Pharmacy Associations Approve New Standards for Community-Based Residency Programs

WASHINGTON, DC (February 4, 2016)—ASHP (American Society of Health-System Pharmacists) and the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) today approved the new standard for PGY1 Community-based Pharmacy Residency Programs. The standard was prepared jointly by ASHP and APhA, as has been the process since the partnership between the organizations were formed in 1999 to accredit community-based residency training programs.

“The new standard keeps pace with current trends in pharmacy practice and the need for additional training opportunities in diverse outpatient and community settings,” said James Owen, APhA’s vice president of practice and science affairs. “Additionally, the standard provides enhanced flexibility to organizations with the desire to engage in residency training. This will potentially lead to an increase in the number of residency programs and positions within this sector of pharmacy practice.”

“It is our hope that community-based residency programs will help develop practice leaders who improve the health of patients in the communities they serve,” said Janet Silvester, ASHP’s vice president of accreditation services. “These pharmacist practitioners can serve as an access point to care in those communities.”

Owen and Silvester noted the foundation of the education and training in the new standard is focused on developing the knowledge and skills needed for individual pharmacists rather than the practice settings where care is provided.

The Community-based Pharmacy Residency Accreditation Taskforce that developed the standard continues to work on the associated Competencies, Goals, and Objectives as well as the guidance document. These documents are expected to be released later this year. Mandatory implementation of the new standard is expected by July 2017.

For more informaton, please visit pharmacist.com or ashp.org.