Meet Katherine Plunkett, PharmD!

Whether you are preparing to head towards Wyoming for a rotation or are interested in a future job at the clinic, you may have the amazing opportunity to interact with Katherine - our wonderful preceptor. Katherine graduated from HCOP in 2019 and went directly into her first year of residency. She completed 1 year of residency at the North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo, MS. Initially after graduating, her plan was to complete at least 1 year of residency and pursue a job in either a hospital or ambulatory care setting. She was interested in moving out of Alabama, but did not have a specific city in mind. After completing her PGY1, she was interested in pursuing a career as a Navy pharmacist, but the timing did not work out in her favor as they were not accepting any new pharmacists at the time. 

Initially after graduation she only took her MPJE for Mississippi. After her PGY1, she took the Alabama MPJE and briefly worked a remote job from home before finding her opportunity here. Once she decided to work with Wind River Cares, she took her MPJE for Wyoming and got licensed in Wyoming right before starting her job here. 

One of the main reasons she looked into this job opportunity was her husband who had already made the move to Wyoming after completing a rotation with Wind River Cares during his P4 year at HCOP. However, she really liked the unique opportunity that this experience provided. She was interested in living in Wyoming and working in a clinic setting, so this job was an opportunity for her next adventure. She loved the idea of working in a pharmacy setting where she could work closely with doctors and get to know her patients by name. While she had been on trips with her family before, she had never lived anywhere in the west and was excited about the opportunity.

One common point of confusion with the Wind River Cares site is that it is not technically an IHS site. Wind River Cares is a tribal site run by the Northern Arapahoe Business Council. In comparison, the Fort Washakie clinic is an IHS clinic which is federally run. In a true IHS site, the federal government makes the decisions. There is a strict formulary and they are not for profit. However, a tribal site has more freedom with what they are able to order and dispense. They do have to consider costs though because any profits benefit the tribal health. Tribal sites still get federal funding based on the population they serve and receive discounted medication prices from their wholesaler. 

In order to work at either of these sites, you just need your license and pharmacy degree. You do not have to have a residency to work here. If you work at an IHS site, you are considered a federal employee and will receive federal benefits. However, the Wind River Cares clinics still provide benefits like a typical business. While you could apply to any of these job openings as a regular pharmacist, it is worth noting that both types of clinics accept commissioned officers of the U.S. Public Health Service. One additional perk you could apply for in these jobs is loan repayment opportunities. This is MASSIVE!! 

We asked Katherine if she had any advice for someone who would be interested in working with IHS or at a tribal clinic. She said to reach out to someone in the pharmacy of wherever you may be interested in working. If you are deciding on what rotations to do your P4 year, you should consider doing a rotation at a site where you are interested in working. If there are no sites available, reach out to the whoever is in charge of the pharmacy and see if they would be willing to take students for P4 rotations - you may be able to start a relationship with that site that other students can benefit from after you as well! While rotations at the site you are interested in are great because you are able to get your foot in the door and actually experience what a job may be like in the future, if you are unable to be at the specific site you are interested in she recommends you look for experiences that may be similar. If you are interested in working with IHS or in a clinic setting like this one, seek out rotations in the ambulatory care setting. Get as many experiences in as you can before you decide which career to pursue!

When asked if Katherine would have done anything differently from graduation to now, she said she doesn't think so. She is a true believer that everything works out as it should. She never would have imagined she would have been here but has loved it! She recommends you take everything in stride and be patient. 

We asked Katherine what her favorite thing to do in Wyoming was, and she said to explore! She loves going on road trips to see new areas and says it is fun being on the opposite side of the country from Alabama because your radius is open to an entirely new area. She has had fun hunting elk and antelope with her husband, and they have recently been enjoying gardening. 

One piece of general advice that Katherine gave was to take all boards the first year after graduation for any state you think you may be interested in. She found going back after residency to take her boards for Alabama and Wyoming to be more challenging. She also noted that the Wind River Cares clinics are always looking for new pharmacists! If you are interested, you can reach out to them for more information even if you did not have a rotation here. If it is something you are interested in and willing to do, it may be a great fit for you!

-Amber Smith