Pharmacist Career Report
Pharmacist
Career Report
By: Morgan Lasley
Table of Contents
Introduction……………………………………3
Type of Work………………………………….3
Personal Qualities………………………...4-6
Education Requirements……………………6
Projected cost of education………………….7-8
Licensure/Certification/Registration………….7
Working conditions………………………8-9
Advantages/Disadvantages………………..9-10
Places of employment………………………..11
Advancement opportunities…………………11
Wages and Benefits…………………………12
Job Outlook………………………………12-13
Interview…………………………………13-16
Conclusion…………………………………17
Bibliography………………………………..18
Introduction After job shadowing and researching many medical careers I came across a pharmacist and thought it was just putting pills in a bottle, but it really …show more content…
is a lot more. I became interested in this field after recently interviewing a pharmacist who told me so much about the job and I loved how compassionate she was. I found it very interesting that there is a lot more to a pharmacist than just drugs and bottles. I discovered many things that I was unaware of before such as making sure they are prescribing the right amount of the right medication. I was also quite surprised to learn how much schooling it takes to become a pharmacist. I also like the hours and pay that comes with being a pharmacist. The idea of being able to have different options of where to work seems very convenient and I believe I possess the right personal qualities to be successful in this field. Pharmacy is a diverse career with many differentiating fields such as pharmacist technicians and aids that branch off of the main pharmacist job. The job outlook for this career is great, with a 25% job increase from 2010 to 2020. Overall, a pharmacist seems like the perfect fit for me and I am excited to pursue it in the future.
Type of Work
A. Background A pharmacist is a person who is professionally qualified to prepare and dispense medicinal drugs. The word pharmacy comes from a word that means drug. It is a process that occurs between health sciences and chemical sciences. The profession of a pharmacist ensures the safe use of medicine. The three main areas of pharmacy include pharmaceutics, pharmaceutical chemistry and pharmacy practice. In this report, the main focus will be pharmacy practice.
B. Responsibilities Pharmacists are responsible for many things including the “quality of medicines supplied to patients, ensuring that the supply of medicines are within the law, ensuring that the medicines prescribed to patients are suitable, and advising patients about medicines, including how to take them, what reactions may occur and answering patients questions”(General Pharmaceutical Council).
These responsibilities may vary due to the work environment also. For example, a pharmacist working in a hospital may not have to answer and interact with patients as much as one working in the retail pharmacy environment. Along with the responsibilities I have listed above, some others may include “supervising the medicines supply chain and ensure pharmacy premises and system are fit for purpose, advise other healthcare professionals about safe and effective medicines use, and safe and secure supply of medicines, respond to patients symptoms and advice on medicines for sale in pharmacies”(General Pharmaceutical Council). Pharmacists have many responsibilities and are depended upon by communities throughout the …show more content…
world.
Personal Qualities
A. Math Skills
Pharmacists need strong math skills to accurately prepare medicines and explain dosing to clients. Counting pills or measuring liquid amounts is an integral part of the job. Accurate pill counts and liquid dispensing helps protect patients from taking excessive amounts of the medication, which could lead to liability for both the pharmacist and the pharmacy. Clients sometimes ask questions about the dispensing information on labels and require further explanation on liquid amounts for syringes.
B. Attention to Detail
Accuracy is critical to success in pharmacies. Pharmacists need to accurately count medicine and label bottles correctly. Even minor errors can lead to incorrect usage. Pharmacists must accurately enter patient information and prescription data using computer software. Keeping detailed records helps pharmacists track use over time and make recommendations to doctors when they suggest pills that could cause problems when taken with other medications.
C.Patience
Pharmacists commonly multitask and deal with overwhelming activity. They continually take prescriptions from patients, fill them and consult with clients when they pick them up. They also spend a lot of time on the phone with doctors and insurance providers getting prescription details and checking with insurance companies. Even while perpetually going through this routine, pharmacists might have to deal with frustrated or upset customers and help calm their feelings. This requires a high tolerance for stress and patience with customers.
D.Communication Skills
Pharmacists need strong communication skills to interact with a variety of people in typical day. With customers, they have to listen, answer questions about prescriptions and clearly communicate proper use and side effects of medication. With doctors, they need to listen well and make sure they get accurate prescription information.Pharmacists also need to communicate well with pharmacy techs who assist in preparing, labeling and selling prescriptions. Directing them on tasks and guiding them in proper task performance is a key supervisory duty.
Education requirements
There are a few steps involved in becoming a pharmacist...
A.Undergraduate Education
Pre-pharmacy students must complete at least two years of college to be eligible for pharmacy school, though most complete 3-4 years of a bachelor 's degree program. Aspiring pharmacists aren 't required to pursue specific majors; however, undergraduate coursework in physics, chemistry, biology and calculus can provide a foundation for advanced pharmacy classes.
B.Doctor of Pharmacy Degree
While bachelor 's degrees in pharmacy were once the requirement for entry-level positions, pharmacists are now required to hold Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) professional degrees. Pharm.D. programs take four years to complete and prepare students for the technical, scientific and patient-care aspects of the profession. Pharm.D. programs also incorporate clinical training into their programs. Through internships, students achieve an understanding of everyday experience in pharmacy settings under the supervision of licensed pharmacists. The goal of clinical practice is to familiarize students with patient interaction while allowing them to develop professional skills by applying knowledge acquired in the classroom.
Lisensure/Certification/ Registration
The requirements of being a licensed pharmacist varies from state to state. Normally, there are a few requirements such as being of good moral character, at least 21 years of age and meet education, examination, and experience requirements. These requirements are usually able to be found in states’ Commissioner’s Regulations. There are certain fees that also go along with becoming licensed. For example, in New York, “the fee for licensure is $339, when the fee for a limited or intern permit is only $70. These fees are subject to change at all times.” The education, exam and experience qualifications will be discussed more in depth as the report continues.
Projected Cost of Education
A. Typical costs: Costs of pharmaceutical school can vary from public, non-profit, and private schools across the country. Pharmacy school tuition through a public university costs around $3,000-$20,500 per year for in-state residents or about $14,800-$82,000 for the four-year program. Florida A&M University 's College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences has one of the most affordable programs at around $3,700 per year, while the University of San Diego in California hits the top of the scale. Because public schools are funded by local taxes, students from out of the area pay $9,950-$32,800 per year.
Students at private pharmacy schools pay $18,700-$40,000 annually or $74,800-$160,000 over four years. One of the least expensive is Albany College of Pharmacy in New York State at about $20,600 per year. On the other side of the continent, students pay about $38,000 per year at the University of California. As you can see, costs vary throughout different schools. Obviously the bigger, well-known universities are going to be demanding higher costs, as well as private schools. But, there are more affordable options out there if someone has certain circumstances.
B. Additional Costs
Some additional fees that come along with pharmacy school tuition includes things like:
The pharmacy college admissions test-$125
Books- $300-$600 per year
Requirements for obtaining a lisence-$270
Technical serives, professional liability insurance, and lab fees-$1,800 per year
Health insurance- about $2,300 per year
Working Conditions
Working conditions for pharmacists can vary but they mostly consist of clean, well-lighted, and well-ventilated areas. Most pharmacists spend more of their workday on their feet. When working with sterile or dangerous pharmaceutical products, pharmacists wear gloves and masks and work with other special protective equipment. Many community and hospital pharmacies are open for extended hours or around the clock, so pharmacists may work nights, weekends, and holidays.
“About 21 percent of pharmacists worked part time in 2004. Most full-time salaried pharmacists worked approximately 40 hours a week. Some, including many self-employed pharmacists, worked more than 50 hours a week”. Overall, the working conditions are very good across the whole country for pharmacists. The clean environment makes it very attractable to customers in retail pharmacies and makes them feel like sanitary people are handling their medicinal needs.
Adavntages/Disadvantages
A. Advantages
Providing a platform for helping others: One advantage of being a pharmacist is having the ability to help others. Pharmacists must be very trusted people throughout cities because they are regularly having to be trusted with people’s lives. If he/she prescribes the wrong drug to someone, it could potentially have very negative health effects and could even result in deaths of those patients. Since being a pharmacists requires so much preciseness and trust from the community, this makes them very respected and an integral aspect of society.
Salary: Another advantage of a pharmacist is the paycheck. Its no secret of how much money pharmacists can make. Even though most people who want to pursue this career claim they love the aspect of helping others, it’s obvious that there’s more to it than just that. Along with bringing in the big dollars, the demand for pharmacists across the country is so great in our day in age. Whether you are just out of school or not, you will be able to easily find many job opportunities, this can be seen as a huge advantage compared to other careers.
B. Disadvantages
Training: One disadvantage in the pharmaceutical career is the years of training requires. It includes at least two or three years of undergraduate studies with a focus on the specific areas of anatomy, biology and chemistry. Once admitted into the Doctor of Pharmacy program, the student takes additional courses for three to four more years. At the end of the rigorous training period, the student can then receive a Doctor of Pharmacy, or Pharm.D. degree.
Licensing: Another disadvantage to being a pharmacist is the licensing process. Unlike most other careers, to become a pharmacist, one must pass TWO licensing tests. The first is the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination or MPJE. The second exam required is the North American Licensure Examination, or NAPLEX.
Thirdly, the workplace of a pharmacist can be seen as a disadvantage. It can vary by the type of pharmacy. For example, if one works in a hospital pharmacy, which is open 24 hours, he/she will be busy from the start of the day until the end. Also, Drugs dispensed by a hospital pharmacist are often in a different form, such as intravenous, and are more powerful than those dispensed in a retail pharmacy, so the hospital pharmacist has to have additional drug knowledge. But on the other hand, a retail pharmacist, such as one who works at CVS, has to deal with insurance issues and other questions everyday customers may have. Because of this, retail pharmacists must have better knowledge of insurance rules and regulations so he/she can properly deal with various problems and paperwork.
There are many upsides as well as downsides to being a pharmacist. In my eyes though, the pros outway the cons.
Places of Employment As society’s health care demands have changed, there have been changes in the increased desire of care through organized health care settings. Today, there are a variety of places a pharmacist can find employment including hospitals, nursing homes, extended care facilities, neighborhood health centers, and health maintenance organizations. Places of employment also depend on the specialty of pharmacy one is pursuing such as nuclear, oncology, pediatrics, etc. The nature and size of the hospital helps to determine the extent to which these specific services are needed.
Advancement Opportunities There are many advancements that can occur within the career of a Pharmacist. Most beginning pharmacists start out at the practitioner level. They can then begin to develop specialty practice skills that will lead to advancement to the level of Preceptor. Once one reaches this level, he or she can begin to develop a rotation with pharmacy student and resident training. To continue farther into the field of management, pharmacists may choose to advance into a senior pharmacist role. These specific pharmacists normally have both direct patient care responsibilities as well as management responsibilities. Once one reaches this level of management, the last advancement possible would be to go on to be a division manager, which is over a whole group of pharmacists.
Wages and Benefits
A. Salary One of the plusses of being a pharmacist is the great paycheck. “The annual median wage is about $116,670. This is considerably good assuming this is not including any bonuses, or promotions. Looking on an hourly scale, the average pharmacist earns a little more than $70 per hour”(Health Care Salary Online). Now, looking on a broader scale, the Top 5 US States that have the best paying pharmacy programs are Alaska, Maine, California, Vermont and Delaware.
B. Benefits Fringe benefits such as vacation days and retirement plans will vary depending on what state you work in , the work setting, and the size of the company you work for. But, a “typical benefits package is worth over $20,000 per year”(Health Care Salary Online).
Job Outlook
A. Demand The growing demand for professional pharmacists has increased within the past years due to the rapid growth of pharmaceutical industries. The actual number of pharmacists in health care services is growing also. There is a good potential for advancement and competitive salaries within a pharmacy career. Those pharmacists who go more in depth with their schooling and go on to do additional residency experiences have a greater chance in succeeding in different areas within pharmacy such as research and business.
B. Shortage It is estimated that by 2020, as many as 157,000 pharmacists jobs will be short fallen. Because of this number, the demand, as discussed above, continues to grow and the United States needs more and more pharmacists.
Looking at the career of a pharmacist from a job outlook aspect, the popular demand of pharmacists continuously keeps growing more and more. With pharmaceutical jobs already easy to obtain right now, think about how easy it will be if the predicted loss of pharmacists actually comes true by 2020. This is a great career to pursue if you are someone who doesn’t want to have to worry about having a job all the time.
Interview
Title of Career field or job: Pharmacist
Q1: What are the major duties and responsibilities?
-Different responsibilities include taking care of the customers/patients, handling prescription orders, putting pills into the bottles, and teaching patients how the medications work. This can also include explaining the various side effects and complications associated with the medicine. In addition, you have to take prescription orders from the doctors over the phone, and look for errors in the orders and be willing to discuss problems with the doctors. There are some duties that ONLY the pharmacist can do, NOT the pharmacy techs which include taking oral prescription orders and performing the final check on the prescription(making sure the label matches the bottle.
Q2: What is the outlook for employment in this career?
-The outlook has changed a lot over the past 20 years, or since she has become a pharmacist. When she graduated from college, the usual expected job offer number varied from five to six per student when they were fresh out of school. But now, there seems to be more pharmacists than there are jobs, which can pose serious problems with the economy. Computerized communication between patients and pharmacists causes less of a need for jobs at places such as drugstores(Walgreens). Some retail pharmacies have discussed the idea of techs taking over the main jobs of the pharmacists so they don’t have to waste the money on paying pharmacists when the techs, who earn much less, could be performing the same tasks.
Q:3 What is the level of education required?
-The required amount of schooling to receive a Pharmacy Doctorate is six years now a days. When she was in school, this wasn’t required so she got to achieve the level of pharmacist with getting a BS degree instead.(only needs 5 years instead of 6)
Q4: What do you like most about your career?
-Working with the public and getting to know the customers is the most enjoyable thing about the job. Getting to know the public on a personal level really sparks an excitement and makes the job appealing every single day.
Q5: What do you like least about the job?
-Having to deal with all the guidelines for insurance companies and medicare can cause lots of hassles in a normal workday. Finding ways to make it easier on both the patient and doctor when insurance companies don’t comply with things such as paying for a portion of a patient 's expensive prescription order.
Q6:What special skills are required for this career?
-One specific skill you have to be good at is being able to recognize physical dependence. When a customer appears as though they are becoming addicted to a certain drug, you have to be willing to sit down with that person and discuss ways to help them overcome the problem. Other qualities include good communication, being able to relay things to customers in a thoughtful manner, compassion, being detail oriented.
Q7: Are there any special physical demands?
-This may sound silly, but having to hold in the need to use the restroom is very inconvenient. Being busy every second of the day comes with disadvantages like these because you don’t have any time to accomplish normal daily tasks. Another physical demand is having to be on your feet all day, as it can become painful and cause back problems. Lastly, dealing with patients problems can be time sacrificing and a pain such as when they are rude, or when a simple mix up with prescriptions occurs, it can spark havoc between the patients and pharmacist.
Q8:What is the opportunity for advancement in this field?
-When you are a normal pharmacist, you can advance to being a pharmacy manager, then to a district manager, regional manager/leader, then to a VP of a company.
She personally doesn’t see why regular pharmacist would want to make these advancements other than the obvious wage benefit because if someone goes to school to be a pharmacist, it’s usually to be able to work and interact with people whereas in a managing position, you are doing just the opposite.
Q9: How many other people do you work with?
-In her old job at Walgreens she worked with about five other people but in the job she’s in now, she works in a smaller group with about 2-3 people depending on the day.
Q10: Are there any special materials , equipment, tools, machinery, etc.,that you have to know how to use in this career?
-Pharmacist have to be able to use a glucometer, which measures glucose levels, test blood sugar, use a cholesterol machine, which tests cholesterol levels, use a blood pressure cuff, use a body mass index machine, and know to to administer vaccines.
Q11: What personal qualities does a person need for this career?
-A few qualities a person needs to posses to be able to succeed as a pharmacist is compassion, good communication skills, good organization skills, and detail oriented.
Q12: How many hours do you usually work?
-On average, she works about 36 hours per
week.
Q13:If you were choosing a career field at this point, would you choose this career? Why or why not?
-Yes she would definitely choose to be a pharmacist again. She said how it was the perfect career for her and her personality. The flexible work hours are very nice with her kids and all of their activities.If money becomes tight, it’s very easy to pick up more hours. She went on to explain hour she loves making a difference in people 's lives and there is never a day when she doesn’t love what she does.
Conclusion
After researching the career of a pharmacist, I have become a lot more interested in actually pursuing it. It’s an overall good job that is well rounded in the aspects of wages, education and type of work. Even though the schooling may seem overwhelming, I can personally see it paying off and being worth it in the end. I feel like I would be a good fit for this career because I posses some of the personal qualities I have described earlier. Especially already knowing a pharmacist on a personal level, being able to consult with her often is really nice and I can use it to my advantage to grasp a better feeling for the career.
Bibliography
"Background to Pharmacy." Home. University of Hertfordshire, 2014. Web. 29 May 2014.
Brown, Denise. "The Disadvantages of Being a Pharmacist." Work. Hearst Newspapers, LLC, 2014. Web. 29 May 2014.
"Career Advancement." Home. UAB Health System, n.d. Web. 29 May 2014.
"How Much Does Pharmacy School Cost? - CostHelper.com." CostHelper. CostHelper, Inc., 2014. Web. 28 May 2014.
Kokemuller, Neil. "What Qualities Do Pharmacists Need?" Work. Hearst Newspapers, LLC, 2014. Web. 29 May 2014.
"Office of the Professions." NYS Pharmacy:License Requirements. University of the State of New York - New York State Education Department, n.d. Web. 27 May 2014.
"Pharmacists." Pharamist Jobs and Working Conditions. QuinStreet, Inc., 2014. Web. 29 May 2014.
"What Does a Pharmacist Do?" General Pharmaceutical Council. GPhC, 2014. Web. 27 May 2014.
"Where Do Pharmacists Work?" Purdue University, College of Pharmacy. Purdue University, 2014. Web. 29 May 2014.
Career Report
By: Morgan Lasley
Table of Contents
Introduction……………………………………3
Type of Work………………………………….3
Personal Qualities………………………...4-6
Education Requirements……………………6
Projected cost of education………………….7-8
Licensure/Certification/Registration………….7
Working conditions………………………8-9
Advantages/Disadvantages………………..9-10
Places of employment………………………..11
Advancement opportunities…………………11
Wages and Benefits…………………………12
Job Outlook………………………………12-13
Interview…………………………………13-16
Conclusion…………………………………17
Bibliography………………………………..18
Introduction After job shadowing and researching many medical careers I came across a pharmacist and thought it was just putting pills in a bottle, but it really …show more content…
is a lot more. I became interested in this field after recently interviewing a pharmacist who told me so much about the job and I loved how compassionate she was. I found it very interesting that there is a lot more to a pharmacist than just drugs and bottles. I discovered many things that I was unaware of before such as making sure they are prescribing the right amount of the right medication. I was also quite surprised to learn how much schooling it takes to become a pharmacist. I also like the hours and pay that comes with being a pharmacist. The idea of being able to have different options of where to work seems very convenient and I believe I possess the right personal qualities to be successful in this field. Pharmacy is a diverse career with many differentiating fields such as pharmacist technicians and aids that branch off of the main pharmacist job. The job outlook for this career is great, with a 25% job increase from 2010 to 2020. Overall, a pharmacist seems like the perfect fit for me and I am excited to pursue it in the future.
Type of Work
A. Background A pharmacist is a person who is professionally qualified to prepare and dispense medicinal drugs. The word pharmacy comes from a word that means drug. It is a process that occurs between health sciences and chemical sciences. The profession of a pharmacist ensures the safe use of medicine. The three main areas of pharmacy include pharmaceutics, pharmaceutical chemistry and pharmacy practice. In this report, the main focus will be pharmacy practice.
B. Responsibilities Pharmacists are responsible for many things including the “quality of medicines supplied to patients, ensuring that the supply of medicines are within the law, ensuring that the medicines prescribed to patients are suitable, and advising patients about medicines, including how to take them, what reactions may occur and answering patients questions”(General Pharmaceutical Council).
These responsibilities may vary due to the work environment also. For example, a pharmacist working in a hospital may not have to answer and interact with patients as much as one working in the retail pharmacy environment. Along with the responsibilities I have listed above, some others may include “supervising the medicines supply chain and ensure pharmacy premises and system are fit for purpose, advise other healthcare professionals about safe and effective medicines use, and safe and secure supply of medicines, respond to patients symptoms and advice on medicines for sale in pharmacies”(General Pharmaceutical Council). Pharmacists have many responsibilities and are depended upon by communities throughout the …show more content…
world.
Personal Qualities
A. Math Skills
Pharmacists need strong math skills to accurately prepare medicines and explain dosing to clients. Counting pills or measuring liquid amounts is an integral part of the job. Accurate pill counts and liquid dispensing helps protect patients from taking excessive amounts of the medication, which could lead to liability for both the pharmacist and the pharmacy. Clients sometimes ask questions about the dispensing information on labels and require further explanation on liquid amounts for syringes.
B. Attention to Detail
Accuracy is critical to success in pharmacies. Pharmacists need to accurately count medicine and label bottles correctly. Even minor errors can lead to incorrect usage. Pharmacists must accurately enter patient information and prescription data using computer software. Keeping detailed records helps pharmacists track use over time and make recommendations to doctors when they suggest pills that could cause problems when taken with other medications.
C.Patience
Pharmacists commonly multitask and deal with overwhelming activity. They continually take prescriptions from patients, fill them and consult with clients when they pick them up. They also spend a lot of time on the phone with doctors and insurance providers getting prescription details and checking with insurance companies. Even while perpetually going through this routine, pharmacists might have to deal with frustrated or upset customers and help calm their feelings. This requires a high tolerance for stress and patience with customers.
D.Communication Skills
Pharmacists need strong communication skills to interact with a variety of people in typical day. With customers, they have to listen, answer questions about prescriptions and clearly communicate proper use and side effects of medication. With doctors, they need to listen well and make sure they get accurate prescription information.Pharmacists also need to communicate well with pharmacy techs who assist in preparing, labeling and selling prescriptions. Directing them on tasks and guiding them in proper task performance is a key supervisory duty.
Education requirements
There are a few steps involved in becoming a pharmacist...
A.Undergraduate Education
Pre-pharmacy students must complete at least two years of college to be eligible for pharmacy school, though most complete 3-4 years of a bachelor 's degree program. Aspiring pharmacists aren 't required to pursue specific majors; however, undergraduate coursework in physics, chemistry, biology and calculus can provide a foundation for advanced pharmacy classes.
B.Doctor of Pharmacy Degree
While bachelor 's degrees in pharmacy were once the requirement for entry-level positions, pharmacists are now required to hold Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) professional degrees. Pharm.D. programs take four years to complete and prepare students for the technical, scientific and patient-care aspects of the profession. Pharm.D. programs also incorporate clinical training into their programs. Through internships, students achieve an understanding of everyday experience in pharmacy settings under the supervision of licensed pharmacists. The goal of clinical practice is to familiarize students with patient interaction while allowing them to develop professional skills by applying knowledge acquired in the classroom.
Lisensure/Certification/ Registration
The requirements of being a licensed pharmacist varies from state to state. Normally, there are a few requirements such as being of good moral character, at least 21 years of age and meet education, examination, and experience requirements. These requirements are usually able to be found in states’ Commissioner’s Regulations. There are certain fees that also go along with becoming licensed. For example, in New York, “the fee for licensure is $339, when the fee for a limited or intern permit is only $70. These fees are subject to change at all times.” The education, exam and experience qualifications will be discussed more in depth as the report continues.
Projected Cost of Education
A. Typical costs: Costs of pharmaceutical school can vary from public, non-profit, and private schools across the country. Pharmacy school tuition through a public university costs around $3,000-$20,500 per year for in-state residents or about $14,800-$82,000 for the four-year program. Florida A&M University 's College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences has one of the most affordable programs at around $3,700 per year, while the University of San Diego in California hits the top of the scale. Because public schools are funded by local taxes, students from out of the area pay $9,950-$32,800 per year.
Students at private pharmacy schools pay $18,700-$40,000 annually or $74,800-$160,000 over four years. One of the least expensive is Albany College of Pharmacy in New York State at about $20,600 per year. On the other side of the continent, students pay about $38,000 per year at the University of California. As you can see, costs vary throughout different schools. Obviously the bigger, well-known universities are going to be demanding higher costs, as well as private schools. But, there are more affordable options out there if someone has certain circumstances.
B. Additional Costs
Some additional fees that come along with pharmacy school tuition includes things like:
The pharmacy college admissions test-$125
Books- $300-$600 per year
Requirements for obtaining a lisence-$270
Technical serives, professional liability insurance, and lab fees-$1,800 per year
Health insurance- about $2,300 per year
Working Conditions
Working conditions for pharmacists can vary but they mostly consist of clean, well-lighted, and well-ventilated areas. Most pharmacists spend more of their workday on their feet. When working with sterile or dangerous pharmaceutical products, pharmacists wear gloves and masks and work with other special protective equipment. Many community and hospital pharmacies are open for extended hours or around the clock, so pharmacists may work nights, weekends, and holidays.
“About 21 percent of pharmacists worked part time in 2004. Most full-time salaried pharmacists worked approximately 40 hours a week. Some, including many self-employed pharmacists, worked more than 50 hours a week”. Overall, the working conditions are very good across the whole country for pharmacists. The clean environment makes it very attractable to customers in retail pharmacies and makes them feel like sanitary people are handling their medicinal needs.
Adavntages/Disadvantages
A. Advantages
Providing a platform for helping others: One advantage of being a pharmacist is having the ability to help others. Pharmacists must be very trusted people throughout cities because they are regularly having to be trusted with people’s lives. If he/she prescribes the wrong drug to someone, it could potentially have very negative health effects and could even result in deaths of those patients. Since being a pharmacists requires so much preciseness and trust from the community, this makes them very respected and an integral aspect of society.
Salary: Another advantage of a pharmacist is the paycheck. Its no secret of how much money pharmacists can make. Even though most people who want to pursue this career claim they love the aspect of helping others, it’s obvious that there’s more to it than just that. Along with bringing in the big dollars, the demand for pharmacists across the country is so great in our day in age. Whether you are just out of school or not, you will be able to easily find many job opportunities, this can be seen as a huge advantage compared to other careers.
B. Disadvantages
Training: One disadvantage in the pharmaceutical career is the years of training requires. It includes at least two or three years of undergraduate studies with a focus on the specific areas of anatomy, biology and chemistry. Once admitted into the Doctor of Pharmacy program, the student takes additional courses for three to four more years. At the end of the rigorous training period, the student can then receive a Doctor of Pharmacy, or Pharm.D. degree.
Licensing: Another disadvantage to being a pharmacist is the licensing process. Unlike most other careers, to become a pharmacist, one must pass TWO licensing tests. The first is the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination or MPJE. The second exam required is the North American Licensure Examination, or NAPLEX.
Thirdly, the workplace of a pharmacist can be seen as a disadvantage. It can vary by the type of pharmacy. For example, if one works in a hospital pharmacy, which is open 24 hours, he/she will be busy from the start of the day until the end. Also, Drugs dispensed by a hospital pharmacist are often in a different form, such as intravenous, and are more powerful than those dispensed in a retail pharmacy, so the hospital pharmacist has to have additional drug knowledge. But on the other hand, a retail pharmacist, such as one who works at CVS, has to deal with insurance issues and other questions everyday customers may have. Because of this, retail pharmacists must have better knowledge of insurance rules and regulations so he/she can properly deal with various problems and paperwork.
There are many upsides as well as downsides to being a pharmacist. In my eyes though, the pros outway the cons.
Places of Employment As society’s health care demands have changed, there have been changes in the increased desire of care through organized health care settings. Today, there are a variety of places a pharmacist can find employment including hospitals, nursing homes, extended care facilities, neighborhood health centers, and health maintenance organizations. Places of employment also depend on the specialty of pharmacy one is pursuing such as nuclear, oncology, pediatrics, etc. The nature and size of the hospital helps to determine the extent to which these specific services are needed.
Advancement Opportunities There are many advancements that can occur within the career of a Pharmacist. Most beginning pharmacists start out at the practitioner level. They can then begin to develop specialty practice skills that will lead to advancement to the level of Preceptor. Once one reaches this level, he or she can begin to develop a rotation with pharmacy student and resident training. To continue farther into the field of management, pharmacists may choose to advance into a senior pharmacist role. These specific pharmacists normally have both direct patient care responsibilities as well as management responsibilities. Once one reaches this level of management, the last advancement possible would be to go on to be a division manager, which is over a whole group of pharmacists.
Wages and Benefits
A. Salary One of the plusses of being a pharmacist is the great paycheck. “The annual median wage is about $116,670. This is considerably good assuming this is not including any bonuses, or promotions. Looking on an hourly scale, the average pharmacist earns a little more than $70 per hour”(Health Care Salary Online). Now, looking on a broader scale, the Top 5 US States that have the best paying pharmacy programs are Alaska, Maine, California, Vermont and Delaware.
B. Benefits Fringe benefits such as vacation days and retirement plans will vary depending on what state you work in , the work setting, and the size of the company you work for. But, a “typical benefits package is worth over $20,000 per year”(Health Care Salary Online).
Job Outlook
A. Demand The growing demand for professional pharmacists has increased within the past years due to the rapid growth of pharmaceutical industries. The actual number of pharmacists in health care services is growing also. There is a good potential for advancement and competitive salaries within a pharmacy career. Those pharmacists who go more in depth with their schooling and go on to do additional residency experiences have a greater chance in succeeding in different areas within pharmacy such as research and business.
B. Shortage It is estimated that by 2020, as many as 157,000 pharmacists jobs will be short fallen. Because of this number, the demand, as discussed above, continues to grow and the United States needs more and more pharmacists.
Looking at the career of a pharmacist from a job outlook aspect, the popular demand of pharmacists continuously keeps growing more and more. With pharmaceutical jobs already easy to obtain right now, think about how easy it will be if the predicted loss of pharmacists actually comes true by 2020. This is a great career to pursue if you are someone who doesn’t want to have to worry about having a job all the time.
Interview
Title of Career field or job: Pharmacist
Q1: What are the major duties and responsibilities?
-Different responsibilities include taking care of the customers/patients, handling prescription orders, putting pills into the bottles, and teaching patients how the medications work. This can also include explaining the various side effects and complications associated with the medicine. In addition, you have to take prescription orders from the doctors over the phone, and look for errors in the orders and be willing to discuss problems with the doctors. There are some duties that ONLY the pharmacist can do, NOT the pharmacy techs which include taking oral prescription orders and performing the final check on the prescription(making sure the label matches the bottle.
Q2: What is the outlook for employment in this career?
-The outlook has changed a lot over the past 20 years, or since she has become a pharmacist. When she graduated from college, the usual expected job offer number varied from five to six per student when they were fresh out of school. But now, there seems to be more pharmacists than there are jobs, which can pose serious problems with the economy. Computerized communication between patients and pharmacists causes less of a need for jobs at places such as drugstores(Walgreens). Some retail pharmacies have discussed the idea of techs taking over the main jobs of the pharmacists so they don’t have to waste the money on paying pharmacists when the techs, who earn much less, could be performing the same tasks.
Q:3 What is the level of education required?
-The required amount of schooling to receive a Pharmacy Doctorate is six years now a days. When she was in school, this wasn’t required so she got to achieve the level of pharmacist with getting a BS degree instead.(only needs 5 years instead of 6)
Q4: What do you like most about your career?
-Working with the public and getting to know the customers is the most enjoyable thing about the job. Getting to know the public on a personal level really sparks an excitement and makes the job appealing every single day.
Q5: What do you like least about the job?
-Having to deal with all the guidelines for insurance companies and medicare can cause lots of hassles in a normal workday. Finding ways to make it easier on both the patient and doctor when insurance companies don’t comply with things such as paying for a portion of a patient 's expensive prescription order.
Q6:What special skills are required for this career?
-One specific skill you have to be good at is being able to recognize physical dependence. When a customer appears as though they are becoming addicted to a certain drug, you have to be willing to sit down with that person and discuss ways to help them overcome the problem. Other qualities include good communication, being able to relay things to customers in a thoughtful manner, compassion, being detail oriented.
Q7: Are there any special physical demands?
-This may sound silly, but having to hold in the need to use the restroom is very inconvenient. Being busy every second of the day comes with disadvantages like these because you don’t have any time to accomplish normal daily tasks. Another physical demand is having to be on your feet all day, as it can become painful and cause back problems. Lastly, dealing with patients problems can be time sacrificing and a pain such as when they are rude, or when a simple mix up with prescriptions occurs, it can spark havoc between the patients and pharmacist.
Q8:What is the opportunity for advancement in this field?
-When you are a normal pharmacist, you can advance to being a pharmacy manager, then to a district manager, regional manager/leader, then to a VP of a company.
She personally doesn’t see why regular pharmacist would want to make these advancements other than the obvious wage benefit because if someone goes to school to be a pharmacist, it’s usually to be able to work and interact with people whereas in a managing position, you are doing just the opposite.
Q9: How many other people do you work with?
-In her old job at Walgreens she worked with about five other people but in the job she’s in now, she works in a smaller group with about 2-3 people depending on the day.
Q10: Are there any special materials , equipment, tools, machinery, etc.,that you have to know how to use in this career?
-Pharmacist have to be able to use a glucometer, which measures glucose levels, test blood sugar, use a cholesterol machine, which tests cholesterol levels, use a blood pressure cuff, use a body mass index machine, and know to to administer vaccines.
Q11: What personal qualities does a person need for this career?
-A few qualities a person needs to posses to be able to succeed as a pharmacist is compassion, good communication skills, good organization skills, and detail oriented.
Q12: How many hours do you usually work?
-On average, she works about 36 hours per
week.
Q13:If you were choosing a career field at this point, would you choose this career? Why or why not?
-Yes she would definitely choose to be a pharmacist again. She said how it was the perfect career for her and her personality. The flexible work hours are very nice with her kids and all of their activities.If money becomes tight, it’s very easy to pick up more hours. She went on to explain hour she loves making a difference in people 's lives and there is never a day when she doesn’t love what she does.
Conclusion
After researching the career of a pharmacist, I have become a lot more interested in actually pursuing it. It’s an overall good job that is well rounded in the aspects of wages, education and type of work. Even though the schooling may seem overwhelming, I can personally see it paying off and being worth it in the end. I feel like I would be a good fit for this career because I posses some of the personal qualities I have described earlier. Especially already knowing a pharmacist on a personal level, being able to consult with her often is really nice and I can use it to my advantage to grasp a better feeling for the career.
Bibliography
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