On Call
The primary goals of the residency on-call program are to enhance the resident's practice responsibilities and experiences as well as to assist pharmacy staff with clinical/operational support.
I. Responsibilities
The following activities are expected to be provided by the resident on-call:
- Adult and pediatric code, trauma, and emergency response pager coverage for inpatient, outpatient, and emergency department areas
- Pharmacokinetics
- Drug information
- Administrative and operational support
- Patient education
- Medication histories
II. Coverage
The on-call rotation will provide coverage 7 days/week. 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 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM.
- The resident will be available by pager and will round through each pharmacy division to assist at least once per shift to assist with any issues.
III. On-Call Scheduling
On-call shifts will be divided amongst eligible residents, and the schedule will be shared in the beginning of the academic year prior to August.
On-call weekends will occur on the same weekends for each resident’s respective staffing responsibilities (i.e., the on-call shifts will replace the staffing shifts that weekend). Following the on-call weekend, PGY1s will have a compensatory day off.
IV. Training, Evaluation, and Feedback
Orientation to the on-call program will occur in the beginning of each academic year and will include sessions related to program overview and logistics, documentation, ACLS pharmacology and common code response scenarios, medication preparation and code drug box review, and simulation center sessions. Incoming residents will complete two on-call training shifts with a returning resident and may accompany clinical pharmacists carrying the daytime code pager in the beginning of the year. Residents will complete an on-call training checklist during their orientation.
A quarterly evaluation will be performed by residents’ facilitators based on a combination of staff (e.g., pharmacist, nursing, and provider) input and documentation of resident activities.
On-call debriefs, where activities, questions, and/or concerns are discussed amongst the residents and preceptors in attendance, will occur weekly. Additional information, education, and feedback may be distributed through various means throughout the year (e.g., Microsoft Teams page, Weekly Resident Meetings, email).
The Resident On-Call Chair will solicit resident feedback at the end of the year which will be used to optimize the on-call program for the following year(s).