Career Advice Needed

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PA_dud3

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Hey guys,

Just got done with my first full day at three letter as a tech (in my full capacity anyway). Im not gonna lie I feel plain lousy. I feel like every time I turned around I had something else staring me in the face. The calls, the production, new scripts, drop off, drive through. I was doing it all, really. Had 2 techs, 1 intern, and 1 rph at the start of the day, then I was the only tech with 1 intern and 1 rph for the majority of the day. Maybe if I was a bit better and had a bit more experience I would enjoy it more. If RPH is like this, I dont know. Everything was just moving so fast and I felt like I was drowning in it all.

I feel like working at the independent was much better, maybe Id like working in a hospital or LTC as well. The thing is I feel like Id never be able to find a job outside of chain retail.

Im seriously considering asking my advisor about getting my bachelors and going Pre-PA or Pre-Med if I can, as I enjoyed seeing patients with my nephrologist friend. I might not even be able to do that without adding extra time beyond the bachelors. Then Id have to find some sort of clinical job to get patient care hours. And get shadowing hours. I feel like Ive wasted the past 2 years just for me to end up changing my mind like some idiot.

Do you guys have any advice? Does working at the chains get any better? I probably sound like a bit of a wimp, but I just felt awful. I felt like I wasnt doing anything right.

If anyone has any advice as to what route I should take, or if I should continue down the path Im headed, I would really appreciate it.

Sorry for bothering you all with this, just don't know what else to do

Dd3

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There are a lot of paths out there and you arent an idiot in the slightest for questioning things. It was very smart to get experience while still in undergrad and the experience will translate well to other settings. I would try and speak with people in various careers and such and see what their jobs and job satisfaction are like. Pharmacy is limiting, unfortunately. Good luck. For what it's worth, most of my graduating class had bachelor degrees, so it's not any more time than most of us.
 
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It sounds like you’ve already answered your own question. Figure out what you need to do to apply to med school and start working on it.
 
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I will say that as a student you're learning so it's going to be hard, but to be honest what you're describing sounds very standard for retail pharmacy. It can be fast paced and there's always something that needs to be done that probably given the volume of what you need to fill you won't have time for.

You will learn but I'm a big proponent of getting your Bachelor's first if you can regardless of the field so you have something to fall back on. In terms of next steps I agree with the shadowing aspect and REALLY determining if pharmacy is what you want to do. I don't feel like you've wasted anything because it's all about getting a better picture about your future. Investing money into something and getting no payoff would be a waste in my mind, but you're doing your due diligence by asking and thinking about the environment you're placing yourself in.

I knew someone who after the first week of pharmacy school decided this is not what she wanted and went straight home. She applied to med school the next year and got in. It's all about how you look at things.
 
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Glad you were able to give three letter a try. It really does take a special personality to be able to handle chain retail, let alone enjoy it. The system which most chain retail pharmacies were designed will inevitably make you feel lousy no matter how hard you work as it is intended to maximize profits at the expense of their workers and patients. Unfortunately, many are stuck due to the lack of jobs outside chain retail.
 
Hey guys,

Just got done with my first full day at three letter as a tech (in my full capacity anyway). Im not gonna lie I feel plain lousy. I feel like every time I turned around I had something else staring me in the face. The calls, the production, new scripts, drop off, drive through. I was doing it all, really. Had 2 techs, 1 intern, and 1 rph at the start of the day, then I was the only tech with 1 intern and 1 rph for the majority of the day. Maybe if I was a bit better and had a bit more experience I would enjoy it more. If RPH is like this, I dont know. Everything was just moving so fast and I felt like I was drowning in it all.

I feel like working at the independent was much better, maybe Id like working in a hospital or LTC as well. The thing is I feel like Id never be able to find a job outside of chain retail.

Im seriously considering asking my advisor about getting my bachelors and going Pre-PA or Pre-Med if I can, as I enjoyed seeing patients with my nephrologist friend. I might not even be able to do that without adding extra time beyond the bachelors. Then Id have to find some sort of clinical job to get patient care hours. And get shadowing hours. I feel like Ive wasted the past 2 years just for me to end up changing my mind like some idiot.
Do you guys have any advice? Does working at the chains get any better? I probably sound like a bit of a wimp, but I just felt awful. I felt like I wasnt doing anything right.
If anyone has any advice as to what route I should take, or if I should continue down the path Im headed, I would really appreciate it.
Sorry for bothering you all with this, just don't know what else to do
Dd3
Honestly, I do know people that like it.
I certainly wouldn't l say it "gets better."

Some people just get complacent.
Target was about the most I could stomach.

Even being PIC of an indy has its problems. It all depends on the individual pharmacy
 
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Hey guys,

Just got done with my first full day at three letter as a tech (in my full capacity anyway). Im not gonna lie I feel plain lousy. I feel like every time I turned around I had something else staring me in the face. The calls, the production, new scripts, drop off, drive through. I was doing it all, really. Had 2 techs, 1 intern, and 1 rph at the start of the day, then I was the only tech with 1 intern and 1 rph for the majority of the day. Maybe if I was a bit better and had a bit more experience I would enjoy it more. If RPH is like this, I dont know. Everything was just moving so fast and I felt like I was drowning in it all.

I feel like working at the independent was much better, maybe Id like working in a hospital or LTC as well. The thing is I feel like Id never be able to find a job outside of chain retail.

Im seriously considering asking my advisor about getting my bachelors and going Pre-PA or Pre-Med if I can, as I enjoyed seeing patients with my nephrologist friend. I might not even be able to do that without adding extra time beyond the bachelors. Then Id have to find some sort of clinical job to get patient care hours. And get shadowing hours. I feel like Ive wasted the past 2 years just for me to end up changing my mind like some idiot.

Do you guys have any advice? Does working at the chains get any better? I probably sound like a bit of a wimp, but I just felt awful. I felt like I wasnt doing anything right.

If anyone has any advice as to what route I should take, or if I should continue down the path Im headed, I would really appreciate it.

Sorry for bothering you all with this, just don't know what else to do

Dd3

Don't go PA or med just because you hate pharmacy. They have their own problems as well. The same big corporatization of pharmacy is happening with hospitals and medicine in general. It's the same war...just different battle. If you go medicine...make sure it's because you want it.
 
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Hey guys,

Just got done with my first full day at three letter as a tech (in my full capacity anyway). Im not gonna lie I feel plain lousy. I feel like every time I turned around I had something else staring me in the face. The calls, the production, new scripts, drop off, drive through. I was doing it all, really. Had 2 techs, 1 intern, and 1 rph at the start of the day, then I was the only tech with 1 intern and 1 rph for the majority of the day. Maybe if I was a bit better and had a bit more experience I would enjoy it more. If RPH is like this, I dont know. Everything was just moving so fast and I felt like I was drowning in it all.

I feel like working at the independent was much better, maybe Id like working in a hospital or LTC as well. The thing is I feel like Id never be able to find a job outside of chain retail.

Im seriously considering asking my advisor about getting my bachelors and going Pre-PA or Pre-Med if I can, as I enjoyed seeing patients with my nephrologist friend. I might not even be able to do that without adding extra time beyond the bachelors. Then Id have to find some sort of clinical job to get patient care hours. And get shadowing hours. I feel like Ive wasted the past 2 years just for me to end up changing my mind like some idiot.

Do you guys have any advice? Does working at the chains get any better? I probably sound like a bit of a wimp, but I just felt awful. I felt like I wasnt doing anything right.

If anyone has any advice as to what route I should take, or if I should continue down the path Im headed, I would really appreciate it.

Sorry for bothering you all with this, just don't know what else to do

Dd3

So - I completely understand... I was there too. I remember my first 6 months working in retail pharmacy I was absolutely mortified. I remember the dreams I would have after my shifts, I would tirelessly fill rx in my dreams and for some reason no matter what I did in my dreams there was always something preventing me from taking a prescription all the way from data entry to dispensing. And - in all honesty there are still some days of my current work that I just get sandbagged and I remember that feeling. But, these days it is maybe 1 shift out of 20 eleven hour shifts.

All I can say is this - Retail pharmacy is seriously a skill that you will only get better at with time. The truth is you will not be as fast as everyone else at first. But as you continue to process prescriptions you will slowly but surely get faster and better. The trick is immersion in everything that retail pharmacy has to offer. You will slowly begin to discover that there are about 10 different types of phone calls that come in all with practically the same solution, about 20 different insurance snags which inevitably usually end up resulting in a call to insurance, and finally there is an art to dealing with the public.

I have a secret to dealing with the public. My secret to dealing with the public is to offer solutions to the issues that arise when dispensing. You will run into so many problems as you process rx, but if you train your mind to approach the problem with a path to a solution you will find that the public grow to love you. If you are pressed for time and are not able to deal with someones problem right away - ask them kindly for their name and phone number and let them know you are going to work on the problem and call them back to let them know what their options are.

The people that you are working with are not judging you - those of us who have earned our bones in retail pharmacy know that its a process that takes time. I will say that it takes about 4 years of full time work as a technician to create a veteran retail pharmacy professional.

I am quite satisfied with my work as a pharmacy manager. I have also received a recent promotion as a center of excellence store in order to support other stores that are coming up. In my situation - it took some serious blood sweat and tears to get there. But once you get there, I promise you that the waters are quite warm. I could not be happier with my working conditions, my salary, and my stability.

Do not make a decision about pharmacy based on entry level work. What you should really decide is: Are you willing to go through the hell that is the start in order to reach the end of the rainbow. And I do promise you (regardless of the crap the rejects will come here and say) there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, I know there is because I dig into it every 2 weeks.
 
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I've always thought if all prepharm students were required to work retail as a tech for a year before applying that half of them would realize they don't want to be pharmacists.
 
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Hahaha, you sound like me. All of your reasons as well as all of the abuse I got from customers, the whole job market saturation thing, and the amount of debt I would be in after pharmacy school was enough for me to quit my job as a pharmacy tech only after a month and pursue a career as software developer. It would only take me 2 years to get a degree (starting this year) which costs only $6000 since Florida schools are real cheap. Hope you find an answer soon.
 
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It will get better with experience, and then it will get worse again once you understand what is really going on. The chains manufacture chaos in the name of achieving 100% efficiency. If you manage to calm the chaos, they will change the game (tech hours, process "improvements") until chaos ensues again. Some people thrive in that environment, but for others its the perfect form of torment.
 
Hahaha, you sound like me. All of your reasons as well as all of the abuse I got from customers, the whole job market saturation thing, and the amount of debt I would be in after pharmacy school was enough for me to quit my job as a pharmacy tech only after a month and pursue a career as software developer. It would only take me 2 years to get a degree (starting this year) which costs only $6000 since Florida schools are real cheap. Hope you find an answer soon.
I did the same. Worked as a tech. Didn't like it and ended up becoming a software developer. Ironically, I ended up getting a job at CVS and they probably pay me more than their pharmacists.
 
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Do not give up at first sign of uncertainty, you have not earned that right yet. I remember my first day at retail, my feet hurt, I was belittled by customers and yelled by pharmacist. After two weeks, I was actually helping older tech troubleshooting.
After I became a pharmacist, my transition from retail to hospital was so painful in the first three months I cursed at myself daily. After 6 months, I was top three speediest pharmacist at verification.

Each trade that we pursue takes hard work and dedication to master. I remember few other threads started by you regarding medical career pathway, as well as yours interview with CVS and doing online training modules.

Perhaps the question here is not about career choices, but your expectations. Even if you have pursued MD or PA, wouldn’t you have lousy days there too?

It is very smart to question and strategize when you run into hurdles. In this case, some generational traits are shown here.

Pharmacy as a profession is struggling to define itself, furthermore, retail pharmacy can be hell and a lot people are stocked in the purgatory. However, there are upsides that many at this forum have not experienced. Some of us have unicorn jobs. If you just go with the flow at pharmacy school, you likely will be a retail pharmacist. OTOH, if you apply yourself, make smart decisions you could be successful anywhere, any professions; pharmacy field included.


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I did the same. Worked as a tech. Didn't like it and ended up becoming a software developer. Ironically, I ended up getting a job at CVS and they probably pay me more than their pharmacists.

Do you work on Rxconnect? Cause it's crap!
 
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The retail epiphany moment hits everyone at some point... at least it came to you quickly.

Hospital and LTAC are 1000x more enjoyable (for me) vs. retail... I highly suggest you apply to each and everyone around you and take whatever shift you can. Connect on LinkedIn to the managers around your area and shoot them a message too.

I took 3 PT/PRN intern jobs (retail/ltac/hospital) during school to figure out what I liked and disliked, and it led to a couple job offers outside of the retail world. That's all it takes to get your foot in the door and if you're lucky they'll have a spot open when you graduate pharmd school. If not, you still got great work experience to put on your CV and that goes a long way. I'd hire any ~B grade student with hospital/ltac experience over a straight A student with tons of leadership and CV padding that has zero work experience.
 
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Hey guys,

Just got done with my first full day at three letter as a tech (in my full capacity anyway). Im not gonna lie I feel plain lousy. I feel like every time I turned around I had something else staring me in the face. The calls, the production, new scripts, drop off, drive through. I was doing it all, really. Had 2 techs, 1 intern, and 1 rph at the start of the day, then I was the only tech with 1 intern and 1 rph for the majority of the day. Maybe if I was a bit better and had a bit more experience I would enjoy it more. If RPH is like this, I dont know. Everything was just moving so fast and I felt like I was drowning in it all.

I feel like working at the independent was much better, maybe Id like working in a hospital or LTC as well. The thing is I feel like Id never be able to find a job outside of chain retail.

Im seriously considering asking my advisor about getting my bachelors and going Pre-PA or Pre-Med if I can, as I enjoyed seeing patients with my nephrologist friend. I might not even be able to do that without adding extra time beyond the bachelors. Then Id have to find some sort of clinical job to get patient care hours. And get shadowing hours. I feel like Ive wasted the past 2 years just for me to end up changing my mind like some idiot.

Do you guys have any advice? Does working at the chains get any better? I probably sound like a bit of a wimp, but I just felt awful. I felt like I wasnt doing anything right.

If anyone has any advice as to what route I should take, or if I should continue down the path Im headed, I would really appreciate it.

Sorry for bothering you all with this, just don't know what else to do

Dd3
It's never to late to be who you might have been. Do today what others won't so tomorrow you can do what others can't. Get out of pharmacy now.
 
I've always thought if all prepharm students were required to work retail as a tech for a year before applying that half of them would realize they don't want to be pharmacists.
Deans would hate this
 
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I kind of regret not considering other healthcare professions more seriously before committing to pharmacy school. I would definitely recommend shadowing / volunteering / working with different professions and get as much information as you need to feel you can make a good decision about your future. Avoid making compromises or decisions based on fear or what seems to be the easiest path. Get some outside opinions as well (career counselor, trusted mentors, even a clinical therapist). We are terrible at objectively judging our own perceptions, so sometimes having someone reflect back to us simple truths can be really helpful.
 
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Do you work on Rxconnect? Cause it's crap!
LOL. No but you can say that about most of the software created by cvs. My group is actually working on rewriting some of the legacy code and making it better.
 
I've always thought if all prepharm students were required to work retail as a tech for a year before applying that half of them would realize they don't want to be pharmacists.
That would greatly deal with the saturation problem because when many candidates have to deal with angry patients and busy stores, they might reconsider whether it's worth it. But pharmacy school is a business and that would lower admissions so I don't see it likely.
 
The only way to gain experience is by doing. You’ll always feel overwhelmed trying something new but you’ll need to also understand that even though you may adjust to your environment, the environment setting may / may not change for you (amount of help, amount of time, amount of patients at window, amount of call-in refills).

I will only say what has helped me in the past that many pre-pharms may not like to hear: Get a bachelors as your “contingency” and shadow other professions. As people we always wanna feel fulfilled. When I started at 18 I wanted to continue welding and be a game warden due to my enjoyment of hunting and fishing. I soon realized welders are a dime-a-dozen, and game wardens are underpaid security officers trying to meet a quota.

Find a career that allots you the finance and time to enjoy your hobbies. Interacting with patients may be one of those callings you love. Complete and excell in the hardest pre-requisites that cover everything (PA, Pharmacy, Med School, Physical Therapist, Dentistry, etc) so at least you have options.

Final note: Don’t call yourself an idiot for experimenting in different careers. That’s what your supposed to do.
 
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FWIW, I am a newly graduated PA and my school accepted all of my pharm tech hours as patient care hours. This isn’t necessarily the case everywhere obviously. Also you mentioned you went and saw patients with your nephro friend? You can count that as shadowing. Ask him to write a letter for you and you’ve got that covered as well.

Good luck to you. My pharm experience actually ended up being an insanely practical advantage. Knowing all of the drug names and their generics + a loose idea of what they treat is HUUUGE. My classmates were drowning in pharm trying to learn all of these crazy words they’ve never heard of on top of MOAs. I was able to ace pharm easily with minimal effort and focus my efforts elsewhere.
 
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I agree with JustFillIt, it just takes time and experience until you get comfortable. But in the end retail is retail - doesn't matter if it's pharmacy, Starbucks, or being a cashier at Walmart. Some people are just not cut out for it, so you really have to ask yourself if this is what you want to do for the rest of your life. Personally I feel retail gets boring. It's challenging as in that there's operational issues and customer service issues you have to deal with, but you're not really using your clinical knowledge as a pharmacist. If you're a more scientific type of person, if you love medicine, then go the residency/clinical route. Or heck just go MD or PA and actually be able to prescribe and make clinical decisions on your own. Although the path to becoming an MD is pretty brutal, so make sure you're willing to sacrifice work-life balance for several years.
 
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I do promise you (regardless of the crap the rejects will come here and say) there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, I know there is because I dig into it every 2 weeks.

Good for you and your success. However, do you think the same path is possible for someone who will graduate in 4+ years, seeing as how new Rph starting pay was slashed to low $50s/hr and no raises have been given in a couple years? It can only get worse.
 
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Wage cuts seem to be a trend in retail setting but really not happening in the hospital setting. We still get 2% to 3% wage increase per year. Our nursing staff have received market adjustment twice last year, but we also move the pay scale in our 50 hospital IDN by 10%.
Wage for some pharmacists in acute care setting have already surpassed retail because of the skill sets requirement.

In a way, this is a selection process to separate retail and clinical pharmacists. People who don’t network, attend classes, get good GPA, demonstrate clinical interests, nor go above and beyond will be compensated less and work harder in their professional lives later. Handle insurance claims and make angry customers happy are hard but are not valuable skills like clinical decisions. The market determines your value, period. Retail Rph had a great run, but corporations have upper hand now.

In all, there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. You just have to have a good plan with smart/hard work to get it. Our top paid manager gets 175K. Directors get about 180 plus 10 to 15% bonus on top of their pay.


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So - I completely understand... I was there too. I remember my first 6 months working in retail pharmacy I was absolutely mortified. I remember the dreams I would have after my shifts, I would tirelessly fill rx in my dreams and for some reason no matter what I did in my dreams there was always something preventing me from taking a prescription all the way from data entry to dispensing. And - in all honesty there are still some days of my current work that I just get sandbagged and I remember that feeling. But, these days it is maybe 1 shift out of 20 eleven hour shifts.

All I can say is this - Retail pharmacy is seriously a skill that you will only get better at with time. The truth is you will not be as fast as everyone else at first. But as you continue to process prescriptions you will slowly but surely get faster and better. The trick is immersion in everything that retail pharmacy has to offer. You will slowly begin to discover that there are about 10 different types of phone calls that come in all with practically the same solution, about 20 different insurance snags which inevitably usually end up resulting in a call to insurance, and finally there is an art to dealing with the public.

I have a secret to dealing with the public. My secret to dealing with the public is to offer solutions to the issues that arise when dispensing. You will run into so many problems as you process rx, but if you train your mind to approach the problem with a path to a solution you will find that the public grow to love you. If you are pressed for time and are not able to deal with someones problem right away - ask them kindly for their name and phone number and let them know you are going to work on the problem and call them back to let them know what their options are.

The people that you are working with are not judging you - those of us who have earned our bones in retail pharmacy know that its a process that takes time. I will say that it takes about 4 years of full time work as a technician to create a veteran retail pharmacy professional.

I am quite satisfied with my work as a pharmacy manager. I have also received a recent promotion as a center of excellence store in order to support other stores that are coming up. In my situation - it took some serious blood sweat and tears to get there. But once you get there, I promise you that the waters are quite warm. I could not be happier with my working conditions, my salary, and my stability.

Do not make a decision about pharmacy based on entry level work. What you should really decide is: Are you willing to go through the hell that is the start in order to reach the end of the rainbow. And I do promise you (regardless of the crap the rejects will come here and say) there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, I know there is because I dig into it every 2 weeks.
Totally agree with this.

First year for me was a nightmare figuring out how to balance being a clinician and a business owner.

No one teaches you in Pharmacy School how to manage a pharmacy or lead a team, and very few supervisors teach you appropriately on the job. Severe deficit of good management in the field.

What's left over are thousands of poorly operated stores with budgets and goals designed for only the very best leaders.

While some will call it corporate greed and poor working conditions, the reality in most professions is that we are expected to do more with less.

Any pharmacy business executive will tell you, "you earn every penny you make, regardless of your title."

But if you can embrace your role as a corporate professional, does it really surprise you that you the hardest challenges come with the biggest paychecks?

We don't get paid 6 figures for nothing.

Be prepared to wear many different hats in addition to the clinical one. Good luck on your journey!

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Do not give up at first sign of uncertainty, you have not earned that right yet. I remember my first day at retail, my feet hurt, I was belittled by customers and yelled by pharmacist. After two weeks, I was actually helping older tech troubleshooting.
After I became a pharmacist, my transition from retail to hospital was so painful in the first three months I cursed at myself daily. After 6 months, I was top three speediest pharmacist at verification.

Each trade that we pursue takes hard work and dedication to master. I remember few other threads started by you regarding medical career pathway, as well as yours interview with CVS and doing online training modules.

Perhaps the question here is not about career choices, but your expectations. Even if you have pursued MD or PA, wouldn’t you have lousy days there too?

It is very smart to question and strategize when you run into hurdles. In this case, some generational traits are shown here.

Pharmacy as a profession is struggling to define itself, furthermore, retail pharmacy can be hell and a lot people are stocked in the purgatory. However, there are upsides that many at this forum have not experienced. Some of us have unicorn jobs. If you just go with the flow at pharmacy school, you likely will be a retail pharmacist. OTOH, if you apply yourself, make smart decisions you could be successful anywhere, any professions; pharmacy field included.


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I wouldn't call being the fastest at playing the matching game "mastering" anything.

Literally any burger flipper at McDonald's could be trained to do order verification.
Being proud of being "fast" is ridiculous
 
I wouldn't call being the fastest at playing the matching game "mastering" anything.

Literally any burger flipper at McDonald's could be trained to do order verification.
Being proud of being "fast" is ridiculous
I'm sure we can all agree that safety and accuracy are top of mind when exercising our licenses.

Speed combined with appropriate triage, diagnosis, and solution of any problem is a good way to measure success, too

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