Baptist Memphis PGY1 Community Residents

Emily Hartsfield

PGY1 Community Resident

 

Undergraduate degree
Bachelor of Science in biology; East Tennessee State University; Johnson City, TN; 2018

Pharmacy degree
Doctor of Pharmacy; University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Pharmacy; Memphis, TN; 2022

About Emily
Emily is a proud native Memphian. Outside of residency, she loves to try new recipes in the kitchen, playing with her cats, solving puzzles, and yoga. When she has time, she also enjoys hiking, traveling and live music.

Why did you choose Baptist?
I knew the Community PGY-1 residency was right for me because of the wide variety of experiences and opportunities built into the rotations. Baptist places emphasis on ensuring that each resident has a personalized experience during the year that is tailored to their future goals. Along with that, the hybrid inpatient and outpatient experience is a great way for me to learn and grow in a wide range of skills and knowledge-areas. The experiences I have personally had with Baptist as a patient and student let me know that the environment was positive, upbeat, and resource-rich.

What is your day like?
One of my favorite things about the Baptist Community program is that the schedule is different day-to-day. It is rewarding to be involved in the heart failure clinic, plaza pharmacy, transitions of care, mail order and specialty pharmacy at the same time. We usually spend a few days in each of these spaces throughout the month, while helping operate the plaza outpatient pharmacy. The relationships I am able to build with my preceptors and peers working all over the campus makes me feel fulfilled.

What's your favorite thing about Memphis?
There is something to do and a community to join for everyone in Memphis, regardless of your interests or background.

Why did you choose pharmacy as a career?
I chose pharmacy because of my natural inclination towards chemistry and passion to improve public health and increase health literacy through patient education.

Why would you recommend Baptist to a prospective applicant?
I would recommend Baptist not only because of the many different experiences packed into the year, but also because of the amazing culture at Baptist. Everyone is helpful, kind, and enthusiastic about resident success.

 

Ian Decareaux

PGY1 Community Resident

Pharmacy degree
Doctor of Pharmacy; Xavier University of Louisiana College of Pharmacy; New Orleans, LA; 2022

About Ian
Ian was born and raised in New Orleans. Outside of residency, he likes to shoot pool and play sand volleyball. He is a Christian, and enjoys fellowship, reading The Bible, and going to church. He also has a pet guinea pig, was born on Friday the 13th, and loves to sing.

Why did you choose Baptist?
I chose Baptist because of the friendliness of the staff, the encouraging environment, and most of all, because of the Christ-centeredness of the mission/vision. Coming from New Orleans, it shocked me, in a good way, that there was a workplace that would allow and encourage me to grow in my relationship with God.

What is your day like?
My day consists of Bible reading, praying, and serving others through the profession of pharmacy. Every day comes with its challenges, big and small. But it's not about the challenges we face, it's about how we overcome them in Christ. Just like every day has its challenges, every day also has its rewards. Just being blessed with waking up in the morning is a reward. Besides that, being able to help others through medication counselling at work and being able to give back the goodness that God has shown me is rewarding enough.

What's your favorite thing about Memphis?
So far, my favorite thing about Memphis is just it being different than New Orleans. I've been in New Orleans my whole life, so it's nice coming to a place with a different culture and to a place that is more open to The Gospel. I feel like the opportunities here are endless for me. It's just a really nice change of pace that allowed me to get comfortable fairly quickly.

Why did you choose pharmacy as a career?
I chose pharmacy for a variety of reasons. At the time I made the decision to pursue a pharmacy career, I had gone through a very tough time that pushed me towards a field where I could help people better themselves mentally and physically. A couple of my friends had already chosen pharmacy, so I looked into it. Come to find out, my family had owned an independent pharmacy a LONG time ago, so that added a little more excitement and motivation. Being able to help patients understand the importance of their medications and why they should take them to improve their health just gives me a really good feeling. There is not one reason for me choosing pharmacy, but I'm glad that I did.

Why would you recommend Baptist to a prospective applicant?
Yes, I would 100%, without hesitation, recommend Baptist to a prospective applicant.

Marisa Ferber

PGY1 Community Resident

 

Undergraduate degree
Bachelor of Arts in biological sciences; State University of New York Binghamton; Binghamton, New York; 2019

Pharmacy degree
Doctor of Pharmacy; Binghamton University School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences; Johnson City, New York; 2022

About Marisa
Marisa is originally from Long Island, New York. She chose Baptist for her pharmacy residency after visiting Memphis for the first time.

Why did you choose Baptist?
When looking for my ideal residency position, I wanted a program that had multiple practice areas and opportunities to grow as a pharmacist. This program had both inpatient and outpatient experiences including the off-site Church Health Clinic. During ASHP mid-year I attended Baptist’s booth, and instantly felt the vibrant and positive culture from the past residents and leadership team.

What is your day like?
Every day is different and depends on where we are assigned which typically include plaza (the outpatient pharmacy), transitions of care (COPD), meds-to-beds, mail order, specialty, the advanced heart failure clinic, or the Church Health Clinic. No matter where we are, we have contact with patients and their health team. Some challenges are trying to help as many patients as possible but with time restraints, insurance is always a big obstacle when it comes to medication. The most rewarding part of my day is when you can make a change to a patient’s medication regimen or counsel them on a lifesaving medication and the patient or family expresses their gratitude. In addition, since we are able to follow patients in through transitions of care and the heart failure clinic you can see positive progress, they make on the medication changes you made.

What's your favorite thing about Memphis?
The food, Beale Street and live music.

Why did you choose pharmacy as a career?
For as long as I can remember, I've wanted to work in the health care field. During my undergraduate studies, my grandpa was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, which took a huge toll on my family. My grandma struggled to care for him, from the multitude of doctors' appointments to the medications he was prescribed. Knowing that so many others experience these obstacles every day solidified that I wanted to help educate and enhance patient care as a pharmacist.

Why would you recommend Baptist to a prospective applicant?
I moved from New York to Memphis, only visiting the hospital once. My co-residents, RPD, and RPC, including all Baptist employees made the transition seamless for me. Baptist heavily relies on pharmacy as part of an integrative team approach to patient care, and as a resident you can really make a big impact on people’s lives. And you get the best of both worlds with both inpatient and outpatient focused rotations.

 

Megan Pham

PGY1 Community Resident

 

Undergraduate degree
Bachelor of Science in pharmaceutical sciences; University of Tennessee Health Science Center; Memphis, TN; 2020

Pharmacy degree
Doctor of Pharmacy; University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Pharmacy; Memphis, TN; 2022

About Megan
Megan is from Memphis, Tennessee having lived here for 12 years now. She enjoys spending a lot of time with family and friends especially when food is involved. Her hobbies include playing video games, watching anime, and when the chance arises, traveling.

Why did you choose Baptist?
I chose Baptist because of the vast opportunities that this program has to offer. The Baptist family is so welcoming and provides a positive learning environment for their students and residents. The view of putting the patient first aligns with my goals to provide the best quality health care.

What is your day like?
My day consists of rotating through the different community pharmacy services. This includes our Walnut Grove Plaza Pharmacy, mail order pharmacy, transition care in COPD, and the heart failure clinic. There are also opportunities to work with in the specialty pharmacy and off-site at Church Health. It can be challenging managing time between the different meetings and tasks given to us, but it's a welcome opportunity to improve on that skill. The most rewarding thing is that every day I have the chance to work with a wonderful team to provide care to patients.

What's your favorite thing about Memphis?
I love the variety of food that Memphis has. It also offers different events and interesting areas to visit, especially for those who are new to Memphis.

Why did you choose pharmacy as a career?
My mom was my inspiration to go into pharmacy as she was a pharmacist. I wanted to provide patient care that could improve people's quality of life and help them manage their disease.

Why would you recommend Baptist to a prospective applicant?
Baptist has a wide range of learning opportunities both inpatient and outpatient. They provide all kind of specialty care from advanced heart failure to transplants to oncology. This program is focused both on the residents’ hands-on experience and their wellbeing. The people you get to work with inspire and motivate you to have a successful year.