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Mariava Phillips
November 15, 2023



Duplin County Health Department

As part of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy’s Postgraduate Year One (PGY1) Community-Based Pharmacy Residency Program expansion, Duplin County Health Department (DCHD), is excited to partner with Carolina as a new residency site.  

This expansion is focused on reaching Eastern North Carolina in rural and underserved areas. DCHD is a local government agency responsible for providing essential public health services to the residents of Duplin County, North Carolina. Its mission is to provide prevention, promotion and protection measures to ensure the health of our diverse community and environment by identifying and reducing health risks and barriers to available health care; detecting, investigating and preventing the spread of disease; and partnering with the community to promote and provide equitable access to quality health care services. 

For DCHD, the target population includes low-income, uninsured, those at risk for poor health outcomes and vulnerable residents. Some of the services offered include chronic disease management, maternal health and family planning, immunizations and diabetes education.  

Born and bred in Duplin County, Tracey Simmons-Kornegay, Pharm.D. ‘02, is the site coordinator for the PGY1 residency program at DCHD. After receiving her Pharm.D. from Carolina, she completed a community practice residency with Area L Area Health Education Center in Rocky Mount. Now, she serves as Duplin County Health Director and in 2022 was awarded the North Carolina Pharmacy Associations’ Excellence in Innovation Award. 

“Health care in Duplin County is collaborative and diverse, which will give the resident the ability to impact patients across the continuum through both traditional and non-traditional pathways,” Simmons-Kornegay said.  

In addition to collaboration with health department patients and providers, the resident will have the unique opportunity to team up with a local independent retail pharmacy for patient-centered dispensing and ECU Health Duplin Hospital for hospital-based pharmacy services.  

Simmons-Kornegay said the ideal resident would have a passion for rural communities and previous background in a similar area. Speaking Spanish would be a plus since the county’s population is 20% Hispanic. 

Duplin County is located in between Raleigh and Wilmington and is proud to offer Southern hospitality, a scenic countryside and easy accessibility to many cities. The area is known for its agricultural strengths and award-winning muscadine wine. 

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