AdMiNiStRaTiVe RoTaTiOn

Posted by Melanie at Sunday, October 09, 2011

For rotation 3, I am on my admin rotation at UMHHC with Dr. Jim Stevenson as my primary preceptor and Dr. John Clark co-precepting. So far, it has been very interesting seeing the management side of pharmacy. The admin team has been amazing and I have learned a lot of things so far.

First, the structure of the administrative team at U of M has recently changed. So let's get to know some of the players.

Dr. Jim Stevenson is the Chief Pharmacy Officer; he is also Associate Dean and the chair of the Clinical, Social, and Administrative Sciences department.

Dr. John Clark is the Director of Pharmacy Services.

I have also had the opportunity to meet with the following assistant directors: medication use system, surgical and cardiovascular, medical and oncology, and ambulatory pharmacy services; the following coordinators: medication safety, ambulatory initiative and transitions of care, and contracting and purchasing. During these meetings, I have learned about the roles and responsibilities that come with each of these positions. I have also had the opportunity to find out what each of their career paths were - each is different and unique.

I am also working on two projects right now. The first project is the Bedside Medications Policy. Currently, certain products are allowed at the patient's bedside, while others are allowed to be locked at the bedside, and others are not allowed to be stored in the patient's room. I observed 70 bedsides to assess compliance with the policy. I am currently analyzing the results and preparing to make a recommendation for updating the policy.
The other project involves dispensing medications in larger quantities than ordered. For example, if a patient was to receive 250 mL of a product and the standard practice was to dispense 500 mL, I would make note of that. I am currently analyzing my results and preparing to make a recommendation on what should be standard practice for situations like these.

I am also responsible for presenting a journal club. My article is called "Tech-check-tech". This concept would utilize pharmacy technicians for completing the final check of a product and allow pharmacists to spend more time doing clinical activities. I am going to present this idea to the leadership team and see how it might fit in at UMHHC.

The final two weeks of this rotation should be exciting as my projects are finalized and I see how my recommendations are perceived!