The Johns Hopkins Hospital Department of Pharmacy residency program is a 12-month curriculum that provides residents with extensive training opportunities in acute care, ambulatory care, drug information and drug use policy development, as well as clinical services and practice management. Eight PGY1 Pharmacy applicants will be accepted into our program.

Residency training programs were first established as hospital internships in 1927. The Johns Hopkins Hospital was one of the original 11 organizations that offered internships pre – 1947. The modern era of residency training and accreditation of residency training was developed in the 1950’s and 60’s. The residency program at The Johns Hopkins Hospital was first reviewed and accredited in 1971. The Department of Pharmacy at Hopkins, consistent with the policies of ASHP recognizes the value and need for pharmacy residency training for individuals seeking a career in hospital and health-system pharmacy.

Due to The Johns Hopkins Hospital prestige, we receive patients from all around the world with various beliefs, customs, and languages. Our program allows residents to experience a variety of healthcare issues and services in a diverse patient population. Opportunities to specialize in a specific practice area and/or participate in unique research projects are available. Residents work with pharmacy clinical specialists that have trained at institutions across the country, and will have access to cutting edge information and technology.

Graduates of our residency program have assumed a variety of leadership roles in acute care, home care, managed care and consulting practice settings. The residency program at Hopkins follows the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists standard for pharmacy practice residencies, and as a result, established a foundation of clinical practice that can be applied in various professional settings.

The role of our Point of Care Pharmacist is defined by, but not limited to, our core services. We work to ensure the highest standards of care by reviewing all medication orders and pre-admission medication histories, as well as monitoring the use of high-risk therapies such as anticoagulation and insulin. By participating in multidisciplinary patient care rounds, we are able to promote rational medication use, advise on ADR management, and educate health care teams members. Our Transitions to Home program aims to ensure that patients being discharged to home have their medications and have been educated on their proper use, thus decreasing the chance of readmission.

We offer clinical services in ambulatory care, critical care, internal medicine, infectious disease, pediatrics, oncology and transplantation. We also support Hopkins' Drug Information Center, the Investigational Drug Service and the AIDS Clinical Trial Group.

The primary goals of the residency on-call program are to enhance the resident’s practice responsibilities and experiences as well as to assist the second shift and weekend pharmacy staff with clinical/operational support. The resident on-call shift will begin daily at 4:00 PM and continue to 10:00 PM each weekday. On Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays on-call coverage will be provided from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM. On-call and staffing responsibilities will be scheduled on separate weekends. PGY1 residents will be at the hospital every other weekend, either in a staffing or on-call role. Following the on-call or staffing weekend, PGY1’s will have a compensatory day off.

Internal medicine, integrated practice, leadership and critical care are required rotations. Each rotation will be 1 calendar month. Residents are also required to complete a half-day weekly ambulatory care clinic rotation, for a minimum of 6 months.

A number of rotations are available including: Cardiology, Research and Investigational Drug Service, Infectious Disease, HIV/AIDS, Transplant, Oncology, Pharmacy Practice in a community hospital, and Pediatrics.

Each resident is assigned a preceptor to be the facilitator to advise them throughout the year. Facilitators review residents’ training plans and assist them in establishing a development program for the year. Quarterly, facilitators review the residents’ progress, and together with the residents, make modifications in the training plan. In addition, facilitators guide residents as they select their project and research committee, find preceptors to assist residents with their presentations, and guide them in their career choices.

Residents receive a list of goals and objectives at the beginning of each rotation. At the end of the rotation, they meet with a preceptor to review their performance. A written report assessing residents is prepared based on ASHP's Residency Program Design and Conduct (RPDC). On a quarterly basis, the director of the residency program provides residents with an evaluation of their progress based on comments of the preceptors.

Hopkins residents, in cooperation with the University of Maryland and Notre Dame of Maryland University, can lead several small group case-based discussions as well as precept students during rotations. In addition, they may apply for academic appointment at the University. Further opportunities may be made available to residents seeking additional teaching responsibilities.

The Johns Hopkins Hospital Pharmacy Residency Teaching and Learning Curriculum program is available to current residents. This program will provide quality education and didactic experience with the objective of preparing its participants with the knowledge and skill necessary to provide the instruction currently needed in pharmacy practice. The program involves case study workshop series, lecturing, small group discussion facilitation, a formal presentation, precepting students, and development of a teaching portfolio. Participants will also conduct interdisciplinary educational sessions.

Preceptors will develop a list of ideas for possible projects that would provide benefit for the hospital. The resident shall work with their project advisor to choose an interdisciplinary project committee. Examples of past research projects include:

• “Comparison of nephrotoxic sequelae between HIV positive and negative patients receiving cisplatin for the treatment of solid malignancies”
• “Pharmacists provide telemedicine in addition to clinic visits to improve diabetes management”
• “Incidence of acute kidney injury in pediatric cystic fibrosis patients receiving anti-MRSA antimicrobial therapy”  
• “The impact of an antithrombotic stewardship program on heparin induced thrombocytopenia management”

Elective rotations with the Investigational Drug Service (IDS) are available to those residents interested in further research experience.

Residents are required to deliver one continuing education presentation at Pharmacotherapy Rounds. They also must provide in-services on the pharmacy and medical teams throughout the year, depending on the rotation. In addition, residents present the results of their major project to the preceptors before presenting the results at the regional residency conference: the Eastern States Residency Conference.

Practice skills are developed throughout the program in all aspects of patient care. PGY1 Residents will be required to staff every other weekend.  Responsibilities include patient care, distribution, management, order verification and drug information.

A resident’s stipend is $51,126 (2022-23) for PGY1 and $53,788 for PGY2. Residents receive a comprehensive benefits package including health care, dental, eye care and paid time off during the residency year. Financial support is provided for residents to attend the Eastern States Residency Conference. Funding is also available to those residents participating in other professional meetings.

Financial support is provided for residents to attend the ASHP resident’s visitation trip, the ASHP mid-year clinical meeting, and the Eastern States Residency Conference. Funding also is available to those residents participating in other professional meetings.

Laptops are provided to the residents, and residents will have access to clinical resources and the intranet outside of the hospital.

Residents have access to the William H. Welch Medical Library and the Meyer Library, both of which are located on Johns Hopkins' East Baltimore campus. One of the largest medical libraries in the country, the Welch Library houses the medical literature in all fields of teaching, patient care and research represented at Hopkins. It contains more than 267,000 bound volumes as well as an extensive audiovisual collection.

There are several parking options from which residents may choose, providing convenient and safe access to the hospital.