SOP’s U.Va. Division: An update, live from C’ville
Pharm.D. students at VCU School of Pharmacy have the rare opportunity to spend their third and fourth years at one of three locations: the MCV Campus in Richmond, the Inova Campus in Fairfax and the University of Virginia Division in Charlottesville.
The main campus and two satellites offer a variety of experiences in an assortment of settings.
Rafael Saenz, assistant dean for the U.Va. Division, visited Richmond on Feb. 4 to give first- and second-year Pharm.D. students an introduction to the school’s newest satellite.
The U.Va. Division opened in 2012, headed by Saenz, who also serves as administrator of pharmacy services for the U.Va. Health System. Saenz is well-equipped to speak to what VCU has to offer, as well; he earned his Pharm.D. degree here in 2003.
Although they attend a “distance” campus, U.Va. Division students stay connected to School of Pharmacy classes and meetings via state-of-the-art technology.
And students are still expected to attend classes, noted Aziza Dang, a third-year student now based in Charlottesville. “We have two screens, one with the slide and one with the lecturer,” she explained. “We can interact, and it’s in real time. It’s like sitting in a classroom in Richmond.”
The five-room space allotted pharmacy students is about a block from the U.Va. Health System’s main hospital. “We’ve tried to make it as accommodating as possible,” Saenz said.
In addition to MCV Campus faculty, Saenz has access to a staff of 16 clinicians who also assume teaching roles. Because of this, he said, the U.Va. Division can offer students more and closer interaction with specialists who run an active pharmacy and have patient-care roles.
He noted that the satellite program has support from high-level leadership at both universities.
Other advantages, said Saenz, include “a matriculating internship model.” That is, Pharm.D. students who spend their last two years based at the U.Va. Division have the first right of refusal to internships (although internships are not guaranteed).
“We also have a strong residency program,” said Saenz. Currently, two VCU SOP class of ’14 alumni, Lindsay Donohue and Andrew Whitman, are PGY1 U.Va. Health System residents.
The clinical coordinators give students an idea of who they’d like to work with on rotations, says Dang. And P3s get first pick of University of Virginia rotations.
Phylliss Moret agreed, pointing out that the ratio of rotation options to students is much better and citing “a wealth of resources in Charlottesville and at U.Va.” Moret is the School of Pharmacy’s assistant dean for experiential education.
Dang has heard students express concern about missing out on student organizations if they leave Richmond. “But,” she said, “four of us have executive roles in an organization.” Dang herself is assistant editor of The Capsule, the online student newsletter, and serves as U.Va. representative to the Student Chapter of the Virginia Society of Health-System Pharmacists
Saenz said his goal is to have students arrive in Charlottesville as P3s, stay as P4s, become residents and then … well, then, he’s envisioning a crew of SOP-educated pharmacists working within the U.Va. Health System. “I have eight pharmacy openings right now!” he smiled.
To learn more about the School of Pharmacy’s University of Virginia Division, click here.
Categories Alumni news, Faculty news, Preceptors, Student news, U.Va. Division