
PGY-2 in Pain & Palliative Care – Pharmacy Residency Program
(ASHP Accredited)
Why our Pharmacy Residency sets Hospice of Southern Illinois apart… and why we are excited!
- We offer 1 of 26 in the country, PGY2 in Pain and Palliative Care Pharmacy Residency Programs, and we are the only accredited 1 fully funded by a hospice.
- Direct patient benefits: Manage patient profiles for streamlined symptom management and review medication interactions (reduce side effects and control interactions).
- Cost containment: Better manage costs of medication. Will help Medicare “final rule” and hospice regulation changes. Also, determining related and unrelated medications.
- One-on-one education with staff, patients and family education, and in-services for healthcare professionals.

Tara Tade – Medical Services Coordinator for Hospice of Southern Illinois’ Medical Director & PGY2 Program, Dr. Ellen Middendorf – Medical Director at Hospice of Southern Illinois, Amy Richter – President and CEO at Hospice of Southern Illinois, Timothy Cruz, PharmD – PGY2 Pharmacist at Hospice of Southern Illinois, and Chris Herndon, PharmD, BCACP – SIUE professor and Residency Program Director
Other information about our PGY-2 in Pain and Palliative Care Pharmacy Residency Program:
- Who is eligible to apply? Pharmacists who are eligible for licensure in Illinois, and in the process of or have completed a PGY-1.
- What does PGY-2 stand for? Post Graduate Year 2
- What is the purpose of a PGY-2 pharmacy residency program? “Pharmacy residencies allow you to apply the knowledge and skills you’ve learned in school to real patients, situations, and settings. You also will be exposed to different facets of practice and learn about the many and varied career paths available to pharmacists today” – See more at: ASHP.org
“PGY2 pharmacy residency programs build on Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) education and PGY1 pharmacy residency programs to contribute to the development of clinical pharmacists in advanced or specialized practice. PGY2 residencies provide residents with opportunities to function independently as practitioners by conceptualizing and integrating accumulated experience and knowledge and incorporating both into the provision of patient care that improves medication therapy. Residents who successfully complete an accredited PGY2 pharmacy residency should possess competencies that qualify them for clinical pharmacist and/or faculty positions and position them to be eligible for attainment of board certification in that practice area (when board certification exists).
- When are applications accepted? Letters of Intent, Curriculum Vitae, College Transcripts and 3 letters of reference are due to the Residency Program Director by January 15th. Please submit all application materials via PhORCAS.

Interdisciplinary Team
- Where the pharmacist would be working: The home office is located in Belleville, Illinois approximately 20 minutes east of St. Louis, Missouri. We do serve patients throughout southern Illinois and the metro-east. Some traveling to our Marion, Illinois, location, several contracted facilities, and a few community events will be encouraged.
- Why would a pharmacist want to apply? This is a PGY-2 in Pain and Palliative Care Pharmacy Residency Program for a mission-driven, patient-centered organization. The role as a pharmacist at Hospice of Southern Illinois will play a vital role in the care of our patients. Experience will include attending regular Interdisciplinary Team Meetings with our Medical Director, Advanced Nurse Practitioner, Nurses, Social Workers, Bereavement Counselors, Hospice Aides, and Volunteers. Further, the expertise will be used to review medication interactions, assist in developing care plans for streamlined symptom management, and so much more.