursue a rewarding career in clinical pharmacy.
What makes us unique?
Our people.
Pharmacy department - Each member of our pharmacy team is dedicated to our residents – not only as pharmacists and professionals but more importantly, as individuals. We strive to create a supportive culture for our learners. Our team works to provide excellent patient care, evidence-based education, and continuous quality improvement through research.
Interprofessional team - Our colleagues in other professions care deeply about helping each patient that we serve at Western Behavioral Health. Pharmacists are valued and viewed as integral members of the interprofessional team.
Patients - Our patients inspire us each day. They truly connect us to our purpose, and we are fortunate to play a role in advancing their mental and physical well-being across all care settings and phases of recovery.
Our opportunity.
For more than 60 years, UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital has been a national leader in providing best practice, research-based care and a broad array of innovative psychiatric and addiction services for children, adolescents, adults, and seniors at every stage of their recovery. With over 400 inpatient psychiatric beds and more than 80 ambulatory programs within the behavioral health division of UPMC, Western Psychiatric is one of the largest behavioral health care providers affiliated with an academic medical center in the country. Considered one of the nation’s foremost academic-based psychiatric care facilities, Western Psychiatric houses the Department of Psychiatry of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dedicated to providing professionals with state-of-the-art training and assistance, it is consistently ranked as one of the best in America by U.S. News & World Report.
Program Overview
- Patient Care and Pharmacy Experiences
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Orientation and Pharmacy Operations (required)
Ambulatory Care (required)
Internal Medicine (required)
Geriatric Medicine (required)
Inpatient Psychiatry (required)
Critical Care (required)
Inpatient Family Medicine (required)
Medication Safety (required)
Personal Development (required – longitudinal)
Clinical Consultation (required - longitudinal)
Inpatient Operations (required - longitudinal)
Medication Safety (required – longitudinal)
Academia and Professional Development (required – longitudinal)
Underserved Care (elective)
Emergency Medicine (elective)
Substance Use Disorder (elective)
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (elective) - Teaching Experiences
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University of Pittsburgh Mastery of Teaching (elective)
One Pharmacotherapy Update (required)
Two case presentations (required)
Two journal clubs (required)
Monthly department topic discussions (required)
Preceptor Development session (required)
APPE Precepting (based off preceptor schedule - elective) - Requirements for Program Completion
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Obtain the rating of “achieved for residency” for ≥90% of the residency objectives associated with the five educational outcomes set for this residency program
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For Competency Area R1: Patient Care, the resident must have a rating of “achieved for residency” for 100% of objectives
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Any objectives that do not receive a rating of “Achieved” must receive a rating of “Satisfactory Progress”; no remaining objectives may have a rating of “Needs Improvement” at the end of the residency program
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Satisfactory completion of all learning experiences as determined by the individual preceptors in conjunction with the RPD. If a learning experience is not completed in a satisfactory manner, additional remedial work and/or learning experience extension will be granted as determined by the preceptor and RPD
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Completion of major pharmacy resident research.
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Presentation of research at University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy Resident Research Day
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Successful completion of one Pharmacotherapy Updates presentations (PULSE), two journal clubs, and two formal case presentations
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Completion of Pharmacy & Therapeutics (P&T) Committee responsibilities (i.e. ADR/labeling changes, newsletter, and meeting minutes)
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Involvement in one medication use evaluation (MUE) project
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Submission of a manuscript draft of the major pharmacy project with review by the residency program director.
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Completion of all assignments and projects as defined by the preceptors and the RPD
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Compliance with all institutional and departmental policies
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- Manual/Policy and Procedures
- Information will be provided by the program
- Recruiting Events
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Pennsylvania Society of Health-System Pharmacists (PSHP) 2024 Virtual Residency and Fellowship Showcase
- Date: October 22, 2024
- Time: 5:00-7:00 PM EST
- Teams link will be provided to PSHP Showcase attendees. Virtual Residency Showcase - Pennsylvania Society of Health-System Pharmacists (pshp.org) to register.
UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital PGY1 Pharmacy Residency Open House
- Date: November 4, 2024
- Time: 6:00-7:00 PM EST
- Teams Link
SNPhA x ACCP Residency Showcase
- Date: November 12, 2024
- Time: 7:00-8:00 PM EST
- Teams link will be provided to SNPhA x ACCP Residency Showcase attendees. See ACCP 2024 SNPhA x ACCP Residency Showcase to register.
UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital PGY1 Pharmacy Residency Open House
- Date: Tuesday, December 3, 2024
- Time: 6:00-7:00 PM EST
- Teams Link
- Date: December 16, 2024
- Time: 6:00-7:00 PM EST
- Teams link
Employment Information
Start Date July 1, 2025
Term of Appointment 1 year
Stipend and Benefit Information
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Yearly Stipend: $52,797
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Paid Time Off: 20 days for vacation, sickness, personal time, conferences, and interviews
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Benefits: Please see UPMC GME website for complete benefit information: 2023 Benefit Highlights (upmc.com)
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Travel: Reimbursement based on availability of funding
Application/Interview Information
PhORCAS application due on January 2, 2025
- Letters of intent
- Curriculum Vitae
- Three (3) letters of recommendation submitted through PhORCAS
Select applicants will be invited to interview virtually. Dates to-be-determined but will be offered in January and February.
Meet Our Team
Residency Program Director
Matthew Joseph, PharmD, BCPS
josephmp@upmc.edu
Residency Program Coordinator
Ana Lupu, PharmD
lupua@upmc.edu
Preceptors
- Christine Clark, PharmD, BCPP
- James Coons, PharmD, BCCP , FCCP, FACC
- Sharon Conner, PharmD
- Marissa Cullen, PharmD, BCPP
- Joseph Durkin, PharmD BCCCP
- Tanya J. Fabian, PharmD, PhD, BCPP
- Karen Fielding, PharmD
- Hannah Goulding, PharmD, BCPP
- Marc Gutowski, PharmD
- Matthew Joseph, PharmD, BCPS
- Cory McGinnis, PharmD, BCCCP
- Casey O’Brien, PharmD, BCPS
- Megha Patel, PharmD, BCPS
- Alexandria Feist, PharmD, BCPS
- Andreea Temelie, PharmD, BCPP
- Rebecca Watson, PharmD, BCPP, BCPS
- Melanie Yabs, PharmD, MS, BCPP
Current Residents
- Kavya Gayatri Achyutuni, PharmD
- Angeleki E Zecopoulos, PharmD
Past Residents and First Positions
- Paige Dorve-Lewis, PharmD – PGY2 Behavioral Health Pharmacist, SUNY Upstate University Hospital, Syracuse, NY
- Christine Sun, PharmD – PGY2 Clinical Psychiatric Pharmacist, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA
- Emily Thacker, PharmD – Psychiatric Clinical Pharmacist, UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital
- Harrison Ferro, PharmD – Psychiatric Clinical Pharmacist, VA Medical Center Wilkes-Barre
- Dante Delerme, PharmD – Psychiatric Clinical Pharmacist, Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center
- Michael Harrison, PharmD - PGY2 Psychiatric Pharmacy, UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital
- Hannah Holloway, PharmD - PGY2 Psychiatric Pharmacy, UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital
- Tuyen Nguyen, PharmD – Psychiatric Clinical Pharmacist, Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health
- Andreea Temelie, PharmD, BCPP – Psychiatric Clinical Pharmacist, UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital
- Rena Sackett, PharmD – Director of Member Relations, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists
Select Publications/Awards
Hannah Goulding, PharmD, BCPP (PGY1 Class of 2019)
UPMC Western Behavioral Health Patient Quality Award for “Increasing Utilization of Intranasal Midazolam for Seizures.”
Andreea Temelie, PharmD, BCPP (PGY1 Class of 2020)
Hospital/Health System Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) Excellence in Care Award for “Process and Outcomes for Deprescribing Benzodiazepines in the Outpatient Setting for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities and Autism.”
Emily Thacker, PharmD (PGY1 Class of 2022)
Winstanley, E. L., Thacker, E. P., Choo, L. Y., Lander, L. R., Berry, J. H., & Tofighi, B. (2022). Patient-reported problems filling buprenorphine prescriptions and motivations for illicit use. Drug and alcohol dependence reports, 5, 100091.
Thacker E. P. (2021). Building bridges to recovery in Appalachia. Journal of the American Pharmacists Association : JAPhA, 61(3), 226–227.
Christine Sun, PharmD (PGY1 Class of 2023)
Sun C, Temelie A, Goulding H, Clark C, Yabs M, Fabian T. Long-acting injectable antipsychotic initiation in child and adolescent patients with psychiatric disorders. J Child Adolesc Psychopharmacol. Published online August 26, 2024.
Paige Dorve-Lewis, PharmD (PGY1 Class of 2023)
American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists (AAPP) Defining the Future Research Grant Recipient 2023
