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[deleted556323]

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[xiphoid2010]

Hey all-- First post here, but I have been skimming the forums on and off for a few years and thought this was a good place for advice.

I work as a staff pharmacist with some clinical responsibilities--title is hybrid clinical staff pharmacist. My fiance (in medical school) got their board score back, and it was very high- >99th percentile. He has the chance to get a medical residency at a top notch institution. I was looking for advice about ways to boost my resume and make myself more marketable for when I apply for jobs since the pharmacist market has gotten tighter and I will more than likely be in a larger city where lots of people are looking for employment.

I have some things going for me:
1. Current job I work in the ICU, ED, etc
2. Have some clinical responsibilities (more than the other staff pharmacists-- work as a generalist essentially
3. Was a TA in college for pharmD students while I was working on my PharmD
4. Interned at both retail and hospital (3 and 4 years) while in school
5. My bosses like me and would highly recommend me if I had to move.

Downsides:
1. Work in pediatrics (limited marketability)
2. No residency.

Anyhow-- advice for me to proactively make myself the best candidate considering I may be moving from my current job in two years.

My plan now is to get my BCPS over the next year (cannot take it until 2014 since I graduated in 2011).

As an aside-- does anyone out there know if hospitals that medical residents match to help with job placement for spouses?

Thanks for your help!

BCPS isn't critical in my book. 3 years of hybrid clinical/staff experience is as good as PGY-1 to me. The thing is that you need to show that you didn't just spend those 3 years doing something that's not related to the job opening.

You don't need to jump the gun though. Until you have a good idea when your fiance will match, it'll be hard to know where to apply. And since residency relocation is likely to be temporary, you can settle somewhat. What you probably want is to make yourself doable for as many different openings as possible.

You already identified a limitation, pediatrics. I recommend that you talk with your boss since you have a good relationship. See if he can have you rotate through all the decentralized pharmacy frequently, while still maintain a regular staffing portion. Offer to be the acting DOP when he/she is off and learn about the business side of pharmacy Of course all this will be contingent on how much he wants/could work with you without showing favouritism. Basically let your CV show a broad set of skills.

 

[Ackj]

Might not help you in the short term, but when he's done with residency and actually going to practice, I have heard of physicians asking the hospital to hire their spouse as a condition of employment. If he's doing really well, which it sounds like, he may be highly sought after and able to do this.

 

[xiphoid2010]

Yea- I work at a children's hospital exclusivelyso there isn't an option to cover adults in a different satellite. We do have adult patients on the service I cover since we do continuum of care.
That's why I thought BCPS would be useful to show I havent a good knowledge outside my main area of work. Acting director of pharmacy isn't an option-- we aren't exactly a tiny hospital (more than one pharmacy managers and director as well as a couple other admin).

Have you considered signing up PRN else where?

 

[KARM12]

BCPS will help a little bit. It will show you retained knowledge in the adult population. Employers love that stuff.

 

[spacecowgirl]

Have you done things besides just routine stuff? Any MUEs, performance improvement, cost savings, class reviews, formulary work, clinical services expansion, safety initiatives, clinical decision support work, technology enhancement work - anything like that?

 

[PharmDstudent]

Do you work for a hospital network? You might be able to easily transfer within the network. Or you can try to get a pharmacy residency in the same place as your spouse, which should help you get your foot in the door rather quickly... I'm not a fan of moving for a PharmD residency, but hey, you'll probably have to move anyway.

 

[RosemontPharm]

Do you guys think getting the training to enter a pharmaceutical company such as Pfizer or GSK would be a good option? Or even managed care?

Do only the students who can't get into a clinical residency go this path? Is it even marketable at all?

 

[Rockinacoustic]

Do you guys think getting the training to enter a pharmaceutical company such as Pfizer or GSK would be a good option? Or even managed care?

Do only the students who can't get into a clinical residency go this path? Is it even marketable at all?

If you plan to go into those career paths, you probably have a decent amount of clinical experience to begin with, especially working for a pharmaceutical company.

Managed Care is becoming increasingly more competitive and pushing the residency pathway as well, although a lot of the smaller operations may hire people without experience for MTM and PA services.

So no, I don't think either of those careers are fall back options this day and age.

 

[RosemontPharm]

If you plan to go into those career paths, you probably have a decent amount of clinical experience to begin with, especially working for a pharmaceutical company.

Managed Care is becoming increasingly more competitive and pushing the residency pathway as well, although a lot of the smaller operations may hire people without experience for MTM and PA services.

So no, I don't think either of those careers are fall back options this day and age.

Are those careers legitimate? What kind of skills are needed to work there?

Pharmaceutical companies usually hire the dumb pharmacists who can't cut it in retail right?

 

[confettiflyer]

Do you guys think getting the training to enter a pharmaceutical company such as Pfizer or GSK would be a good option? Or even managed care?

Do only the students who can't get into a clinical residency go this path? Is it even marketable at all?

For Pfizer, you'll probably need 5-7+ years of relevant clinical experience before they'll consider adding you to a particular team or department. It was a mix of 5-10+ years of clinical experience (inpatient, ambulatory, managerial) +/- residency. It'll really depend, but big pharma is definitely not a place for new PharmD grads to start out at, especially with budget cuts in play.

 

[RosemontPharm]

For Pfizer, you'll probably need 5-7+ years of relevant clinical experience before they'll consider adding you to a particular team or department. It was a mix of 5-10+ years of clinical experience (inpatient, ambulatory, managerial) +/- residency. It'll really depend, but big pharma is definitely not a place for new PharmD grads to start out at, especially with budget cuts in play.

Oh, always thought it was failed retail pharmacists that wound up in those kind of positions.

How is the pay? Why would a pharmacist want to work there?

 

[PharmEcon]

Oh, always thought it was failed retail pharmacists that wound up in those kind of positions.

How is the pay? Why would a pharmacist want to work there?

Not sure why you would think that. Those are typically some of the hardest pharmacy jobs to get given the supply v. demand- they are very competitive (look at the Rutgers industry fellowship program and similar programs). As for why someone would want to work there- it's all a matter of preference as is with any practice setting. The opportunity for career growth is probably higher in industry if you can make it.

See this thread for more: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=422094