non-traditional pharmacy rotations + careers/positions

[ilovedogs123]

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Anyone here in a non-traditional pharmacy career path that requires the individual to be a RPh or Pharm.D holder? I've heard from various sources that people in industry (non-MSL roles), government (non-IHS based ones) and managed care positions don't really use their direct patient care skills/knowledge learned in pharmacy school (aside from their knowledge in med chem, pharmacology, overall understanding of the drug R&D process). Is there any truth to that?

I am a P4. I don't really have a desire to pursue a residency - I am leaning towards a industry or research fellowship. I set up my rotations in such a way that I spend some of my rotations at these locations, at the expense of some more clincially heavy positions. I will get a broader and greater appreciation of the use of pharmaceutical products, which is what I like.

Now, I am somewhat concerned. Is this a poor approach? Is a strong grasp of therapeutics/knowledge picked up in direct patient care rotations needed to function in the above non-traditional pharmacy areas as well? Do employers (regardless of practice setting) expect a fresh pharmacy graduate to be well versed in therapeutics beyond what is covered in the school curriculum and understood the nuances of med use, or is passing the board be sufficient enough?

thank you 🙂

 

[type b pharmD]

I'm also looking at non traditional careers. The few people i've spoken to about sort of, what people are looking for in applicants have told me business sense, motivation, people skills, writing skills, etc. (i'm thinking nuclear atm, but I also have had a meeting with a guy who works for a wholesaler just to shoot the ****). The vibe i get is that pharmacy school is less important for the knowledge than it is for the skills (researching, writing up information, presentation, analysis, group work, etc) for these types of jobs. Also, my old nuclear boss says he makes hiring decisions based on how much common sense someone has and how good with people he thinks applicants are, not based on their clinical or school knowledge (which isnt going to help defuse a problem situation with a customer or help you organize a workflow).

fwiw.. just 1 cent worth probably.

 

[ilovedogs123]

What year of pharm school are you in, type B pharmD (if you don't mind me asking?)

It is funny how students interested in non-traditional paths think alike - I am also very interested in nuclear pharm. tell me, do nuclear pharm employers take graduate with 0 previous experience in the area? I was trying to fit in a nuclear pharm rotation, but couldn't get it 🙁

 

[type b pharmD]

What year of pharm school are you in, type B pharmD (if you don't mind me asking?)

It is funny how students interested in non-traditional paths think alike - I am also very interested in nuclear pharm. tell me, do nuclear pharm employers take graduate with 0 previous experience in the area? I was trying to fit in a nuclear pharm rotation, but couldn't get it 🙁

2nd year. I think nuclear pharmacy employers might take people without experience. The person i worked for certainly would have, if he could be convinced you were cool in an interview.

I got 8 months of nuclear intern experience before quitting due to the hours (6 days / 40 hrs per week rotating shifts each day, 2am to 8, then 8-4, then noon to 4, 4am-noon, 6am-2pm etc). terrrible.. but the door is open for me to return which i may do during 4th year. my ideal job is independent nuclear. the business aspects and the work-hard play-hard mentality of these types of jobs appeals to me compared to more regular work weeks.

but nuclear my man, is where it's AT. the benefits are pretty nice. depending on how many weeks/months of nights you want to do, you can stockpile incredible amounts of vacation. downside is working more or less alone with no contact with the outside world, in the middle of the night, doing work that is much more physically strenuous than other pharmacists (lead and tungsten shielding, syringe shielding). also you never really get to see daylight. heh. Personally I think the benefits make up for it. Nuke job at an independent here offers 24 weeks of vacation, for example. (okay okay, you do work 70 hour weeks when you are working though, 2am-4pm)

I would go so far as to say there are generally probably always *some* nuclear jobs open in the us at a given time (i'm extrapolating from the large corp i worked for , we had maybe 5-7 jobs open at a given time). I'd recommend doing a lot of research about nuclear , maybe do an independent research project of some sort, working on your interviewing skills, and casting a broad net. There are independent nuclear operators out there too and their jobs arent advertised as heavily or even at all. Join some organizations (nuclear medicine societies for example). You may want to arrange for a tour of a local place that hosts rotations , that will give you some good exposure (haha no pun intended). Also be sure to read up on FDG , it's one of the most important new developments and a lot of people are saying it's going to change the entire face of nuclear medicine in the next 20 years or so. If you know about it and can talk about it, that will help a lot, i would expect, in a job interview. Hope these tips help you out! Let me know if you have any nuclear questions and i can try to answer them.