Pharmacy - A Rewarding Career

Pharmacy is very old profession and has changed profoundly over the years. It is one of the most regulated professions in the country and one of the most ethically challenging.

Pharmacy profession has been changed, expanded and mature over 40 years. It is very dynamic, growing and increasingly diverse profession and which created an excitement because there are tremendous opportunities for service. The secret in the future will be to identify and take advantage of these opportunities. Like many other professions, pharmacy is continuously evolving to meet the needs of the public it serves. The profession greatly changed from one focused on managing the production of drug to one primarily concerned with the safe, effective and appropriate use of medication and enhanced pharmacy services to patients. Even though, the practice of pharmacy has been changed but the Pharmacist are professionals have remained the same. Definitely, pharmacist are and will always remain professionals and they must work to instill the profession’s attitudes and values in students who, as Pharmacists, will be responsible for maintaining the continuously of pharmacy as a profession.

Career Opportunities For Pharmacist

One of the hottest fields in the health care industry is Pharmacy- a career that puts you on the front line of patient care and offers opportunities for professional growth, exceptional financial rewards and the chance to help people every hour of every day.

A career in pharmacy is a choice that will benefit you well into the twenty first century. There are career opportunities for pharmacists in hospitals, long-term care facilities, clinics, academics etc. Now, it is time to forget the notion that all pharmacist do is just count out the pills. Dispensing drugs is certainly part of the job but today pharma career goes far beyond simply working behind the counter. Besides working in the community a pharmacist can work in a hospital, nursing homes, institutes, pharmaceutical research companies and government heath agencies etc. There are golden opportunities for pharmacist to make their career bright and successful.

Career Options For Pharmacist Includes-

1. Community Pharmacy

2. Hospital Pharmacy

3. Pharmaceutical Industry

4. Academic Pharmacy

5. Research and Development

6. Retail Pharmacy

7. Armed Services

8. Consultant Pharmacy

9. Call Center

10. Clinical Research / Clinical Data Management

11. Public Health Services

About Few Of The Career Options

Pharmaceutical Industry

Pharmacists in pharmaceutical manufacturing may work in R & D, Testing of Medications in human, Production Systems, Quality Control, Government Regulations, Marketing, Public Relations, Sales and Management. Many pharmacists go on to obtain postgraduate degree in order to meet the technical demand and scientific duties required in pharmaceutical manufacturing. The pharma sales and marketing is highly technical field and offers best opportunities for pharma graduates. Pharmacists with an interest in sale and administration can combine this with their technical background in Pharmacy by serving as medical representative (M.R). Experienced and successful medical representative with their administration skills often raise to supervisory or executive posts in pharmaceutical industry.

Community Pharmacy

Pharmacist serve patient and the community by providing information and advice on health, providing medications and associated services, and by referring patients to other sources of help and care, such as physician, when necessary. Likewise advances in the use of computers in pharmacy practice now allow pharmacist to send more time educating patients and maintaining and monitoring patients. Pharmacists are specialists in the science and clinical use of medications. Some specialties of pharmacist are enlisted in table no. 1. Community pharmacist are charged with the safe and efficient distribution of prescription medication, advising patients on the proper use of their prescription and non-prescription medication use and keeping the records of patients and their health, illness and medications. Community pharmacists also provide information and advice about medications also provides information and advice about medications to physician and other health professionals.

Hospital Pharmacy

The day to day in a hospital setting can be an intense and rewarding experience. It allows a pharmacist to interact with critically ill patients, working closely with medical doctors to determine ideal medication and nutrition solutions. The knowledge and clinical skills that the contemporary pharmacist possesses make this individual an authoritative source of drug information for physicians, nurses and patients. In addition to direct patient care involvement, pharmacist in hospitals are responsible for systems which control drug distribution and are designed to assure that each patient receives the appropriate medication, in the correct form and dosage, at the correct time. Hospital pharmacist maintains records on each patient, using them not only to fill medication orders but also to screen for drug allergies and adverse drug effects.

Academic Pharmacy

Teaching is an extremely rewarding way to help try and shape the future of pharmacy. Teaching profession is considered as noble profession. Now, many post graduate or PhD candidates are looking teaching as a career option. This is actually great opportunity to develop pharma students and make them real and ideal pharmacy professionals. Currently, scenario is changing drastically and there are lot of efforts to be taken for collaborative work of industry and academics. There are many institutes which are associated with pharma companies for providing the training and research projects to pharma students.

Research & Development

The research conducted by pharmaceutical companies saves lives everyday. There are many opportunities existing biotechnology, pharmaco-genomic and other innovative fields that come together to produce cutting edge pharmaceutical products. In research and development, pharmacists are involved in wide range of activities like –

·Pharmacist is involved in the characterization, optimization and selection of new drug candidates

·Pharmacists develops and tests new formulations and drug delivery systems

·Pharmacists develops analytical methods for new active principles and pharmaceutical forms and introduces new analytical techniques

·Pharmacists develops and optimizes new formulas and technical process for pharmaceutical formulations required for clinical trials and market

·Working in compliance with GMP pharmacist produces test preparations for clinical trials.

Clinical Research / Clinical Data Management

The world is watching the growth and performance of India in the Clinical Research segment. India is fast emerging as an attractive destination for conducting global clinical trials. Global consultancy McKinsey estimates clinical outsourcing in India to grow to $ 1.5 billion to $ 2.0 billion by 2005.

Pharmacy professionals will play a vital role in clinical research. They will serve the clinical research industry in the capacity of clinical research managers, associates, monitors and experts in regulatory affairs. The main purpose for conducting clinical research is to generate new knowledge for improving health care. It is easy to make the connection between pharmacy training and employment of a pharmacist in the manufacture and supply of clinical trial materials. However, the pharmacist is also ideally qualified to be a Clinical Research Associate, Clinical Research Coordinator etc. involved in the planning, monitoring and reporting of clinical trials.

A progression from the roles in the clinical trial area can be quality assurance, either of the supply process or of the conduct of the clinical trial which gives the pharmacist a chance to use both technical and interpersonal skills to the full.

Pharmacist can consider Clinical Data Management as a career in order to make use of their analytical skills and clinical knowledge in a setting other than a hospital. Clinical Data Management is a key component of the multidisciplinary team involved in setting up, running and reporting clinical trials. A data manager defines how these data are collected, tracks the data and checks their completeness, accuracy and the consistency. Pharmacist may develop an interest in the wider drug development process e.g. coding of medication and wish to move into clinical data management role to explore these interest. Pharmacists have the multiple career path ways in Clinical Research. These CR path ways are listed in below table no. 2.

Consultant Pharmacist

The consultant pharmacist serves many of the same clinical services as described for the hospital pharmacist except that is carried out in a long term care facility environment. The complexity of pharmacist care in this chronic care setting involves the analysis of multi drug therapies, frequently in patient with multiple disease states. The absorption, metabolism and elimination of drugs are often altered in these patients. The consultant pharmacist may also be involved in hospital care. The goal is palliative care is to make the patient comfortable with an emphasis on quality in life. Pain management is a major function.

The consultant pharmacist also provides home care services and is involved in many of the same functions described as ambulatory care. Pharmaceutical care in home care has been shown to decrease the requirement for nursing home care. The consultant pharmacist, as a member of the health care team, is involved in development of a clinical path way with intervention guidelines and with a program for patient education. The consultant pharmacist is involved in the measurement and evaluation of outcomes data.

Special Career Opportunities For Pharmacists-

There are some more special career opportunities for pharmacists which includes-

· Nuclear Pharmacy

· Nutrition Support Pharmacy

· Oncology Pharmacy

· Psychiatric Pharmacy

· Forensic Pharmacy

· Poison Control

· Pharmaco Therapy

· Geriatric / Pediatric Pharmacy

· Nutrition Support Pharmacy

There are many golden opportunities for qualified pharma professional in abroad. The pharmaceutical career is considered as one of the highest rewarding career in various countries like U.S.A., Canada France, U.K., Germany, Japan, Singapore etc. There are even more pharmacy specialty areas like -

Nuclear pharmacy-

Nuclear pharmacist compound radioactive pharmaceuticals for diagnostic purposes e.g. compounding radioactive products for diagnosing heart function.

Pharmacotherapy-

These pharmacists are responsible for ensuring the safe, economical and appropriate use of drugs for patients.

Nutrition support pharmacy-

These specialists feed and medicate patients who have special digestion concerns and critical dosing requirements.

Oncological pharmacy-

Chemotherapy and related cancer treatments are extremely complex and vital. Working with cancer patients and their doctors is a fascinating and rewarding career path.

Psychiatric pharmacy-

This broad discipline monitors complex mental conditions that increasingly are treated with medicines.

Pharmacist’s Role In Health Care System

Today, pharmacy is a thriving profession that has made amazing strides in developing drugs and treatments for table diseases. Pharmacist is invaluable part of the pharmaceutical industry. The changing health care environment is creating tremendous impact on the health care system and the customer.

Pharmacists are the medication experts on the health care team, offering information and advice to help patients successfully manage their medication therapy. Pharmacists have the knowledge, skills and expertise to be trusted with a patient’s health. Pharmacists are among the most accessible health care professional.

Pharmacists play a vital role in the health care system through the medicine and the information they provide. While the responsibilities vary among the different areas of pharmacy practice, the bottom line is that pharmacist’s health patient get well. Pharmacist responsibilities include a range of care for patients, from dispensing medication to monitoring patient’s health and progress to maximize their response to the medication. Pharmacist also educate consumes and patients on the use of prescriptions and the over the counter medication and advise physicians, nurses and other health care professionals on drug decisions.

Pharmacists also provide expertise about the composition of the drugs, including their chemical, biological and physical properties and their manufacture and use. They ensure drug purity and strength and make sure that drugs do not interact in harmful way. Pharmacists are drug experts ultimately concerned about their patient’s health and wellness.

As the field advances and pharmacists play a more active role in patient counseling, medication therapy and will increasingly enjoy greater prestige and respect from patients and other health care providers.

The changes in pharmacy are no less profound that the changes in the overall system and the role of the pharmacist as a “druggist”- a drug dispenser-are changing. The pharmacist has an expanding role as a drug therapy manager in a disease state management team and as a drug therapy consultant on the team. Pharmacist must still maintain a reliable drug distribution system following ethical and legal practice, but new paradigms for dispensing involve greater automation and more extensive use of technical personnel. Pharmacists do a lot more than count pills and fill bottle. Their roles increasingly are evolving to deal more with doctors and patients to determine the most appropriate drug regimens.

To be successful in the industry, a great pharmacist must have below mentioned top 10 qualities-

1. Excellent Communication Skills

2. Excellent Interpersonal Skills

3. Strong Leadership Skills

4. Sharp Analytical Skills

5. An excellent memory

6. Conscientiousness

7. Counseling Skills

8. Scientific Aptitude

9. Interest in continuing Education

10. Computer Skills

Conclusion:

The pharmacist plays an integral role in healthcare team as a pharmaco-therapy expert. The Pharmacist is responsible for the accurate and efficient distribution of medications. The pharmacist is also responsible for pharmaco-therapy outcome of the patient. Pharmacy offers the resources, opportunities and flexibility needed to balance a successful healthcare career with a satisfying personal life. Pharmacy offers lifelong learning continued education, gives its practitioners the opportunity to make professional development part of the job.

Pharmacy graduates can expect to get on the fast track in one of the most dynamic industries in health care. Pharmacists enjoy a prestigious job in a field that increasingly relies upon their skills and expertise. Pharmacy graduates are offered many opportunities and learn wide variety of things, but educating patients about their medication therapy is always the most important. I would like to conclude this article with few reasons to become a pharmacist, provided by American Association of College of Pharmacy-

· I like to work directly with patients

· I enjoy a wide variety of career opportunities

· I can benefit from the increased demand for pharmacist

· I want to be an important member of the healthcare team

· I can have job mobility, stability and flexibility

· I am excited to be a part of major innovations in drug therapy

· I want to work with state of the art technology

· I can help defend against bio-terrorism

· I would like to be a highly respected member of my community

References:

1. http://www.medscape.com

2. www.walmartstores.com