Back to homepage
MyChart

Pharmacy Department Overview

Program Overview

Mission Statement

The Mission of pharmacy is to serve the community as the profession responsible for the appropriate use of medications, devices, and related services to achieve optimal therapeutic outcomes.

The core Mission of the Department of Pharmacy is to create an environment that enables the:

  • Provision of pharmaceutical care focused on achieving positive patient outcomes through drug therapy
  • High quality pharmaceutical services that foster the efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness of drug use
  • Program and service contributions that emphasize the health needs of the public and the prevention of disease
  • Promotion of pharmacy as an essential component of the health care team

Mission Statement Supporting Goals

Department goals are in alignment with the components of the overall goals and Mission of St. Peter’s Hospital. The Pharmacy Department has developed service, quality, people, financial, and growth goals in alignment with the hospital’s strategic initiatives and the department’s core Mission statement.

Our Mission to serve the Community is fulfilled through the commitment to our Core Values of Compassion, Reverence for Each Person, Community, Hospitality, Excellence, Integrity, and Courage

The Pharmacy Department at St. Peter’s Hospital provides a wide range of pharmaceutical services to the hospital, ambulatory network, and associated programs. The department operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week with more than 125 full- and part-time employees (65 pharmacists).

Inpatient Pharmacy Programs

  • Central Pharmacy: provides 24-hour service to all inpatient areas including four critical care areas (CVICU, ICU, CCU, NICU), two adult cardiac units, 11 medical/surgical units, and one women’s and children’s unit. Included are various specialty services including sterile compounding, nutrition support, chemotherapy, and controlled substances.
  • Decentralized Pharmacy Services: pharmacists and interns focus on maximizing their encounters with other health care professionals and patients by working decentralized in cardiac and surgical patient care areas. They provide drug information, implement and administer dosing protocols, perform medication histories/reconciliation, verify orders, and more.
  • Decentralized Technician Services: decentralized pharmacy technicians provide decentralized drug distribution (Pyxis) service, controlled substance distribution, facilitation of home medication, and appropriate medication storage/security.
  • Medication Historian Services: in conjunction with the Hospitalist Service, the pharmacy utilizes medication historians and pharmacy interns to facilitate collection and reconciliation of patient medications at admission, transition, and discharge.
  • Emergency Department Pharmacy: the pharmacy provides 16-hour service to all segments of the Emergency Department. Pharmacists provide drug information, participate in emergency situations (codes and rapid response) and procedural sedation, and verify orders.
  • Inpatient Surgery Pharmacy: serves the 24-suite inpatient surgical area.

Clinical Pharmacy Programs

Pharmacists routinely provide clinical services to patients admitted to St. Peter’s Hospital.

  • Adult Oncology
  • Cardiology
  • Cardiothoracic Surgery
  • Colorectal Surgery
  • Critical Care
  • Emergency Medicine
  • General Surgery
  • Gastroenterology
  • Hepatobiliary Surgery
  • Neurosurgery
  • Orthopedic Surgery
  • Pain Management
  • Palliative Care
  • Rehabilitation

Clinical pharmacy specialists participate in patient care rounds, provide drug information, and provide education to patients and health care providers. Clinical surveillance tools are used to maximize the benefit of clinical pharmacy services on those patients who will benefit the most. The pharmacy also offers consult services for antibiotic stewardship, admission, transition and discharge medication reconciliation, discharge education, and pain management.

Ambulatory Pharmacy Programs

  • Outpatient Pharmacy: outpatient prescription services are provided from two locations: St Peter’s Hospital and Samaritan Hospital. These pharmacies provide comprehensive pharmacy services which include discharge medication reconciliation, patient education, disease state education, and community benefits.
  • Cancer Care Pharmacy: outpatient chemotherapy and supportive care infusions are provided by the department of pharmacy for 24 infusion chairs.  Pharmacists are responsible for drug information, dosing verification, compounding of chemotherapy, and management of research protocols, and assist with coordination of specialty pharmacy medications. Pharmacists and residents are also involved in patient/family/caregiver chemotherapy education in both group and one-on-one sessions. 
  • Anticoagulation Clinics: ambulatory anticoagulation management is provided in three clinics in the Capital District. The pharmacist-run clinics are operated with an inter-professional team of pharmacists, students, medical assistants, prescribers, nurses, and support personnel. 
  • Primary Care: Primary care pharmacy services are provided in a multi-provider primary care practice. The pharmacist's focus is the provision of quality patient care through application of accepted best practice.

Quality of Care and Patient Safety

The Department of Pharmacy demonstrates its continued commitment to improved quality of care through its involvement in many medication safety initiatives and use of automation technologies that allow for safer medication use process, such as:

  • Epic Electronic Health Record
  • BD Pyxis™ MedStation ES
  • BD Pyxis™ CII Safe
  • BD Pyxis™ Anesthesia Station ES
  • BD Pyxis™ Logistics
  • BD Pyxis™ Logistics Carousel
  • ICU Medical Plum 360 Smart IV infusion pumps with drug libraries
  • ICU Medical Sapphire Smart Epidural/PCA pumps with drug libraries
  • Barcode medication verification and charting at the bedside
  • Microsoft 365®

Affiliations

Pharmacy staff at St. Peter’s Hospital precept both Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE) and Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) students in a variety of different areas of practice with approximately five to 12 students participating in each module. St. Peter's Hospital has a primary educational affiliation with the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Additionally, St. Peter’s Hospital has educational affiliations with a number of other Colleges of Pharmacy throughout the United States. Residents co-precept students as part of the Teaching and Learning program and lead Journal Club and educational presentations.