Karen Berger

Karen’s Story

Dr. Berger received her doctor of pharmacy from the University of Florida in 2009 and went on to complete her PGY-1 pharmacy residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital in 2010 and her PGY-2 critical care residency at the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago in 2011, where she acted as chief resident. Dr. Berger is Board Certified in Pharmacotherapy and Critical Care and serves as the co-chair of the student advisory committee at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital as well as a preceptor to pharmacy students and PGY-1 and critical care PGY-2 residents in the neurosciences intensive care unit.

Dr. Berger has served on the New Practitioner’s Forum Science and Research Advisory Group, the New Practitioner’s Forum Executive Committee, and currently serves on the Council on Therapeutics. She is currently a member of the Educational Steering Committee of the Section of Clinical Specialists and Scientists. Dr. Berger has also been an active member of the New York State Council of Health-System Pharmacists, currently serving as the Chair of the Continuing Competency Committee and a member of the Public Policy Committee. On the local level, Dr. Berger was the Director-at-Large for students, legislative affairs, and support staff, a delegate, and resolutions committee member, and is now the President of the NYC chapter.

Facility

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital is an academic medical center comprised of 2600 beds across 6 campuses including Weill Cornell Medical Center and Columbia University Irving Medical Center. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital is ranked #1 in the New York metropolitan area by U.S. News and World Report and repeatedly named to the Honor Roll of “America’s Best Hospitals.”

Significant Projects

In her role on the Anticoagulation committee at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, Dr. Berger has developed and implemented a health-system-wide reversal protocol for life-threatening bleeding and emergent surgery and has participated in quality assessment and research in this area. Dr. Berger also maintains and updates several neuro-ICU specific protocols including guidelines for status epilepticus, intra-arterial administration of alteplase, and hypertonic saline administration.

Advice for Someone New to Your Specialty Area

“I would recommend joining a specialty organization or listserve specific to your specialty area. The networking provided by linking up with more senior clinicians who manage similar patients and clinical scenarios is invaluable.”

Involvement in ASHP

“As a student seeking residency training, I was immediately drawn to ASHP during the Midyear Clinical Meeting, where I saw thousands of students, residents, and pharmacists come together for the many CE and networking opportunities. The continued networking and CE opportunities have kept me involved in ASHP, however, I am also equally impressed by the strong advocacy presence and legislative efforts that the organization provides for its members and the pharmacy profession as a whole.”

ASHP’s Value to Members

“ASHP is THE organization for health-system pharmacists. If you are a health-system pharmacist and want to stay up-to-date on clinical data, policy efforts, drug shortages, and the many other issues affecting health-system pharmacists, you should really be a member of ASHP. The available resources and connections I have made through both my membership and active participation on various ASHP Councils and Committees have provided me with unimaginable opportunities. ASHP helped foster my professional growth as a new practitioner and continues to do so as I become a more "seasoned" practitioner.”

“The list of important contributions that ASHP has facilitated for the pharmacy profession is a long one. In my opinion, the two biggest services that ASHP provides for health-system pharmacists is 1- Setting standards and accrediting post graduate residency training programs and 2- Advocating for legislation that promotes health-system pharmacists and allows us to practice at the top of our license. These core values of ASHP are fundamental to our sustained growth as a profession.”