BCPS Certification in retail?

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pharmacy7424

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Is it possible to spin retail dispensing experience for a big chain as relevent experience to let you sit for one of the BCPS exams?

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I just took my BCPS in the fall, pretty sure they will let just about anyone take the exam - nearly all of us can find enough fluff to submit an application. Honestly I cannot remember what the requirements were, but I know BCPS is all about making money, and another person to take the exam means more money in their pocket
 
What's in it for the retail pharmacist to become board certified?
 
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The experience/residency requirements are all on the honor system, so yes, you can take the exam. However, if you don't have the relevant experience you're not likely to pass.
 
The experience/residency requirements are all on the honor system, so yes, you can take the exam. However, if you don't have the relevant experience you're not likely to pass.
So is there any mechanism in place to stop a new pharmacist from taking a prep class and attempting the AmCare exam? I suppose it's really just a matter of meeting the four year cut off. I presume they wouldn't process an application that didn't at least meet those requirements. And I'd hate to be the guy called out for lying on that app.
 
This would be a colossal waste of money, and wouldn't benefit you. Retail + BCPS = wtf?
 
Honestly, just do it if u want to. Please disregard what these other people r saying. It's ultimately up to u. Don't listen to the nay sayers
 
My preceptor on my fourth-year retail rotation was BCPS certified. He didn't do a residency or hospital work first - he worked straight retail. He thought that there was a benefit in having the certification for his work in retail and wasn't planning on trying to switch to hospital down the road. Would I do it if I worked retail? No, but that doesn't mean it can't be done.
 
I also say do it. It's not as hard as some people think. Get some books and study in a group. Just like your pharmacy school days
 
Seriously. Get the experience THEN take the BCPS certification. That's what I'm doing and I didn't have to take two years of half pay to do it.
 
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You don't need experience to pass. I know a few retail pharmacists that took the exam...they said no one fails. It's about 2-3 months worth of studying. For them, it's just a personal goal. OP if you want to, do it.

I feel that some of the nayers on here have a poor case of "holier than thou" attitude with their 2-3 years of basement-dwelling hospital experiences.
 
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I know a few retail pharmacists that took the exam...they said no one fails.

I have several colleagues who have failed. They were under the impression that nobody failed so they didn't take it very seriously. 1 retook it and passed the 2nd time. The others gave up. But everyone who actually studied has passed.
 
I have several colleagues who have failed. They were under the impression that nobody failed so they didn't take it very seriously. 1 retook it and passed the 2nd time. The others gave up. But everyone who actually studied has passed.

no, please take every word literally and not for the hyperbole that it is.
 
no, please take every word literally and not for the hyperbole that it is.

Is it really necessary to be nasty?

The point is this - study the ACCP Updates in Therapeutics material (especially Statistics) and you'll be fine.
 
The funny thing is that everyone and their mothers are now taking this exam because of the saturation.

Soon everyone will be PharmD, PGY1, PGY2, BCPS.
 
Again, I can think of better things to do with $600.

But if spending $600 for some letters after your name gets your socks off, then go for it. Just know what a BCPS can and can't do for a retail lifer:

1) It CAN let you have more alphabet soup after your name
2) It CAN give you a better sense of worth/better self-esteem

1) It CAN'T improve your chances of getting out of retail without a component of non-retail clinical practice (i.e. am care, inpatient, etc...)
2) It CAN'T get you more pay or prestige within the setting of retail
 
I'm laughing at the naysayers in this thread. One has to remember that in many pharmacy classes (and certainly in mine) the smartest people opted out of doing a residency (ala valedictorian working at Rite-Aid). I have no doubt that these people would smoke the BCPS test. I bought the materials myself and they weren't that bad. We all passed pharmacy school right?

Many people that do residencies are too close-minded to see what is possible out there. The BCPS could open doors in the right situation. The dreamers here can envision that situation, and the haters can keep saying that it would never happen. Just remember that the BCPS is just a cherry on top of a well-built Sunday (networking, student rotations, ambition, etc). It is the whole that matters more than just one individual certificastion.
 
To say he won't pass is complete BS - you have no idea what his background is other than he worked retail. How long ago did he graduate? How has he kept up with new guidelines? I took it and passed with flying colors with minimal studying, I spent 90% of my time learning the stats part. In the pharmacotherapy section, studying probably only helped me get a couple of extra questions correct.

That being said, I know several very intelligent Rph's who did not pass it. So a blanket statement is just stupid and irresponsible. Could he pass it? yes Will it likely require more studying? yes.

Will it benefit him in retial? no

Will it give him a SLIGHT advantage when trying to get out of retail? yes
 
I'm laughing at the naysayers in this thread. One has to remember that in many pharmacy classes (and certainly in mine) the smartest people opted out of doing a residency (ala valedictorian working at Rite-Aid). I have no doubt that these people would smoke the BCPS test. I bought the materials myself and they weren't that bad. We all passed pharmacy school right?

Many people that do residencies are too close-minded to see what is possible out there. The BCPS could open doors in the right situation. The dreamers here can envision that situation, and the haters can keep saying that it would never happen. Just remember that the BCPS is just a cherry on top of a well-built Sunday (networking, student rotations, ambition, etc). It is the whole that matters more than just one individual certificastion.

This is the most ******ed thing I've read, you're contradicting yourself. If someone is actually smart, sure, they'll be able to pass BCPS...but they'll be smart enough to not take the damn thing in the first place unless there's a clear benefit.

Put it this way...there's barely a benefit for a PGY1/2 trained/highly experienced clinical unicorns to take/pass this test. Seriously, it's like a f*cking "my kid is in the honor roll" bumper sticker.
 
This is the most ******ed thing I've read, .


Please do not ever use the R -word - it is one of the most overused, disrespectful words that has gained too much acceptance in today's society. It is extremely hateful to those of us that have special needs children in our family.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-...appens-when-you-use-the-r-word_b_4896444.html

Yesterday was "end the use of the r-word day" and I encourage all of you to read this link by John McGinley, hopefully it will help you see things in a different light
 
Put it this way...there's barely a benefit for a PGY1/2 trained/highly experienced clinical unicorns to take/pass this test. Seriously, it's like a f*cking "my kid is in the honor roll" bumper sticker.

Seriously! But my boss wants that bumper sticker so the more the merrier in our department. My employer will pay for the ACCP study material and test but for the yearly maintenance fee ($100 for the 1st 6 years and $400 for the 7th) and the PSAP modules you are on your own.

But why BCPS if you are retail - wouldn't Ambulatory make more sense?
 
Again, OP didn't ask for anyone's opinions on whether he should or should not do it. All he asked was it possible considering his current experiences. People do what they want to do; that should be enough.
 
Please do not ever use the R -word - it is one of the most overused, disrespectful words that has gained too much acceptance in today's society. It is extremely hateful to those of us that have special needs children in our family.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-...appens-when-you-use-the-r-word_b_4896444.html

Yesterday was "end the use of the r-word day" and I encourage all of you to read this link by John McGinley, hopefully it will help you see things in a different light
No internet message board user will comply with your request. (As much as I agree with you)
 
No internet message board user will comply with your request. (As much as I agree with you)

If 1 person reads this and it changes an attitude, it is worth it. I fight the good fight - I LOVE my nephews more than anything - and have slowly converted some people - most people mean no disrespect, but simply are uneducated on the topic. We would never allow the use of derogative racial or homosexual slurs here, so why this one?
 
I feel that some of the nayers on here have a poor case of "holier than thou" attitude with their 2-3 years of basement-dwelling hospital experiences.

This made me laugh, thanks!

After ten years of retail, I am one month into my non-retail job. I have been introduced to the online "globalrph" calculator, and am now just as useful as anyone else around me. More efficient, actually, because I cannot sit at a desk all day.

The head of the IV department came over to thank me last week, because I saved her a billing headache. All I did was question why an IV I was checking was labeled for brand name "Zosyn" (and not the generic name "piperacillin/tazowhatever" for my suffering retail friends.) This was a reflex question I instinctively had, stemming from years of customer abuse. Common sense to retail people, but much appreciated foresight in a land where someone else does the billing.

It is very possible for a BS to get out of retail. Connections/friends are all that matter. There is no super secret intelligence had by a hospital pharmacist that one cannot acquire on the job in a month.
 
This made me laugh, thanks!

After ten years of retail, I am one month into my non-retail job. I have been introduced to the online "globalrph" calculator, and am now just as useful as anyone else around me. More efficient, actually, because I cannot sit at a desk all day.

The head of the IV department came over to thank me last week, because I saved her a billing headache. All I did was question why an IV I was checking was labeled for brand name "Zosyn" (and not the generic name "piperacillin/tazowhatever" for my suffering retail friends.) This was a reflex question I instinctively had, stemming from years of customer abuse. Common sense to retail people, but much appreciated foresight in a land where someone else does the billing.

It is very possible for a BS to get out of retail. Connections/friends are all that matter. There is no super secret intelligence had by a hospital pharmacist that one cannot acquire on the job in a month.

I agree with you to a point (a retail pharmacist of one year turned hospital pharmacist of 10) but there is LOT to be learned on the job. Most can be learned, but there is a lot more of "using your brain". I could go down the road and ask you a few - not to make myself be holier than thou, but to highlight my point.

1, Why can 3 amps of bicarb be mixed in D5W but not NS?
2. During RSI, in what cases would you suggest vecuronium over succs? If you do, what do you have to do as far as changing the sedative?
3. If you give TPA in a stroke when do you start heparin? If given for PE, when do you start heparin?
4. Pt is on a heparin drip, you have an elevated PTT but a anti Xa level that is below your target range. What do you do?


These are all questions I have had just in the past week. Not saying a hospital Rph is smarter, but we utilize a different skill set. Can most Rph's be trained? yes, is a month enough? no. We have a three month training process, just to get through your probation, but learning continues.

Now, I will also agree that if you take a lot of hospital Rph's and put them in retail, they would also crack under a different type of pressure.
 
1, Why can 3 amps of bicarb be mixed in D5W but not NS?
2. During RSI, in what cases would you suggest vecuronium over succs? If you do, what do you have to do as far as changing the sedative?
3. If you give TPA in a stroke when do you start heparin? If given for PE, when do you start heparin?
4. Pt is on a heparin drip, you have an elevated PTT but a anti Xa level that is below your target range. What do you do?


These are all questions I have had just in the past week.


I cannot answer any of your questions on the fly!

However, from what I have seen, neither can most of the pharmacists I work with. Furthermore, I would feel more confident about my answer in about ten minutes than I would theirs.

You are correct in that there is a special place for pharmacists who are smart enough to know the true answers to the above questions in real time. The problem I am seeing is that they are too few in number, and enough people have asked over time and gotten no usable answers that most do not even bother to ask the pharmacy anymore.

(I do hope you are being paid what you are worth, which in a fair world would be a lot more than me.)
 
I cannot answer any of your questions on the fly!

However, from what I have seen, neither can most of the pharmacists I work with. Furthermore, I would feel more confident about my answer in about ten minutes than I would theirs.

You are correct in that there is a special place for pharmacists who are smart enough to know the true answers to the above questions in real time. The problem I am seeing is that they are too few in number, and enough people have asked over time and gotten no usable answers that most do not even bother to ask the pharmacy anymore.

(I do hope you are being paid what you are worth, which in a fair world would be a lot more than me.)

I appreciate your honesty - these are things I have specifically taught members of my team. I have no idea what type of hospital setting you work in (do you work in large university, medium community, small critical access?). But I agree, I see some of the people you are talking about, I work with a couple, but they are pretty much confined to checking stock and checking IV's - something that anybody with a pharmacy degree should be able to do with a week training. Heck, I did that as an intern. Doesn't take a lot of clinical knowledge.

I work in am emergency department, so time is of the essence. Although I do believe most of the pharmacist I work with can be trained and will learn these answers over time (and the many others that we all get). This only comes with experience. Experience that you cannot get in just one month - which was my point. Most people that have gotten a degree in pharmacy are very smart people (some may argue this, and there are always exceptions to the rule) but I still stand that if you want to get out of retail, unfortunately you have to do something to set yourselves apart - we got nearly 90 applicants for 1 position at my hospital. If you only have retail experience, you don't make it past HR, it is just the facts of the matter.

and FWIW - in my mind I am not paid what I am worth! lol But then again, none of us are!
 
I agree with you to a point (a retail pharmacist of one year turned hospital pharmacist of 10) but there is LOT to be learned on the job. Most can be learned, but there is a lot more of "using your brain". I could go down the road and ask you a few - not to make myself be holier than thou, but to highlight my point.

1, Why can 3 amps of bicarb be mixed in D5W but not NS?
2. During RSI, in what cases would you suggest vecuronium over succs? If you do, what do you have to do as far as changing the sedative?
3. If you give TPA in a stroke when do you start heparin? If given for PE, when do you start heparin?
4. Pt is on a heparin drip, you have an elevated PTT but a anti Xa level that is below your target range. What do you do?


These are all questions I have had just in the past week. Not saying a hospital Rph is smarter, but we utilize a different skill set. Can most Rph's be trained? yes, is a month enough? no. We have a three month training process, just to get through your probation, but learning continues.

Now, I will also agree that if you take a lot of hospital Rph's and put them in retail, they would also crack under a different type of pressure.

These are not skill sets....these are just guidelines and facts that you can look up anywhere. The skill is to know where to look for these answers and they can be taught on the job. I've worked in hospitals before and the "clinical" pharmacists have had to almost always look things up to be sure. The medical team can also do this; they just don't have time or don't want to. It's not a skill. The facts are there, you just have to look them up. You can teach a monkey to follow guidelines.
 
These are not skill sets....these are just guidelines and facts that you can look up anywhere. The skill is to know where to look for these answers and they can be taught on the job. I've worked in hospitals before and the "clinical" pharmacists have had to almost always look things up to be sure. The medical team can also do this; they just don't have time or don't want to. It's not a skill. The facts are there, you just have to look them up. You can teach a monkey to follow guidelines.
I guess if that is the case, all of are monkey's - because that is 99% of our job. What sets one pharmacist apart from another then in your world?
 
These are not skill sets....these are just guidelines and facts that you can look up anywhere. The skill is to know where to look for these answers and they can be taught on the job. I've worked in hospitals before and the "clinical" pharmacists have had to almost always look things up to be sure. The medical team can also do this; they just don't have time or don't want to. It's not a skill. The facts are there, you just have to look them up. You can teach a monkey to follow guidelines.

not to hijack the thread but let me give you this scenario I had awhile back.

Man comes into ED - is in vfib arrest - EMS tosses me a bag of meds. I quickly scan them, see a bottle of dofetilide. I ask you - What would you suggest? We are about 5 minutes into CPR, given EPI, amio 300mg, and about to push another epi. I suggest Magnesium 1 gram IVP, MD looks at me and says he is not in torsades, I say, he is on dofetilide, it is a possibility, Did you see his rhythm right before he went into Vifb? He says OK, can't hurt, we push it, get ROSC, pt is discharged 3 days later.

Is that following guidelines? Is that something a monkey could do? Is that something the MD and RN's are gonna suggest?

Just sayin - and FWIW - we don't have a differentiation between "clinical pharmacists" and pharmacists. We are all on a relatively even playing field, unlike some of our neighboring institutions.
 
I guess if that is the case, all of are monkey's - because that is 99% of our job. What sets one pharmacist apart from another then in your world?

Right, so why does society have a need for pharmacists? It's all about liability.

What's a skill set? Finding the answers to these questions under time constraint. Working under time constraints is always a skill.

What sets one pharmacist apart from another is how fast, efficient, and accurate they are with their answers/medical info. As for dispensing? No, we are just there for liability.
 
Right, so why does society have a need for pharmacists? It's all about liability.

What's a skill set? Finding the answers to these questions under time constraint. Working under time constraints is always a skill.

What sets one pharmacist apart from another is how fast, efficient, and accurate they are with their answers/medical info. As for dispensing? No, we are just there for liability.

often we are not asked the question, we are interpreting orders and need to know if a MD is following guidelines. We get orders for PNA - is this patient a MRSA risk? Pseudomonas risk? HCAP vs CAP? We can look up the answers if we know the question, knowing what the question is without being asked is a skill set that many people don't have.
 
not to hijack the thread but let me give you this scenario I had awhile back.

Man comes into ED - is in vfib arrest - EMS tosses me a bag of meds. I quickly scan them, see a bottle of dofetilide. I ask you - What would you suggest? We are about 5 minutes into CPR, given EPI, amio 300mg, and about to push another epi. I suggest Magnesium 1 gram IVP, MD looks at me and says he is not in torsades, I say, he is on dofetilide, it is a possibility, Did you see his rhythm right before he went into Vifb? He says OK, can't hurt, we push it, get ROSC, pt is discharged 3 days later.

Is that following guidelines? Is that something a monkey could do? Is that something the MD and RN's are gonna suggest?

Just sayin - and FWIW - we don't have a differentiation between "clinical pharmacists" and pharmacists. We are all on a relatively even playing field, unlike some of our neighboring institutions.

Right, and that is my point. If all we had to do was follow guidelines, there would be no need for doctors. They were trained to catch these type of things and they overlooked it. You were there to catch it so pat yourself on the back. However, the example you cited is not exclusive to pharmacist only. MDs, NPs, and PAs catch our mistakes too. This is the result of a multidisciplinary team and each cross-checking the other. It does not make you special, and in all honesty, had you not pointed out the mistake, there was no liability to you. It's like your tech catching you on a mistake, and then goes on the pharmacy technician forums and brags about it.
 
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I agree with you to a point (a retail pharmacist of one year turned hospital pharmacist of 10) but there is LOT to be learned on the job. Most can be learned, but there is a lot more of "using your brain". I could go down the road and ask you a few - not to make myself be holier than thou, but to highlight my point.

1, Why can 3 amps of bicarb be mixed in D5W but not NS?
2. During RSI, in what cases would you suggest vecuronium over succs? If you do, what do you have to do as far as changing the sedative?
3. If you give TPA in a stroke when do you start heparin? If given for PE, when do you start heparin?
4. Pt is on a heparin drip, you have an elevated PTT but a anti Xa level that is below your target range. What do you do?


These are all questions I have had just in the past week. Not saying a hospital Rph is smarter, but we utilize a different skill set. Can most Rph's be trained? yes, is a month enough? no. We have a three month training process, just to get through your probation, but learning continues.

Now, I will also agree that if you take a lot of hospital Rph's and put them in retail, they would also crack under a different type of pressure.
Hospital ER clinical positions are far out of the focus of this thread.
 
often we are not asked the question, we are interpreting orders and need to know if a MD is following guidelines. We get orders for PNA - is this patient a MRSA risk? Pseudomonas risk? HCAP vs CAP? We can look up the answers if we know the question, knowing what the question is without being asked is a skill set that many people don't have.

I agree, but if you had that kind of thought process, you should have become a doctor and be active in a clinical role to make these changes and not just suggestions.

Just my 2 cents, please everyone don't be offended. You can step off your clinical pedestals and allow OP to get his coveted BCPS now because it was exclusively your bumper sticker since never.
 
I agree, but if you had that kind of thought process, you should have become a doctor and be active in a clinical role to make these changes and not just suggestions.
I almost did, but when my friends on their residency were putting in 80 hours a week, busting their a$$ and making 35k a year - I figured I would go a different route - less hours, still good money, but I put in my 40 hours and then mind is turned off to the world of pharamcy. but gonna close this discussion as the thread has gone completely off course.
 
I almost did, but when my friends on their residency were putting in 80 hours a week, busting their a$$ and making 35k a year - I figured I would go a different route - less hours, still good money, but I put in my 40 hours and then mind is turned off to the world of pharamcy. but gonna close this discussion as the thread has gone completely off course.

True, and I'm sorry if I came across hostile. I find it appalling that there are people that would discourage OP from trying for BCPS just because they felt entitled to that exclusively.
 
I agree, but if you had that kind of thought process, you should have become a doctor and be active in a clinical role to make these changes and not just suggestions.

Just my 2 cents, please everyone don't be offended. You can step off your clinical pedestals and allow OP to get his coveted BCPS now because it was exclusively your bumper sticker since never.

I am far from on a pedestal - I think the BCPS designation is a title that was developed to keep academics employed. I simply started this discussion by replying to a statement that I interpreted as saying a pharmacist in one month can learn all he needs to know.
 
True, and I'm sorry if I came across hostile. I find it appalling that there are people that would discourage OP from trying for BCPS just because they felt entitled to that exclusively.
I love discussions and debates (provided all are civil - as you were) - believe me, I know those that have the high and mighty feeling.

If the OP wants to go BCPS - go for it. Is it beneficial in his situation? maybe.
 
Although I do believe most of the pharmacist I work with can be trained and will learn these answers over time...

This reads to me like you are the actual Brain in those operations, and the other pharmacists wait around for you to make the big decisions. Which is what I see now...God forbid the one person who I would consider a "clinician" (what I am imagining your role is) is not on the schedule. I end up leading the way via google and/or package inserts because everyone else is paralyzed by fear and afraid to admit they have no freaking idea what the answer is. It appears my greatest asset is the ability to freely admit I have no idea what bugs Teflaro will kill.

Which oddly enough is what made me good at retail. "Ma'am, I have no idea what the dose the doctor meant to write here on days 2-4 of your kid's zithromax suspension, but since I can make out one teaspoon for day 1, you take this home with you tonight and we'll work that part out tomorrow." (That situation got me a customer service high five when no one else would fill the rx.)

I've been overpaid since about 2004, when sign on bonus bonanza hit full swing. I would like to see my techs get more money now.
 
Man comes into ED - is in vfib arrest - EMS tosses me a bag of meds. I quickly scan them, see a bottle of dofetilide. I ask you - What would you suggest? We are about 5 minutes into CPR, given EPI, amio 300mg, and about to push another epi. I suggest Magnesium 1 gram IVP, MD looks at me and says he is not in torsades, I say, he is on dofetilide, it is a possibility, Did you see his rhythm right before he went into Vifb? He says OK, can't hurt, we push it, get ROSC, pt is discharged 3 days later.

In a past life I slept with an ER PA who probably couldn't even read the above.
 
This reads to me like you are the actual Brain in those operations, and the other pharmacists wait around for you to make the big decisions. Which is what I see now...God forbid the one person who I would consider a "clinician" (what I am imagining your role is) is not on the schedule. I end up leading the way via google and/or package inserts because everyone else is paralyzed by fear and afraid to admit they have no freaking idea what the answer is. It appears my greatest asset is the ability to freely admit I have no idea what bugs Teflaro will kill.

Which oddly enough is what made me good at retail. "Ma'am, I have no idea what the dose the doctor meant to write here on days 2-4 of your kid's zithromax suspension, but since I can make out one teaspoon for day 1, you take this home with you tonight and we'll work that part out tomorrow." (That situation got me a customer service high five when no one else would fill the rx.)

I've been overpaid since about 2004, when sign on bonus bonanza hit full swing. I would like to see my techs get more money now.


I will never claim to be the "brain" I am a team leader, yes, but we all work together, we all take the lead in certain topics/disease states and teach each other. That is what makes us work great as a team. Your situations sounds like some that I have heard of where you have layers in your hospital - you have the "clinical RPh's" and the "working bees" That doesn't fly here, everyone has to know how to do nearly everything in a pinch,
 
In a past life I slept with an ER PA who probably couldn't even read the above.

that made me actually laugh out loud - I know those PA's - I was married to a pharmacist that couldn't read what I probably said -
 
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