BACK-TO-SCHOOL SERIES EPISODE 7, INTERVIEW WITH KELLEY CARLSTROM, PHARMD ABOUT HER ENJOY LEARNING ONCOLOGY (ELO) PROGRAMS

Dr. Kelley Carlstrom (aka KelleyCPharmD) talks about her Enjoy Learning Oncology (ELO) Programs. If you’re an oncology pharmacist, you need to listen to this episode!

My Back-to-School Series features interviews with 9 pharmacists who teach online courses. Since it’s back-to-school time for my kids, I created a Back-to-School series for my podcast! Check out the series, and get inspired to either learn or create!

Bio:

Dr. Kelley Carlstrom received her Doctor of Pharmacy from The University of Colorado in 2010 and completed 2 years of post-graduate residency training to specialize in oncology. She is a board-certified oncology pharmacist that has worked in a variety of traditional and non-traditional settings including at a large academic medical center, a small community hospital, as a consultant for a large electronic medical record implementation, and most recently in the healthcare technology industry helping to create digital products and services for oncology clinicians and patients. In 2019, Kelley founded KelleyCPharmD, an education company that supports pharmacists in developing their baseline oncology knowledge. She is passionate about decolonizing oncology pharmacy training and increasing accessibility and inclusion through her unique and innovative training programs.

Links from this episode

Website https://www.kelleycpharmd.com

ELO Blueprint Program

ELO Collaborative Program

ELO Certificate Program

Kelley Carlstrom on LinkedIn

Kelley Carlstrom on Instagram

Kelley Carlstrom on Twitter

BPS BCOP Exam https://www.bpsweb.org/bps-specialties/oncology-pharmacy/

Highlights from our conversation

Enjoy Learning Oncology (ELO) has 3 tiers:

1. ELO Blueprint Program, $2,200 investment
2. ELO Collaborative Program, $4,000 investment
3. ELO Certificate Program, $11,500 investment

Oncology is complicated and ever-changing. Many pharmacists find it intimidating to learn. Kelley’s programs fit into her students’ lives on a recommended schedule. 30-60 minutes of content daily, Monday-Saturday X 3 weeks, then 1 week off. Repeat X 7. The whole course takes 32 weeks (8 months) to finish. Students have access for 12 months.

Students typically find Kelley via LinkedIn or Google. Common search terms associated with Kelley are “oncology pharmacy” and “oncology training program.”

Kelley’s clients are typically pharmacists working in smaller cancer centers who need additional support learning foundational oncology pharmacy skills. Kelley’s Enjoy Learning Oncology (ELO) Programs were founded on a “curation” principle. Kelley curates oncology information for her students. She said, “There is so much great information out there, but it lives in all various places.” She works with a team of 24 oncology pharmacists who are in direct patient care roles. Together, they cherry-pick reputable, up-to-date information from a variety of formats:

- Scientific literature
- YouTube videos
- Podcasts
- PowerPoint slide decks
- Online calculators
- PDF downloads

Mindset is important. Regimens are not always black and white. There is room for clinical judgement in oncology pharmacy. (If you’ve met one patient, you’ve met one patient.) Oncology pharmacists start with foundational concepts, then learn nuances from patient cases.

Kelley shared a client story. One of her students learned something that helped with an emergency the week after she learned about it!

ELO Programs can supplement a pharmacist’s on-the-job training at a cancer center. The Programs do not prepare a pharmacist for an oncology job. Kelley recommends pharmacists get a job first/get their feet wet. Then, think about how to be the best oncology pharmacist you can be. Having some real-world experience in the day helps her students retain information.

If you would like to join one of Kelley’s ELO Programs, ask your employer/potential employer if they would be willing to pay to enroll you in an ELO Program. Contact Kelley for more information: kelley@kelleycpharmd.com.

During our conversation, Kelley compared investing in an ELO Program to participating in an oncology pharmacy residency. Her Programs are not the same as residency training, but there’s a big return on investment.

No continuing education (CE) is awarded. There is a certificate awarded for the ELO Certificate Program. Any of the Programs can be included on a CV. It sets job candidates apart and shows they care about their professional development.

Many of Kelley’s clients plan to take the BCOP Exam. ELO Programs can help with the prep! She has a quiz question bank with more than 200 questions on different diseases covered in her Program. They are multiple-choice, just like the BCOP Exam. Answers with explanations are also provided. (Once you pick an answer, it’ll tell you why the answer is correct or not.) Kelley sells the question bank as a separate, standalone offer as well.

Kelley has an email newsletter. She sends it every two weeks. Content includes “insights, pearls, and sundry” (IPS). At the bottom of every email is a link to resources, like the question bank. Visit https://www.kelleycpharmd.com, and subscribe to the newsletter today!

Kelley Carlstrom loves supporting oncology pharmacists. She believes that oncology is the best specialty for pharmacists. There is definitely a steep learning curve. It’s an ongoing learning adventure. However, there’s so much value you can bring to taking care of your patients. Kelley said, “Our patients deserve access to an experienced oncology pharmacist on their team.”

When you think of oncology pharmacy, think of KelleyCPharmD. Connect on LinkedIn.

Pharmacists and courses in the Back-to-School Series on The Pharmacist’s Voice ® Podcast