Nuclear Pharmacist

[htyotispharm]

---

Members do not see this ad.

This is my first time to the SDN and I am finding this forum very helpful. I was wondering if anyone could tell me a little about nuclear pharmacy(pros,cons,ets.)?

 

[bananaface]

I have no experience in nuclear pharmacy but I do know a couple of good links.

http://interactive.snm.org/index.cfm?pageid=10&rpid=1977

http://nuclearpharmacy.uams.edu/

 

[baggywrinkle]

This is my first time to the SDN and I am finding this forum very helpful. I was wondering if anyone could tell me a little about nuclear pharmacy(pros,cons,ets.)?

I worked with a former nuclear pharmacist at Halifax medical center in Daytona Beach. He talked me out of considering it

job pro: lots of compounding

job con: there aren't very many of them. The pharmacies cover wide regions
of geographic territory and so are VERY busy. The nature of the business dictates perpetual on-call with four AM call-ins the norm rather than the exception. If you want to be married to your job this is the position for YOU.

 

[LVPharm]

Baggy's right. I visited a nuclear pharmacy here in Vegas (one of two in town), and it's very busy. Everyone has to work the early morning shifts (rotating schedule) because alot of these radiopharmaceuticals have very short half-lives, and thus have to be prepared shortly before their administration. On the plus side, these companies (Amersham, Cardinal, Syncor...) will pay for the additional training you need to become a Nuclear Pharmacist...all you wanted to know about alpha, beta, gamma radiation, half lives, isotopes, nuclear safety and regulations, etc...stuff I really don't care to learn about 😉. Another plus is that some of these places are desperate enough to pay quite well, although I don't have a figure. Not very many pharmacists are willing to put in the time and effort to become a nuclear pharmacist, and then work the weird hours they do. On top of that, there aren't that many nuclear pharmacies around...it isn't anywhere near as "portable" a job as retail and hospital. The nature of the compounds along with the precautions the pharmacists take supposedly makes it quite safe, though.

The workplace reminds me of a larger version of an IV room at a busy hospital pharmacy (except for the leaded shields you have to work behind, the clicking of geiger counters, and the knowledge that your handling "hot stuff" 😉 ). Stacks of labels indicating the preparation to be compounded are usually on the counter, and you just power through them, compounding each one. The nuclear pharmacists do field questions from practitioners, but to my knowledge they don't work directly with patients most of the time.

You might want to check out the profile of a nuclear pharmacist here http://pfizercareerguides.com/pdfs/pharmacy.pdf

 

[r_salis]

Is there a special certification required to become a nuclear pharm?

 

[LVPharm]

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/cfr/part035/part035-0055.html

Actual "board certification", ie obtaining a BCNP certification is not a requirement for becoming a nuclear pharmacist. There are "certificate programs" offered by some schools of pharmacy like Purdue http://nuclear.pharmacy.purdue.edu/cert.php that will essentially give you the NRC required training...but I don't know why anyone would want to pay that kind of tuition when employers are willing to train you in-house in many circumstances.

 

[ultracet]

It also depends on the state you are in. Here i think you have to have 200 didactic(sp) hours and ~500 on the job hours.....

don't quote me on that i already forgot that test material

 

[pharmgirl]

Two of my friends went into nuclear pharmacy after graduating. Neither of them are still working in nuclear. Yes, the hours are a little rough, but they actually left after 1 too many "incidental exposures." They were both women, and not willing to risk reproductive or other health issues.

I went to Purdue, and they offered a lot of nuclear pharmacy classes. I'm not sure what is offered at other schools.

 

[htyotispharm]

Someone from my school that graduated this May took a job as a nuclear pharmacist in Charlotte paying $87,500 for just 28.5 hours a week. They pay for training and travel from South Carolina. There are a lot of cons about the job but bad pay isn't one of them.

 

[AngryRPh]

As a nuclear pharmacist, I can tell you first hand the good and the bad. The first question I always get is "How is the pay"? Well, it's usually about 5-10% less than retail. Here is what I consider the good parts of the job:

-Low Stress

-Flexible shifts (usually 3A-11A or 8A-4P)

-Chance to become an expert in your field (small formulary)

-Doctors actually respect your knowledge

-Job title impresses girls at parties (not really, but the nice car helps)



This is what I consider to be the bad parts of the job:

-SSDD--your routine on each shift rarely changes. I have heard retail careers described as 5-10-15-20-25-30. In nuclear, it's like .37, .41, .51, .46 (referencing the drawing of volumes into a 3cc syringe)

-Being on call--$50 per call ain't much, and it's a pain when you only get called out occasionally and have to deliver the dose too.

-You have to work a rotating weekend schedule (sometimes every other weekend in a 2-man lab). Simple translation for a 2-man lab where you work every other weekend is 11 days on and 3 days off.

-Lower pay than retail

-limited relocation ability-- nuke pharmacies have large delivery areas, and it may be impossible to live in the area of the country that you want to. For instance, AZ may only have 15 nuclear pharmacists. If you want to live in phoenix, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to find a nuke job.


Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox now. If you have any questions, you can PM me.