Overview of residency programs for pharmacists in South America

Abstract

The research mapped residency programs for pharmacists in South America. A cross-sectional, descriptive, quantitative study was carried out. Data were collected by consulting the websites and public notices of residency programs from January to June 2021. The variables analyzed were geographic region, financing, number of vacancies, concentration area, and profile of institutions. The results show that although there are bibliographies on programs in Argentina, Brazil, and Peru, it was only possible to identify active programs for the first two. Thirty-five courses offered in Argentina and 216 in Brazil were identified. While most programs in Buenos Aires are concentrated in the province of Buenos Aires, in Brazil, courses were identified in all regions, mainly in the southeast region, mainly in the state of São Paulo. The public sector is primarily responsible for supporting scholarships in both countries. While in Brazil, there are two residency models, monoprofessional and multiprofessional, only monoprofessional programs were observed in Argentina. The hospital is the main practice setting in both countries, 97.2% in Argentina and 83.7% in Brazil. Although residency programs are successful models of continuing education in several countries, there is still a lack of professional training in South American countries.