Greetings from Alaska!
As my first rotation comes to a close I am sad to leave the beautiful state of Alaska. During my six weeks here I was fortunate to spend it at the Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson also known as JBER. JBER is a joint military instillation comprised of the Elmendorf Air Force Base and the Army’s Fort Richardson. It is made up of 5,500 joint military and civilian personnel, equipped with a 55-bed hospital, with 8 operating rooms and covers over 79,000 acres stretching from Northern Anchorage to Palmer, AK.
In addition to the vast and alluring landscape, the JBER Hospital is quite unique in that it is one of very few Air Force hospitals that offers veterans, military personnel and military dependents a variety of pharmacy services. These services include; inpatient care, outpatient care, Coumadin clinic, diabetes management clinic, smoking cessation clinic, OTC medication pickup, and satellite pharmacy services (similar to the retail pharmacy setting).
This hybrid military pharmacy would be perfect for students that desire structure, commitment, opportunity for prescriptive authority, and those interested in rotating between clinical skills, managing chronic disease states and medication review and counseling. JBER would also be appealing to students who enjoy traveling. Pharmacist typically relocate to a new base every two to three years. However, because it is a federal entity Pharmacist follow federal pharmacy laws rather than individual state laws, requiring them to obtain a licensed in their home state.
Switching gears, lets talk about the best part of Alaska, the wonderful outdoors! In my free time I enjoyed hiking, and exploring countless trails, and I must say, the views were AMAZING! Alaska offers an abundance of outdoor activities including; camping, white water rafting, zip lining, wildlife cruises, glacier hikes, kayaking, bike trails, salmon fishing, bush plane tours etc.
Overall, I felt that this rotation was a once in a life time experience and I encourage the upcoming P3 class to consider the JBER hospital. If you would like any additional information about the rotation please feel free to message me at Amanda.Schielke@students.acp.edu
