The Department of Pharmacy at UT Medical Center works within medical center patients and contributes to the training of pharmacy residents.
The medical center is a 710-bed, tertiary care facility which serves the entire East Tennessee region. It is a Level I Trauma Center supported by UT LIFESTAR, an aeromedical helicopter program. UT Medical Center’s campus includes UT Graduate School of Medicine and UT College of Pharmacy, where approximately 200 pharmacy students train each year in the classroom and clinical rotations.
An American Society of Health-System Pharmacists accredited PGY1 residency in pharmacy practice is offered as well as three specialty residency programs. The Department of Pharmacy was selected as one of four national implementation sites for the ASHP Residency Learning System and has been recognized by the Tennessee Society of Hospital Pharmacists (TSHP) for the Innovative Hospital Pharmacy Practice Award. UT Medical Center Department of Pharmacy also received a coveted invitation to share its pharmacist practice model innovations at ASHP’s pivotal Pharmacy Practice Model Initiative (PPMI) Summit.
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The pharmacy staff provides comprehensive pharmaceutical care through the main pharmacy, retail pharmacy, two satellite pharmacies in oncology and surgery, and twelve decentralized pharmacist teams, consisting of a pharmacist and a certified pharmacy technician. The decentralized pharmacists, including many specialists, respond to formal and informal drug therapy consults for pharmacokinetics among other complex therapeutic issues. The physician services are a mix of private and academic rounding teams of which pharmacists are a crucial member. Pharmacy specialists are available in the following areas: internal medicine/subspecialties, ambulatory/family medicine, emergency medicine, oncology, infectious disease, drug policy, pediatrics, critical care medicine and trauma, transplant, medication safety, clinical informatics, and night-shift medicine.
The medical center provides drug therapy with many advanced technologies to promote patient safety, such and eMAR, Bar-Code Medication Administration (BCMA), smart pumps, and Computerized Prescriber Order Entry (CPOE). The pharmacy team works closely with the medical, nursing, and other healthcare staff to provide the very best in patient care, education, and research.
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Mission Statement
The Department of Pharmacy operates to ensure positive drug therapy outcomes for our patients and contributes to achieving the objectives of the medical center by:
- Ensuring safe and effective use of medication through integration of multiple disciplines
- Attracting and retaining highly qualified and motivated staff
- Educating and developing future leaders in pharmacy and other healthcare professions
- Affecting change through practice-based research
The pursuit of this mission creates opportunities to develop advancements in pharmacy practice.