Cooper University Health Care’s Pharmacy team provides a variety of services to ensure the safe and effective use of medications throughout the health system. The department is committed to education and training consistent with the philosophy and objectives of a teaching hospital and to providing our patients with the highest standard of pharmaceutical care. The department is staffed with more than 150 team members, including an administrative director, clinical director, pharmacy managers, clinical pharmacy specialists, pharmacists, technicians, and administrative support staff. The Hospital Pharmacy Department is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Outpatient Oncology Infusion satellite pharmacies operate Monday through Friday during regular business hours.
The Pharmacy team reviews more than 2.5 million medication orders per year. They also document more than 65,000 clinical medication interventions to ensure patient safety and optimal therapy. This includes unit dose dispensing, Omnicell optimization, computerized order entry, drug information, physician order review, processing orders, compounding, and drug monitoring, including drug-drug, drug-food, and drug-allergy interactions, as well as reviewing drug-lab values. They also prepare IV therapies such as chemotherapy, antibiotics, and neonatal/pediatric doses. They ensure appropriate drug concentrations and monitor the rate of administration.
Clinical activities performed by our clinical and patient care pharmacists include multidisciplinary and physician rounds, patient chart reviews, pharmacokinetic monitoring, drug utilization evaluations, drug information, in-service education, antimicrobial stewardship, medication safety initiatives, 340B program coordination, and participation in research protocols. In 2023, we received ASHP accreditation for our first Cooper PGY2 Emergency Medicine Resident.
The Pharmacy team is involved in the education of pharmacy students from Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Jefferson College of Pharmacy. Clinical rotations for pharmacy students are conducted under the direct supervision of the clinical pharmacy specialists. Hospital pharmacy students rotate through the department for exposure to the roles of pharmacy in a heath care setting. Additionally, through an affiliation with Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, PGY2 residents participate in departmental and clinical activities.
Additional responsibilities of the Pharmacy team include:
- Providing complete pharmaceutical care to each patient to achieve desired clinical outcomes in the most cost-efficient manner.
- Acting as a resource for the hospital team members for proper prescribing, dispensing, administration, and monitoring of medications.
- Acting as a teaching site for the area colleges of pharmacy as well as providing education to hospital team members.
- Participating with interdisciplinary teams to improve health outcomes.
Thank you to our Cooper Pharmacy team for all that you do.