Interview questions for new RPh,PDA advice?

[MIRPh]

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So as the title says, I was hoping to get some insight into commom interview questions in retail/ community pharmacy. Pls. advise.
Are they general queries or are any technical questions like : 1)Suggest a drug therapy regimen for so and so patient profile or 2) Given a profile, tell us about any potential drug interaction etc etc. ;asked???

On another note, I saw the sticky on this forum with the PDA software options available, for eg.lexi-comp/ epocrates etc. Based on your personal experience, which downloads/sites do you prefer and what is the price?

Thanks.

 

[farmadiazepine]

Haha, which pharmacy is this? I would like to work there, where they care about drug regimens and interactions and such.

If you are interviewing for retail/community, the most important thing is taking care of the customer (not the patient, but the customer) and making sure they keep coming back. Also, management is important - how you manage your staff the most, priorities, inventory, time, etc.

Questions you should expect are just basic general questions any corporate company would ask. When I worked for Cold Stone (ice cream store), and then CVS, the interview questions were the same.

When did you have a problem, and how did you resolve it? If a customer is unhappy, how did you remedy the situation? Tell me a time when you had to motivate your staff? When did you take initiative? When were you pro-active that you decided to take action about something before you knew the problem was going to occur?

It's all about customer service. Because if the customer is happy and thinks the pharmacy/store is great, the customer will keep coming back. When a customer keeps coming back, the more your pharmacy/store makes in terms of money. Answer all your questions with that thought in mind, and you got yourself a job,

In corporate retail pharmacy, you are there only because the law says that a physical body with a degree and license in pharmacy needs to be present. You can be dumb or smart, it doesn't matter.

Sorry to be so honest with you, but that's how it is with the Walgreens, CVS/pharmacy world we live in

 

[MIRPh]

Thanks for the help. Yeah I know u r right. I found those techie type q and a' s when I googled pharmacist interview questions.Anyways glad that those aren't asked.
One funny thing, one chain that I was interested in asked me if I was certified in imunizations. When I said no, they asked me to contact them once I was certified. I thought my future employer would pay for my certification in immunizing. Is that not true?? Have u all paid out of pocket for this certification even before u got a job in hand?? I think it is atleast $350 ??
Pls. reply.Thanks.

 

[EBT12]

Most of the schools I know provide immunization training as part of the pharmacy curriculum now. Also, schools of pharmacy often offer classes to current pharmacists for a fee (not sure the exact cost). You may want to contact schools in your area.

The market is competitive. Why would they want to hire you and have to train you vs. hiring someone who is already trained? FYI, I also know of retail chains that do not pay for time off for CPR/life support training. It's expected that you will take care of that on your own time (with your own money).

 

[MIRPh]

Thanks, so if I understand correctly I need to do this thru the APHA site ,right? In my area,APHA has given this license to a local University as well. But the thing is both these do not show dates for the live course portion of the training beyond mid Sept. Anyways ,will have to enquire somemore.
For those of you who are certified, how long will this training take start to finish (self study+ live course+actual demo training)?
Does approx $350 sound like the right fee? Also, have all of you gone for certification even before u had a job in hand? What say ?🙂