Consultant pharmacist

[TCB]

I am leaning toward consultant pharmacy right now....

does anybody has any input?

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[sdn1977]

don't fall over???? (sorry - I couldn't help myself )

seriously....great. Its a nice area for some. For myself, it's a bit dull. Be sure you know your regulations (chemical restraints, etc) in addition to your pharmacology.

Do you want a specific kind of consultant field - SNF as opposed to mental health for example?

What kind of input are you looking for?

 

[kwizard]

I am leaning toward consultant pharmacy right now....

does anybody has any input?

Please see the following link: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/archive/index.php/t-273291.html

Also check out www.ascp.com

The pro's are as follows:

-typically doesn't require residency training
-flexible schedule
(kind of come and go as you please; however, some companies are really cracking down on this by requiring more a regular 9-5 work day)

-pretty much straight Mon-Fri
(no wknds/holidays or only occasional wknd at the local staffing facility)

Possible con's:
-gets old quick (have to review a lot of charts/day, typically ~100/day = 12.5/hr = ~1chart/5min)

-given volume of charts you have little time to interact w/ pts or other healthcare professionals outside of the monthly reccomendation form you leave per federal regulation

-company initiatives
(pushing the preferred agents per class (i.e. trying to switch all people to seroquel vs zyprexa); all pharmacies have a closed formulary system to a certain extent, but in long term care/consultant pharmacy, the initiatives seem driven too much by cost vs anything else as many of the big companies also include your success rates on conversions to the preferred product on your evaluation and don't consider possible reasons why switches weren't considered (i.e. better efficacy on the other agent)

-salary is kind of variable but typically fairly competive w/ hospital pay or maybe a little less

-typically require some hospital experience as such positions are sometime hard to get straight out of school (it depends on the company)

-self limiting:
if you ever want to leave, each hospital views consultant experience differently as the work is somewhat repetitive and wouldn't expose you to the variability seen in a hospital setting so getting a clinical position in a hospital after yrs of consulting may be difficult depending on the area

-isolation:
little interaction w/ other consultants outside of the monthly/weekly consultant meetings so networking w/ colleagues or even just random interaction is minimal


However in closing if you like being on your own and need the flexible schedule to pursue other interests (i.e. secondary degree, child care, part time selling real estate, or just another job in pharmacy) consultant pharmacy can be quite advantageous.

 

[TCB]

thank you both of you for your input.


PS: sdn1977 that was funny

 

[Shizelbs]

Are you getting your CGP?

 

[hmtran6283]

I would think that a consultant pharmacy would need a residency, esp with some emphasis in geriatrics bc that's the main population you're dealing with.

I'm interested in consultant pharmacy too, but I mainly want to be self-employed and do my own thing, that's why it appeals to me.