PGY1 Pharmacy Residency Leadership Team
Melissa Carrillo, Pharm.D., CDCES
Residency Program Director for PGY1 Pharmacy
PACT Clinical Pharmacy Program Manager
Email: melissa.carrillo@va.gov
El Paso VA Health Care System
5001 N. Piedras
El Paso, TX 79936
Brittany Dickhaus, Pharm.D., MBA, BCPS
Residency Program Co-Coordinator for PGY1 Pharmacy
Clinical Pharmacist
Email: brittany.dickhaus@va.gov
El Paso VA Health Care System
5001 N. Piedras
El Paso, TX 79936
PGY1 Program Overview
The El Paso VA Health Care System (EPVAHCS) is a Joint Commission accredited complexity level three, outpatient facility that provides a broad range of medical services to an estimated 31,000 Veterans in the West Texas and Southern New Mexico areas. The main facility is located in El Paso, Texas, with six VA-staffed Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC) located throughout El Paso, Texas, and Las Cruces, New Mexico. EPVAHCS is part of the VA Heart of Texas Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN 17). Emergency care, acute inpatient care, and surgical care are provided through a sharing agreement with William Beaumont Army Medical Center.
The 12-month ASHP-accredited PGY1 Pharmacy Residency Program aims to equip residents with the knowledge, skills, and expertise required for ambulatory care pharmacy practice. Its goal is to enhance residents' competence as healthcare team members and to provide a comprehensive understanding of clinical and administrative pharmaceutical practices. The residency also includes quality improvement projects and continuing education activities.
The El Paso VA PGY1 Residency is affiliated with The University of Texas at Austin College of Pharmacy. This affiliation requires resident participation in the Pharmacotherapy Teaching and Leadership Fellows Program (TLFP). The program is also affiliated with William Beaumont Army Medical Center for inpatient electives.
Learning Experiences
Required Rotational Learning Experiences
- Orientation – 4 weeks
- Anticoagulation - 5 weeks
- Primary Care-Chronic Disease Management I - 4 weeks
- Pharmacy Management – 4 weeks
- Outpatient Operations/Pharmacoeconomics - 6 weeks
- Primary Care-Chronic Disease Management II - 6 weeks
- Infectious Disease - 5 weeks
Required Longitudinal Experiences
- Major Quality Improvement Project
- Primary Care-Chronic Disease Management
- Medication Use Evaluation
- Outpatient Operations/Staffing
- Professional Development
- Education & Academic
Elective Rotational Learning Experiences (5 weeks)
- Home Based Primary Care
- Mental Health
- Pain Management
- Pharmacogenomics
- Cardiology
- Women’s Health
- Population Health Management/Data Analytics
- Inpatient Adult Medicine (WBAMC)
Elective Longitudinal Experiences
- Longitudinal of Choice
Residency Details
Location
El Paso, TX
Length of Residency
1 year
Positions Offered
2
Start Date
July 1st
Benefits
- Competitive salary
- Medical insurance
- Annual leave (13 days)
- Sick leave (13 days)
- Paid federally-observed holidays (11 days)
- Funding for travel to a national conference
Qualifications
- U.S. Citizenship
- Doctor of Pharmacy Degree Pharm.D. and minimum 3.0 GPA from an ACPE-accredited college of pharmacy
- Licensure may be through any U.S. State Board of Pharmacy. Each resident should be licensed upon entry into the residency program, or as soon as testing scheduling allows.
Application Requirements
- Please submit your application through PhORCAS and include the following:
- Letter of intent, curriculum vitae, three (3) letters of recommendation, academic transcripts
- Application Deadline: January 5th, 2026
- Residents will be selected through National Matching Services.
- For additional information, please refer to the El Paso VA Health Care System residency website.