Meet our Residents!

Site: Cashwise Pharmacy/CentraCare Willmar

Libby Wirth, PharmD

wirth136@umn.edu

Picture of Libby Wirth

Pharmacy School: North Dakota State University

Clinical Interests: Stigmatized disease states like mental health, substance use, and HIV/hepatitis in addition to diabetes and providing care for underserved populations.

Personal Interests: I love creating many kinds of art, tending to my houseplants, and my two cats. I'm also an advocate for other trans and non-binary people and the larger queer community as a whole.

Career Goals: Working under a broad collaborative practice agreement, expanding and advocating for the role of ambulatory care pharmacy, precepting students.

Why the University of Minnesota: I considered the UMN residency programs because I want to work in ambulatory care, and the Willmar site specifically for the opportunity to work with my specific interests here.

Site: CentraCare - Paynesville

Woojong Park, PharmD

park1565@d.umn.edu

Picture of Woojong Park

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota

Medical Interests: Geriatric medicine, psychiatry, pharmacogenomics

Personal Interests: Baking, digital art

Career Goals: I want to spend the next 2 years building clinical and ambulatory care knowledge through residency. By 10 years I want to start and implement a pharmacogenomics ambulatory care service at a healthcare system (i.e. hospital)

Why the University of Minnesota: Interested in rural and geriatric health

Site: Community-University Health Care Center

Maryam James, PharmD

james865@d.umn.edu

Photo of Maryam James

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota

Clinical Interests: Diabetes and mental health

Personal Interests: Public health and education

Career Goals: Becoming an ambulatory care pharmacist in the metro area

Why the University of Minnesota: I admired the program's commitment to the advancement of ambulatory care and how it actively maintains a supportive environment to continue to uplift residents. I appreciate CUHCC's recognition of its diverse patient population; its commitment to advancing health equity through culturally competent care for vulnerable populations within the South Minneapolis area. As a PGY1 at CUHCC, I hope to gain experience with engaging in the development and implementation of initiatives to improve public health and patient experiences.

Site: Community-University Health Care Center

Jasmine Johnson, PharmD

joh12335@umn.edu

 

Picture of Jasmine Johnson

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota

Clinical Interests: Mental health, diabetes, women's health

Personal Interests: Traveling, spending time with family and friends (and my cat), collecting and caring for houseplants, tastings of any kind (food, coffee, wine, etc.)

Career Goals: After residency I want to find a position in an ambulatory care clinical setting and continue working with students through precepting and teaching at the College of Pharmacy.

Why the University of Minnesota: This program allows me to pursue my interests in both ambulatory care and teaching. In this program I will be working with pharmacists who I greatly admire and inspire me to be the best pharmacist I can be.

Site: Goodrich Pharmacy

Hibo Abud, PharmD

habud@umn.edu

Photo of Hibo Abud

Pharmacy School: St. Louis College of Pharmacy

Clinical Interests: Medication adherence monitoring, Diabetes management, blood pressure monitoring

Personal Interests: I love spending time with my family and friends, I enjoy traveling and I am a big foodie so I love trying new places!

Career Goals: Practice as an ambulatory care pharmacist in an underserved community.

Why the University of Minnesota: The emphasis on patient care services really intrigued me. I want to be able to provide patients with the tools to help them manage their health.

Site: M Health Fairview

Rachel Balk, PharmD

balkx028@umn.edu

Photo of Rachel Balk

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Clinical Interests: infectious disease, solid organ transplant

Personal Interests: cats, traveling the world, health and fitness

Career Goals: My career goals involve a mixture of providing patient care, while being involved in education of professional students.  I want to be deeply involved in mentorship and building relationships with colleagues and students and help build the pharmacy profession

Why the University of Minnesota: I picked this program because I thought it would make me a well-rounded pharmacist with abilities to pursue various career paths and develop personal and professional relationships that I hope will last a lifetime.

Site: M Health Fairview

Annika Skogg, PharmD

skogg002@umn.edu

Photo of Annika Skogg

Pharmacy School: South Dakota State University

Clinical Interests: helping underserved & diverse populations, family medicine, community health, asthma/COPD, HIV

Personal Interests: Baking, swimming, watching hockey, enjoying Minnesota summers

Career Goals: Practice in community health or ambulatory care and build long-lasting relationships with my patients and help them reach their health goals

Why the University of Minnesota: I wanted the chance to grow and learn as a new pharmacist from experienced mentors in a supportive environment. This program places emphasis on developing well-rounded, ambulatory care pharmacy practitioners that are ready to provide patient care as part of the medical team.

Site: M Health Fairview

Makenzie Smith, PharmD

smi02816@umn.edu

Photo of Mackenzie Smith

Pharmacy School: University of Montana

Clinical Interests: psychiatric, cardiology, ambulatory care, diabetes

Personal Interests: traveling, personal growth and development, hockey, movies, theater, staying active

Career Goals: Become a board certified clinical pharmacist. Advocate for the profession of pharmacy and underserved communities.

Why the University of Minnesota: The program appeared to provide opportunities to work with new patient populations in a more urban environment. It also allowed me to pursue ambulatory care pharmacy immediately as a PGY1. I also like that there is a large cohort of residents to get to know as I move to a new state and city. 

Site: Mille Lacs Health System - Ambulatory Care/Community Focus

Ashley Meyer, PharmD

meye2571@d.umn.edu

Picture of Ashley Meyer

Pharmacy School: North Dakota State University

Clinical Interests: Rural population health, diabetes, mental health, preventative health, geriatrics, polypharmacy

Personal Interests: Being outdoors, fishing, hunting, baking, crafting, spending time with family/friends, attending country concerts

Career Goals: To serve a rural community and develop trusting relationships with my patients while providing the best patient care possible.

Why the University of Minnesota: I wanted to seek opportunity to learn and grow as a pharmacist and further develop my skills and future career goals.

Site: Minnesota Community Care

Kaitlin Bredenkamp, PharmD

brede149@d.umn.edu

Photo of Kaitlin Bredenkamp

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy

Clinical Interests: Diabetes and other chronic disease management

Personal Interests: Spending time with family, friends, and my cat, cooking, going to concerts, and doing cross-stitch

Career Goals: My goal is to work in clinic and help patients, particularly those with diabetes, better understand and manage their medication therapies as well as thrive in life.

Why the University of Minnesota: I wanted to pursue ambulatory care and the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy Postgraduate Pharmacy Residency Program has one of the largest and most developed ambulatory care PGY1 programs in the country. I am also from Minnesota and wanted to stay close if possible.

Site: Minnesota Community Care

Jeremy Chen, PharmD

chen4130@umn.edu

Photo of Jeremy Chen

Pharmacy School: University of Michigan

Clinical Interests: Community & Ambulatory Care

Personal Interests: Food

Career Goals: To become a reliable pharmacist that can be trusted by patients

Why the University of Minnesota: Enhance therapeutic knowledge and clinical skills.

Site: New Ulm Medical Center

Morgan Klein, PharmD

klei0562@d.umn.edu

Photo of Morgan Klein

Pharmacy School: North Dakota State University

Clinical Interests: Diabetes Care, Infectious Disease, and Rural Medicine

Personal Interests: Spending time with family and friends, volleyball, hiking, and visiting new breweries.

Career Goals: My goal is to work in a rural community providing care within a diabetes clinic, and to become a certified diabetes educator.

Why the University of Minnesota: My passion for ambulatory care was sparked by an interest in teaching, and I will have a large role in patient education as an ambulatory care pharmacist. I was drawn to this program because it provides a focus in ambulatory care and with its numerous sites I was able to select a setting that met my additional medical interests.

Site: Park Nicollet Health 

Hailie Jadoo, PharmD

jadoo006@umn.edu

Photo of Hallie Jadoo

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy

Clinical Interests: Health equity, integrative therapies, women's health, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease

Personal Interests: Visiting state and national parks, scrapbooking, home organizing, martial arts, and attending hockey games (go Wild!)

Career Goals: Provide high quality, patient-centered care to underserved populations, eliminate barriers to improve health-related outcomes, and emphasize life style modifications and integrative therapies.

Why the University of Minnesota: As a UMN CoP student, I experienced first hand how the college strives to provide an innovative education, fosters the growth of quality graduates, and emphasizes the importance of leadership. It was clear that this extends into the PGY-1 program, which is why I selected a UMN CoP residency. The opportunities are endless, allowing me to build my own panel of patients and manage various disease states via collaborative practice agreements, teach and mentor pharmacy students, and work towards the organizational mission of advancing ambulatory pharmacy practice in diverse communities.

Site: St. Cloud VA Medical Center

Amy Bowman, PharmD

bowma310@umn.edu

Photo of Amy Bowman

Pharmacy School: University of Wisconsin-Madison

Clinical Interests: Primary care, mental health, and cardiology

Personal Interests: Exploring new places, trying new restaurants, running, weight lifting, reading, puzzles, hiking, spending time with friends and family

Career Goals: My overarching career goal is to make a difference in my patients lives through pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic interventions. I will accomplish this goal through ambulatory care pharmacy, creating long lasting relationships with my patients where mutual trust has been established. Following residency, I plan to be board certified first as a Pharmacotherapy Specialist, then as an Ambulatory Care Pharmacist. In the next 10 years I want to continue advocating and progressing pharmacy, and giving back to the pharmacy community through teaching and mentorship. While being enrolled as a student I greatly valued the alumni and pharmacists around Wisconsin sharing their knowledge, and I hope to carry this mentality on in order to mentor future pharmacists.

Why the University of Minnesota: I choose the College of Pharmacy Postgraduate Pharmacy Residency Program because of the independent nature of each site with the support and collaboration of UMN COP, diversity of rotations offered, ability to complete a teaching certificate and precept IPPE/APPE students.  

Site: Welia Health - Ambulatory Care/Community Focus

McKayla Duesler, PharmD

lindg266@d.umn.edu

photo of McKayla Duesler

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota - Duluth Campus

Clinical Interests: Community & ambulatory care pharmacy, rural healthcare, medication access for underserved populations, geriatric populations, chronic disease state management, cardiometabolic disorders, community engagement & teaching

Personal Interests: Spending time with friends and family, outdoor activities (especially kayaking/paddle boarding with my dog), golfing with my husband, board/card games, cooking, and trying new foods.

Career Goals: My career goals are to create an impactful, long-lasting relationship with my patients and the community I serve. I am interested in creating an ambulatory care clinic practice in the rural Moose Lake/Cloquet, MN area where I can help make an impact with chronic disease state and medication management. I also plan to participate in advocacy for the pharmacy profession and work towards board certifications.

Why the University of Minnesota: I chose this program because of the welcoming and supportive environment with a focus on ambulatory care. I love the opportunity to learn from other colleagues at different sites around Minnesota and for the chance to support patients in a rural area through both the clinic and community pharmacy settings. This program also caught my attention as the faculty continuously encourages growth in many different interests such as practice management and education/teaching.

Site: Welia Health - Ambulatory Care/Hospital Focus

Lucas Kosobuski, PharmD

kosob004@d.umn.edu

Photo of Lucas Kosobuski

Pharmacy School: University of MN College of Pharmacy

Clinical Interests: Pharmacy

Personal Interests: Music

Career Goals: Psych pharmacy

Why the University of Minnesota: Had sites I was interested in.

Site: Year 1 Pharmaceutical Care Leadership/M Health Fairview - Smiley's

Ameer El-Afandi, PharmD

elafa014@umn.edu

Photo of Ameer El-Afandi

Pharmacy School: Purdue

Clinical Interests: Ambulatory care

Personal Interests: Serving undeserved populations and addressing the barriers they face.

Career Goals: Practice in ambulatory care as well as work as a pharmacy faculty affiliate.

Why the University of Minnesota: Minnesota is a highly regarded state for the practice of Pharmacy as well as the university. After making connections I felt as if I would be able to succeed in this program.

Site: Year 2 Pharmaceutical Care Leadership/HealthPartners

Erika Harvey, PharmD

harve509@umn.edu

erika headshot

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy

Clinical Interests: Comprehensive medication management, specialty pharmacy, quality improvement, teaching, innovation in pharmacy, practicing in an interdisciplinary team environment

Personal Interests: Exploring the outdoors, cooking, virtual reality, and spending time with family and friends.

Career Goals: Combining direct patient care with leadership/quality improvement

Why the University of Minnesota: The University of Minnesota's pharmacy residency program provides residents with many opportunities to grow as clinicians, educators, and collaborators. What drew me to this program is its strong focus on practice advancement, giving residents the opportunity to play an active role in shaping pharmacy practice, especially in areas where it is not well-established. The program's incredible community of clinicians and alumni fosters personal and professional growth!

Site: Year 2 Pharmaceutical Care Leadership/North Memorial Minnetonka Clinic

Connie Khong, PharmD

khong018@d.umn.edu

Photo of Connie Khong

Pharmacy School: University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy

Medical Interests: Underserved communities and immigrant/refugee health, chronic disease management

Clinical Interests: Spending time with family/friends/cats, listening to music, playing the piano/ukulele, journaling, handlettering, painting, puzzles, trying out new cafes, bubble tea shops, and bakeries!

Career Goals: To develop genuine relationships with my patients by empowering them to advocate for their own health through a patient-center approach and utilizing shared-decision making related to their medication therapies.

Why the University of Minnesota: Having graduated pharmacy school from the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy, I knew the residency admin team were all caring individuals and I like that all the different sites form a "pharmily" where we all can support and uplift one another during the residency year! I also appreciate how the program provides learning experiences that allow the residents to strengthen our practice management skills and in particularly for the Pharmaceutical Care Leadership emphasis, we are able to apply those skills and knowledge in the second-year site, and truly get to experience growing our own practice from the ground up!