Making a dent $40,000 at a time

Were you one of the prospective residents last year that researched and networked with programs for nearly two years, flew out to both visit and interview at each site (at least in my case), only to NOT MATCH?

I was.

I eventually got lucky, and I am in a residency that is new and starting off schedule. It found me, and for that I am grateful. Not many people were offered that opportunity. Over 1000 people, actually, did not match and were left scrambling for a job.

Enter ASHP Foundation and Amgen, who is helping fund 20 PGY1 residencies. They can’t be community pharmacy residencies like the one I am in, which seems somewhat counterproductive in my mind. Regardless, it’s a start. Maybe they can get some more ambulatory care residencies going.

This is great, but I want to see how they turn 20 new residency positions into the 1100 that are needed. I would love to see some other companies step up to the plate.

Here’s the blurb from the newsletter:

New Grant Program to Expand PGY-1 Residencies

The ASHP Foundation is launching a grant program, supported by Amgen, Inc., to grow the number of PGY-1 pharmacy residencies. In 2010, more than 1,000 pharmacy students were unable to match for residency spots because there simply weren’t enough positions. The PGY-1 Expansion Grant (PEG) Program will offer monies to hospitals, health systems and universities to establish a PGY-1 residency or add positions to an existing PGY-1 residency program. For more information, visit www.ashpfoundation.org/PEGProgram.