Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center
PGY2 Critical Care Pharmacy Residency
About our PGY2 Critical Care Pharmacy Residency
This PGY-2 residency provides the resident with advanced clinical training in critical care pharmacotherapy, as well as numerous opportunities for research, teaching, and scholarship.Overview
Upon completion of the residency, the pharmacist will be a competent clinical pharmacy practitioner in critical care that engages in multidisciplinary collaboration, demonstrates advanced critical thinking skills, and is able to design and implement complex medication recommendations in this fast-paced environment. Graduates of this program will be adequately prepared to practice as a critical care specialist or in academia.Learn More About Us
About Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center
Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center offers the most advanced comprehensive care to the people of Augusta and the surrounding areas. Our highly trained physicians, nurses and staff provide patient-centered, collaborative care from diagnosis through recovery. We provide cutting-edge technology and extensive expertise to create an unparalleled healthcare experience that delivers high-quality care for your medical, surgical, rehabilitative or emergency needs. Wellstar MCG Health has a Kidney Transplant Program and is designated as a Level I Trauma Center and Comprehensive Stroke Center.
Click here to visit our Pharmacy Residency Programs overview page.
About Wellstar Health System
At Wellstar Health System, we make a difference every day by improving quality and access to healthcare in communities, big and small. With locations across metro Atlanta and beyond, Wellstar is one of the largest health systems in Georgia. Learn more about us.
Learning Experiences
Core (required) Rotations
- Orientation – 2 weeks (if early commit)
- Orientation – 4 weeks (if new to Wellstar)
- Trauma ICU – 6 weeks
- Medical ICU – 8 weeks
- Neurosciences ICU – 4 weeks
- Emergency Medicine – 4 weeks
- Cardiovascular ICU – 6 weeks
- Surgical/Cardiothoracic ICU – 6 weeks
- Infectious Disease Consult – 3 weeks
Elective Rotations◊
- Academia (concentrated)†‡
- Evening ICU†‡
- Multispecialty/ICU Float†
- Advanced Experience/Co-precepting†
- Pediatric ICU†
- Nutrition Support†
- Bone Marrow Transplant†
- Cardiology†
† May be mini-experiences (~2 weeks)
‡ May be concentrated block and/or longitudinal experiences
◊ Other elective learning experiences may be developed based on resident interest and preceptor availability
Longitudinal Requirements
Patient Care / Administration
- Management of Medical Emergencies
- Service (Weekend and EICU Staffing)
- Hospital Committee(s)
- Administration and Medication Safety
- Disaster Preparedness / Mass Casualty Events
Research/Scholarship
- MUE and Quality Improvement Project
- Research Project (with manuscript submission required before residency completion)
Teaching/Precepting
- Teaching in Pharmacy Practice II
- Teaching Certificate Program
- Georgia Critical Care Pharmacy Residency Symposium
- Pharmacy Grand Rounds
- Journal Club
- Additional Writing Opportunities
Program Director
Ashley Taylor, Pharm.D., BCCCP
PGY2 Critical Care Pharmacy Residency Program Director
Surgical/Cardiothoracic ICU Pharmacist
[email protected]
Ashley Taylor is from Lyons, Georgia, and received her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy. She completed her PGY1 pharmacy residency and PGY2 critical care pharmacy residency training at Augusta University Medical Center (now Wellstar MCG Health). She completed a teaching certificate program during her residency training. After residency, Ashley joined our Medical Center team to expand ICU pharmacy services through her role as the Evening ICU Clinical Pharmacist. She worked to build this new role for a year then provided pharmacy clinical services to patients in the Surgical and Cardiothoracic Surgery Intensive Care Units. Ashley precepts both PGY1 and PGY2 residents at the medical center and first joined RAC as a PGY1 Advisor in 2022. She is also a preceptor for the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy, facilitates a Medical Emergency Simulation session for Residency Enrichment and oversees our residency social media accounts.
Ashley is an active member of the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM), the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) and Georgia Society of Health System Pharmacists (GSHP). In 2021, Ashley published her PGY1 residency research in Pharmacotherapy Journal, entitled Achievement of goal anti-Xa activity with weight-based enoxaparin dosing for venous thromboembolism prophylaxis in trauma patients. She also published her PGY2 residency research in Journal of Pharmacy Practice in the same year, entitled Vasopressor discontinuation order in septic shock with reduced left ventricular function. Her professional interests include sedation/agitation, delirium, anticoagulation, and hemodynamics.
Program Coordinator
Brooke Smith, Pharm.D., BCCCP
PGY2 Critical Care Pharmacy Residency Program Coordinator
Medical ICU (MICU) Pharmacist
[email protected]
Brooke attended the University of Texas for her undergraduate studies, followed by the University of Colorado for her Doctor of Pharmacy degree. She completed her PGY1 Pharmacy Residency at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, IL and a PGY2 in Critical Care at the University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC). Brooke completed a teaching certificate program during PGY1 through UIC as well as an advanced teaching certificate as a PGY2. She is currently an active member in the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) as well as the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM). Brooke’s areas of interest include mentorship, sepsis, alcohol withdrawal, and pain/sedation. She currently serves as our medical intensive care unit pharmacist. Brooke immediately became a contributing member of our critical care pharmacy team, joined the Residency Advisory Committee (RAC) in July 2024 as a PGY1 Advisor, and became the PGY2 Critical Care Residency Program Coordinator in 2025.
