Pharmacy Program

CHRISTUS Children's

About the Residency Program

PGY1 pharmacy residency programs build on Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) education and outcomes to contribute to the development of clinical pharmacists responsible for medication-related care of patients with a wide range of conditions, eligible for board certification, and eligible for postgraduate year two (PGY2) pharmacy residency training.

The PGY-1 Pharmacy Residency Program is based on our institution’s mission statement “to extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ.” With this faith-based principle our residents will be given a foundation for the development of a strong work ethic and will have delivery of patient-centered care as their constant motivation. The intended outcomes of this program are to provide the resident with the skills and experience needed to:

  • serve as a clinical pharmacist for a variety of patient populations
  • pursue additional training in a PGY-2 program
  • advance the practice of pharmacy
  • pursue board certification

Upon program completion, the resident will be capable of practicing in a progressive health care organization and contributing to the promotion of contemporary pharmacy services based on total patient needs, organizational requirements, and resources.

For more information on CHRISTUS Children's PGY1 Pharmacy Residency Program, contact:

CHRISTUS Children's
PGY 1 Pharmacy Residency Program
Attention: Aspen Wall, PharmD
333 North Santa Rosa Street
San Antonio, TX 78207

Follow us on Instagram @christus_pedsrxresidency

Residency Program Information

Application & Benefits  

Residency applicant criteria and dates:

Our program offers two PGY-1 Pharmacy Residency positions every year with experiences primarily in pediatric patient care.

In order to be considered for an interview, an applicant must have:

  • Graduated, or will graduate, from an ACPE accredited pharmacy school
  • A Texas pharmacy license or be eligible to obtain a Texas pharmacy license by September 30th of residency year

Applications will be accepted starting December 1st with a deadline of January 2nd. We will begin the interview process in January and host interviews on Mondays and Fridays through the end of February. The residency year will begin July 1st and end June 30th. Residents must complete pre-employment health screening and general hospital orientation in June, prior to beginning the residency.

How to apply:

  • Applications should be completed through PhORCAS. The following items should be uploaded to PhORCAS:
  • Letter of intent
  • Curriculum vitae
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • Pharmacy School Transcript

All positions are offered through the ASHP Pharmacy Resident Matching Program.

ASHP Code: 74550

NMS Code: 140713

Benefits:

Residents in the program receive the following benefits:

  • Competitive stipend
  • Paid Time Off (PTO): 14 days 
  • Insurance options: medical, dental, and life
  • Retirement: eligible for 403(b) match savings plan
  • 20% associate discounts
  • Free parking 24 hours a day, seven days a week
  • Travel stipends to attend required meetings (i.e. residency showcases, ASHP Midyear Clinical Meeting, PPAG Annual Meeting) including registration, transportation, meals, and hotel
  • Personal computer and desk space
  • Lab coat with embroidered name
  • Business Cards
Curriculum 

Overall description:

Rotation experiences are tailored to the resident’s interest. Residents will be expected to staff the inpatient pharmacy every other weekend after the orientation month.

Core Rotations:

  • Pharmacy Operations Orientation
  • General Pediatric Medicine
  • Neonatal Critical Care
  • Pediatric Critical Care
  • Pediatric Emergency Medicine
  • Pediatric Hematology/Oncology ·
  • Pediatric Infectious Disease
  • Obstetrics/Gynecology

Longitudinal Rotations:

  • General Staffing
  • Medication Safety
  • Pharmacy Administration/Management
  • Professional Development
  • Research
  • University of Texas College of Pharmacy - Teaching and Leadership Fellows Program

Elective Rotations but not limited to:

  • Bone Marrow Transplant
  • Repeat any core rotation with a different focus

During their rotations, residents will have operational and clinical responsibilities for patients in their assigned areas. Besides reviewing and entering orders for their patients, residents will be involved with providing drug information, performing drug regimen reviews, monitoring their patients' responses to drug therapy, writing patient care notes, attending patient care rounds with the medical teams, verifying their patients' home and discharge medications, and counseling their patients. They will also assist with patient safety and quality improvement initiatives.

Residents will participate in journal clubs, case conferences, teaching rounds, and in-services for pharmacy, nursing, and medical staff. Additionally, they will be involved with a variety of clinical pharmacy management activities (i.e. formulary management, protocol development, and medication error and adverse drug reaction reporting), and pharmacy operations management activities (i.e. policy and procedure development, budget preparation, and quality control). They will also assist with pharmacy student education.

Facilities 

CHRISTUS Children's is San Antonio’s first freestanding children’s hospital located in the heart of downtown San Antonio. Founded in 1869 by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word of Houston and San Antonio, CHRISTUS Santa Rosa is a Catholic, faith-based, nonprofit health and wellness ministry dedicated to extending the healing ministry of Jesus Christ and providing the highest quality medical care and services available. In February 2013, CHRISTUS Santa Rosa, Baylor College of Medicine, and Texas Children’s Hospital began to work in collaboration to ensure that the children of San Antonio and South Texas will have access to world-class pediatric care. Residents interested in adult rotation experiences will have the opportunity to complete their rotation at another CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health System (CSRHS) campus in the San Antonio region i.e. Medical Center, Westover Hills.

The pharmacy department at CHRISTUS Children's continues to expand its services throughout the hospital. We offer 24-hour inpatient services. We have decentralized pharmacy services during the week in the neonatal and pediatric intensive care units, hematology/oncology, general pediatric floors, emergency department and antimicrobial stewardship. We have built relationships with the University of Texas at Austin College of Pharmacy and the University of the Incarnate Word Feik School of Pharmacy, which serve to benefit both regional hospitals and the residents.

Preceptors 

See below for a list of residency preceptors:

Aimee Lett Headshot
Aimee Lett, PharmD
Education: University of Incarnate Word - Feik School of Pharmacy - 2019
Preceptor: General Pediatrics
Hobbies/Interests: Traveling, reading, watching movies


Amber Seay Headshot
Amber Seay-Lea, PharmD, MBA

Education: East Tennessee State University - Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy - 2021
Training: PGY1 - CHRISTUS Children's - San Antonio, TX
Preceptor: Oncology/Hematology/Rheumatology and Bone Marrow Transplant
Hobbies/Interests: All things that involve crafting, playing tennis, photography, and spending time with the family and kids.


Aspen Wall Headshot

Aspen Wall, PharmD, BCCPS
Education: University of Houston College of Pharmacy - 2008
Training: PGY1 - Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center - Houston, TX
Preceptor: Neonatal ICU
Hobbies/Interests: Reading, baking (recently, bread), any activity with my three kids. I also enjoy teaching/precepting students and residents, listening to informational podcasts, and finding ways to challenge myself and my learners.


Rebecca Deville Headshot

Becca Deville-Sloan, PharmD
Education: University of North Texas Health - Fort Worth College of Pharmacy - 2021
Preceptor: Obstetrics
Hobbies/Interests: Keeping up with the trendy dramatic TV shows, reading all the #booktok books, anything to do with cats and/or Taylor Swift, and spending time with friends and family


Braniesha Johnson, PharmD
Education: University of the Incarnate Word - Feik School of Pharmacy - 2020
Preceptor: General Staffing
Hobbies/Interests: Trying new foods or restaurants, exercising, hiking, caring for my plants, traveling


Cynthia Navarro Headshot

Cynthia Navarro, PharmD
Education: University of the Incarnate Word - Feik School of Pharmacy - 2018
Practice Area: General Staffing
Hobbies/Interests: Arts and crafts, swimming, trying new food


Jacinto Villarreal Headshot

Jacinto Villareal, Jr., BS, MS, PharmD
Education: University of Houston College of Pharmacy - 2001
Training: PGY1 - Metropolitan Methodist Hospital - San Antonio, TX
Preceptor: Obstetrics
Hobbies/Interests: Guitar playing, fishing, reading - leadership topics, Bible history/apologetics, poetry, Theology, birding, how medication really works in the body, mechanisms of action and translation science, the origins of words, photography, short stories, movies


Jennifer Pena Headshot

Jennifer Peña, PharmD
Education: Texas A&M Irma Lerma Rangel College of Pharmacy - 2019
Training: PGY1 - CHRISTUS Children's - San Antonio, TX
Preceptor: Antimicrobial Stewardship/Infectious Disease & Medication Safety
Hobbies/Interests: Disney and food


 Kristina Gonzalez Headshot

Kristina Gonzalez, PharmD
Education: The University of Texas at Austin - College of Pharmacy - 2008
Training: PGY1 - Seattle Children's - Seattle, WA
Preceptor: Management & Medication Safety
Hobbies/Interests: Sports, hanging out with my kids, anything outdoors


Marc Flynt, PharmD
Education: University of the Incarnate Word - Feik School of Pharmacy - 2014
Training: PGY1 - CHRISTUS Children's - San Antonio, TX
Preceptor: Emergency Medicine
Hobbies/Interests: Photography, cars


Morris Sauter Headshot

Morris Sauter, PharmD
Education: The University of Texas at Austin - College of Pharmacy - 1998
Training: PGY1 - Phoenix VAMC - Phoenix, AZ
Practice Area: Pediatric ICU
Hobbies/Interests: Outdoors: hunting, fishing, golf, hiking, biking, walking Harley; movies, eating out with friends, poker


Peter Seller Headshot

Peter Sellers, PharmD
Education: University of the Incarnate Word - 2010
Preceptor: General Staffing
Hobbies/Interests: Fishing, hunting


Trinidad Martinez Headshot

Trinidad Martinez, PharmD
Education: University of the Incarnate Word - 2011
Preceptor: Oncology/Hematology/Rheumatology and Bone Marrow Transplant
Hobbies/Interests: Anything outdoors, hiking, exploring new areas


Residents 

Current Residents

  • Emmanuella Agidigbo (Ella) | University of Toledo - Toledo, Ohio

Past Residents & Job Position After Completion of Residency

2023 - 2024

  • Makayla Kramer, PharmD | Emergency Medicine Pharmacist, Our Lady of the Lake Children's Hospital - Baton Rouge, LA

2022 - 2023

  • Amber Seay, PharmD | Oncology/Hematology/BMT Pharmacist, CHRISTUS Children's - San Antonio, TX
  • Anh Tran, PharmD  | Neonatal ICU Pharmacist, Women's Hospital of Texas, Houston, TX (NICU)

2021 - 2022

  • Selina Liang, PharmD | Oncology/Hematology/BMT Pharmacist, CHRISTUS Children's - San Antonio, TX

2020 - 2021

  • Lauren Williams, PharmD |pediatric Medicine Pharmacist, University Hospital - San Antonio, TX
  • Hope Mae Abarintos, PharmD | Pediatric ICU Pharmacist, Golisano Children's Hospital - Rochester, NY

2019 - 2020

  • Kathryn Campf, PharmD | Pediatric ICU Pharmacist, Connecticut Children's Medical Center - Hartford, CT
  • Jennifer Pena, PharmD | Antimicrobial Stewardship Pharmacist, CHRISTUS Children’s – San Antonio, TX  

2018 - 2019

  • Erin Hohenstein, PharmD | Pediatric Medicine Pharmacist, Children’s Hospital Colorado – Colorado Springs, CO
  • Kayla Chambers, PharmD | Pediatric Medicine Pharmacist, Texas Children’s Hospital – Houston, TX

2017 - 2018

  • Tina Chen, PharmD | Pediatric Medicine Pharmacist, CHRISTUS Children’s – San Antonio, TX
  • Esli Tebedge, PharmD | Pediatric Cardiovascular ICU Pharmacist, University Hospital – San Antonio, TX

2016 - 2017

  • Lincy Varughese, PharmD | Oncology Pharmacist, Northside Hospital Atlanta – Atlanta, GA
  • Holly Lien, PharmD Neonatal ICU Pharmacist, UNC REX Hospital – Raleigh, NC

2015 - 2016

  • Allison Hardy, PharmD | Pediatric Medicine Pharmacist, The Children’s Hospital of the Kings Daughters - Norfolk, VA
  • Brittany Rodriguez, PharmD, BCIPD | Antimicrobial Stewardship Pharmacist, Texas Children’s Hospital – Houston, TX

2014 - 2015

  • Bernadette Espiritu, PharmD | Pediatric Medicine Pharmacist, McLane Children's Hospital – Temple, Texas
  • Marc Flynt, PharmD | Emergency Medicine Pharmacist, CHRISTUS Children’s – San Antonio, TX

2013 - 2014

  • Letitia DeLaine, PharmD, BCPPS | Women's & Children's Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, Holy Cross Health – Silver Spring, MD
  • Stephanie Ramirez, PharmD | Pediatric Medicine, CHRISTUS Children’s – San Antonio, TX