This section is a cooperative effort of several pharmacy students who have participated in the externship program at Mt. Edgecumbe Hospital. We hope we are able to answer your pre-travel questions here. If you have additional questions, please contact the pharmacy.
Student Housing
- Don't worry about finding living quarters. The hospital maintains a modern mobile home near the hospital. It has a living room, kitchen/dining room, four bedrooms, and two bathrooms. The unit is shared by several students - both male and female - who are participating in an internship program at the hospital.
- The kitchen is equipped with a microwave, range, full refrigerator, coffee maker, toaster and a small assortment of cooking utensils. The larger bathroom has a shower with tub and plenty of counter/cabinet space. The smaller one has just a toilet and sink.
- Most of the bedrooms are fairly small. All have their own lock separate from the entrance lock. Most bedrooms have a twin bed, nightstand, lamp, and a closet. The closet has towels, clothes hangers and extra blankets.
- The living room has a couch, coffee table, two recliners, and a satellite television with both VCR and DVD. There is also a washer and dryer in each house that are free! In addition, there is an iron and ironing board in each room.
- There is also a small apartment building (about 10 apartments) right next to the hospital that is used if the mobile home is full.
Getting Around
- Mt. Edgecumbe Hospital is located on a small island called Japonski Island. The city of Sitka is on a larger island, called Baranof Island, just a short walk or drive across the bridge. Within reasonable walking distance for most people is a grocery store, movie theater (two screens), video rentals, Ben Franklin variety store, several restaurants, and numerous gift shops. There are no stores on Japonski island.
- Cabs between the hospital and downtown are quite reasonable; around $5 one way. To go any farther than downtown by cab, however, may get quite expensive. Cycling is also possible. There are several bicycles stored in the housing units that you are welcome to use, but they are not in very good shape, so you may want to rent a bike in town or bring your own. Alaska Airlines charges about $50 to ship your bike.
Food Service
- Meals are available for purchase in the hospital cafeteria, the Lighthouse, except dinner and weekend meals that you pick up on trays from the dietary office and can be eaten in the cafeteria or taken back to your house. The kitchen staff is very helpful and usually responsive to special requests.
- The food is good. If you don't care for a particular meal they're serving, they'll find something for you, so you won't starve. If all else fails, there is a McDonald's, a Subway, and several local restaurants in town.
- If you plan on going hiking over a meal, the kitchen staff can supply you with a bag lunch. They take very good care of us!
Mail and Phone Service
- You will have a phone extension to your house (shared by the students in that house). The lines are connected through the hospital switchboard. From your phone, you will be able to make local calls, but long distance calls must be either collect or put on a calling card. You will also have access to a voice mail system from your extension.
- Packages to or from Alaska must be sent priority mail. Parcel post can take three or more weeks! The mailroom at the hospital can direct your incoming mail to the pharmacy. There is an outgoing mailbox just outside the front door of the hospital. If you have packages to mail, there are three post offices in town.
Things to do in Sitka
- There are three radio stations in town and they play a good variety of music. Sitka has only one television station, however the extern housing has satellite TV. Some students have also been known to watch TV in the outpatient waiting area in the evenings and use VCR's in the hospital to watch movies.
- Sites to visit in town include several museums, the Raptor Center (where they care for injured birds of prey), Totem National Park and a movie theater. There are also plenty of shops.
- You will find many trails around Sitka, and depending on the weather conditions, they can offer a great day of entertainment. You may also have the opportunity to go fishing, hunting, and whale watching. Sitka is also a wonderful area for kayaking, and there are two places in town that rent boats. The more you like the outdoors, the busier you will be.
- Sitka is a historic city with many historical and cultural sites.
- There is also a fitness center within walking distance that costs about $15/month. It has treadmills, stair master, free weights, and a sauna.
The Work Scene
- At the hospital, you will usually work from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., but you may sometimes want to stay later to get caught up. Pharmacy students generally work Monday to Friday and have holidays off. Mt. Edgecumbe Hospital Pharmacy Services includes both inpatient, outpatient, and clinical duties.
- The hospital is small enough that the pace is comfortable for learning. The pharmacy has the standard Facts and Comparisons, Trissel's (12th ed.), USPDI, DiPiro's Pharmacotherapy (3rd ed.), Goodman and Gilman's (9th ed.) and Koda-Kimble's (7th ed.). Electronic databases include Micromedix and UpToDate.
- Students have the same dress code as staff, casual but no jeans. Some of the men at the hospital wear ties, but most don't, just as some of the women wear skirts, but most wear dress pants. Lab coats are not required, and everyone wears comfortable shoes. You shouldn't worry too much about bringing an elaborate wardrobe, you will fit in no matter what you wear.
Field Trips to Villages
- Depending on the time of year, you may have an opportunity to visit an outlying village with one of the doctors. If this opportunity becomes available, we highly recommend the trip! You most likely will have to pay for travel expenses on your own, which could be expensive if you fly ($300), but the ferry is an alternative, which costs about $50 round trip.
- While visiting the village clinic, you will be able to provide patient consultations, spending about a 1/2-hour with each patient, going over their medications and checking for interactions and problems/concerns. It's a great opportunity to spend time with the patients, using the pharmaceutical care model.
- Other duties to be completed while at the village include checking the expiration dates on all stock bottles in the medicine room, dispensing medications, and typing up medication lists for the patients with multiple medications to take home.
- When going to the village, it's helpful to have a specific focus, such as diabetes patient consults. You may also have an opportunity to give a presentation to the village health aides, such as the monitoring parameters of the diabetic medications. The presentation would be informal, yet a wonderful learning experience, not only for the health aides, but also for you!
What to Bring
- You'll want to be sure to pack a raincoat and waterproof boots, because it rains here often and without rain gear you may be stuck indoors. Although, on sunny days in the summer you might want shorts and a T-shirt.
- Other things you'll probably want to bring include a camera and plenty of film (since film is expensive here) and a pair of binoculars. There are places to get film developed in town, or you can bring film mailers.
- There are several ATMs in town, but unless you have an account at an Alaska Bank or Wells Fargo, they will charge you a small service charge. You can also use cash back at the grocery stores without penalty from the store.
- Other items can be more individualized to your interests: such as snowboards, surfboards, camping gear and fishing gear. There are unlimited outdoor experiences here!
Student Contributors
Lori Jacobs (Fall 1993), Alexandra Bankert (Winter 1994), Tara Ruffner (Fall 1995), Dwayne Pierce (Summer 1996), Angela Brunner (Summer 2000), Ty Kiser (Summer 2001), Brian Bersbach (Spring 2005), Natalie Bohannan (Spring 2005)
