Shadowing a Pharmacist

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Neurotic_grl

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I'm interested in applying for pharmacy school but would first like to shadow a pharmacist and gain some volunteer or internship experience. Can someone please advise me on how I can get started doing that? Is there any organizations around the bay area I can call? Does anyone have any recommendations?

I feel so lost, please help.
+pity+
 
Over here on the west coast we have/had Eckerd Drug pharmacies and they have a program where you can sign up to shadow a pharmacist for those RPH's that are willing to have someone hang around the pharmacy. I would honestly just walk up to a local pharmacy and ask the pharmacist if they would allow you to observe them back in the pharmacy. Most likely there will be paperwork so that they can get background info on you, but thats it. Just tell the pharmacist that you are a college student and am interested in pharmacy as a career. If you act really interested and make the RPH feel important than you should be in. Make sure you ask questions while your there. Good luck 👍
 
Hi,
Does anyone have any suggestions as to how do find a clinical pharmacist to shadow? I'm thinking of pharmacy as a career, but I'd really want to see what's clinical pharmacist daily work is like... I have yet to see any clinical pharmacist at hospitals...
thanks

esca007
 
esca007 said:
Hi,
Does anyone have any suggestions as to how do find a clinical pharmacist to shadow? I'm thinking of pharmacy as a career, but I'd really want to see what's clinical pharmacist daily work is like... I have yet to see any clinical pharmacist at hospitals...
thanks

esca007
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No clinical pharmacists!! I wonder where they are! Just Kidding! 😛

Are all the pharmacists just dispensing pharmacists where u are looking? I am not sure if the hospital where I work allows people to shadow, b/c of HIPPA but in my experience the pharmacists do double duty in dispensing and clinical work. As far as the clinical aspect, they go on medical rounds and assist in the medication treatment plan of the patients on the various units. In addition to going to rounds, they work up drug levels and monitor pts on various drugs for possible complications for antibiotics, phenytoin, metformin and coumadin for example. You should check your area for opportunities and possibly apply for a tech job. IMO, you see more things as a tech than you probably would shadowing.
 
Hi,
Do you live near a Pharmacy school? I'm a P3 and our school has a sign up sheet for shadowing various types of pharmacists including clinical. A lot of the professors at my school are clinical pharmacists also. Clinical pharmacists exist 🙂 , but the positions do seem limited. I'm sure if you could get in touch with a school and mention your interest they would help you out.
 
esca007 said:
Hi,
Does anyone have any suggestions as to how do find a clinical pharmacist to shadow? I'm thinking of pharmacy as a career, but I'd really want to see what's clinical pharmacist daily work is like... I have yet to see any clinical pharmacist at hospitals...
thanks

esca007
Click to expand...

hi!
you should goto those pharmacy school recruiting presentations.. they have them for difference pharmacy schools usually and usually they have a panel of pharmacists. get their contact information and ask them! they always say yes.
 
Hey Hey. I have no experience and dont know anything about Pharmacy itself since I just recently(May 05 hence joined SDN) got interested in this field. Anywho, if I try to volunter in pharmacy department, do they expect you to know some 'pharmacy stuff'? Or do you recommend shadowing first and get the idea of the field then try to volunteer? Also, if I don't find shadowing/voluntering positions in pharmacy itself as of now, do you just suggest to go ahead and try to work with other health fields? How long should one shadow? 1-2 times? I figure shadowing would be only a couple of times if not once, but I guess one can volunter for a longer period of time? How did you start up?

Thanks for your time,
Aurovon
 
aurovon said:
Hey Hey. I have no experience and dont know anything about Pharmacy itself since I just recently(May 05 hence joined SDN) got interested in this field. Anywho, if I try to volunter in pharmacy department, do they expect you to know some 'pharmacy stuff'? Or do you recommend shadowing first and get the idea of the field then try to volunteer? Also, if I don't find shadowing/voluntering positions in pharmacy itself as of now, do you just suggest to go ahead and try to work with other health fields? How did you start up?

Thanks for your time,
Aurovon
Click to expand...

just call around to a few places to volunteer and take what ever opportunity you can get. It took me about ~20 calls in order to get my foot into the door, but that may not be the case with everyone.
Good Luck :luck:
 
Which pharmacy did u Shadow/Volunteer at? Or which phamacy stores are more willing to allow Shadowing/volunteering?
 
I ended up volunteering at a private pharmacy b/c the major chains were turned off by my inexperience.
 
Hi. I am going to shadow a pharmacist tomorrow at a CVS reatail store. This is going to be my first experience in a pharmacy environment. I am not really sure what they expect you to do when you "shadow" a pharmacist. What are the typical questions, is there a protocol I have to follow? Should I send a thank you note the next day. She said I could be there all day if I wanted, but is there some kind of rule.
Thank you so much, I hope somebody can give me an answer before tomorrow.
CAR
 
CARBON774 said:
Hi. I am going to shadow a pharmacist tomorrow at a CVS reatail store. This is going to be my first experience in a pharmacy environment. I am not really sure what they expect you to do when you "shadow" a pharmacist. What are the typical questions, is there a protocol I have to follow? Should I send a thank you note the next day. She said I could be there all day if I wanted, but is there some kind of rule.
Thank you so much, I hope somebody can give me an answer before tomorrow.
CAR
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Just make sure to ask a lot of questions. There's no protocol you have to follow, at least when I shadowed there wasn't. It was very informal. She just told me how everything works, what they do, certain regulations they have to follow. Ask whatever you are curious about- you are going to be a pharmacist and you should ask what you want to know! And after YOU think everything is done then that's when you should leave. What I found interesting was the high tech computer systems they have to use, the annual classes they have to take at the local pharm school, and some of the restricted drugs. Maybe you can ask about that. I was offered to shadow anytime I wanted, which was great. Sending a thank you note would be nice, especially if you are going to use him/her for a future contact.
 
I am currently working on my pre-pharmacy courses but I have no experience in Pharmacy. I hadn't heard of job shadowing until I came across this site (which is great btw). How would I go about setting this up? I have thought about going to my local pharmacies and asking to just talk to a Pharmacist, but I don't want to be a nuisance. Is this the way to go for it or should I call, write a letter? Thanks!
 
I've only shadowed at a couple of places, and I'm not sure if I go about it the "best way," but here's what I do: I just call up and explain that I'm a pre-pharm student and I'm looking to gain more first-hand knowledge of the profession, and if it's possible I would like to come shadow sometime. I thought about actually going to the pharmacy to ask too, but I figure it would be easier for a pharmacist to tell me "no" over the phone than in person. 🙂 Like you, I don't want to bother anybody...plus, if a pharmacist has a problem with me coming to shadow them, I sure don't want to be there. I would much rather find someone who is willing to help me. Good luck!
 
I've shadowed at three different places, and I did the same thing as UTCPharm each time. I called the pharmacy, asked to talk to the manager, then as soon as the pharmacist was on the phone I got right to the point. I even scripted out what I was going to say. Here it is:

"My name is xnc123, and I am a student pursuing a career in pharmacy. I'm making an effort to broaden my knowledge of the field and I was hoping I might visit "store name" and shadow a working pharmacist to get an idea of what the profession is like on a day-to-day basis."

At this point all three asked me to come in and talk to them in person. The most common questions they asked at our first meeting was "What year of school are you in?" "What day and time do you want to do this." "How long do you want to do this?"

The three pharmacists I talked to were apprehensive at first, but by the end of the first meeting they were enthusiastic about helping.

My shadowing experience was a blast. I highly recommend it.
 
I recommend it too!! I just want to shadow a pharmacist on Monday and I am very impress by the teamwork that goes on inside of the pharmacy. I am very happy because they offered me to work with them!!!! I said yes, because "I think" it would look in my application to have pharmacy retail experience. What do you guys think?? The only problem is that they will pay me peanuts but it will be worth it in the long run. I will only work there part-time (since they are paying very little) and I will keep my other job so I can pay bills!
I recommend it and make sure you write a Thank you letter the next day!
 
Thanks for all the great info!
that1guy, I might borrow your script, if you don't mind 😉

CARBON774 - that's great you were able to get a job out of it. I'm not sure if pharmacy experience is required or not, but I think having the experience would be a plus.

Thanks again! 😀
 
Hey guys, I just wanted to know how will I find a pharmacist to shadow? Do i just pick up the telephone directory and start bombing away? 🙂 Also, is there a big diiference between a retail pharmacist and a hospital pharmacist regarding what they do?
 
that can work but most of them will tell that they are busy. if you can't shadow, then maybe you can interview them in person. better yet, see if you can find a position you can volunteer in. you may not learn much, but at least it is a step in the right direction

good luck;
 
Your university may have a list of shadowing positions at their Career Services office. You can check there. Otherwise, just check around at some local pharmacies. It might be better to go speak to someone in person rather than just calling up out of the blue.
 
asking in person is always better than by phone. its easier to say no on the phone 😉
 
I called three pharmacists, one hospital, one community, and one compounding. All three agreed to let me shadow. I don't think it hurts to call. If anything, it lets you know if the pharmacist is even receptive to the idea. You probably wouldn't want to shadow with someone who wasn't receptive anyway. This gives you a way to weed out the jerks.
 
I'm not a pre-pharm student yet although I am pre-med, but doing badly at NYU. I'm sort of realizing that I probably won't have a chance at med schools with these grades, but I wanted to keep pharmacy open because even if I did have the grades, I don't know whether I could stick it out anymore. There's about a million different things I could be doing here as a major, but I still wanted to keep pharmacy open.

So if I wanted to figure out whether pharmacy as a career option was for me or not, I was told that shadowing would be the best way to know. However, during my senior year of high school I went to most of the pharmacy's around my area and asked whether I could watch the pharmacist work for some time or not, but they said that no non-pharmacists (or pharm students, i guess) were allowed in the back. So how am I to shadow one?

Are there other ways that I should be taking a look at pharmacy as a career option?

Thanks in advance
 
Hi, just a little background information. I am currently a sophomore, Biochemistry major at the University of California, Berkeley finishing up my pre-pharmacy requirements. I just finished finals not long ago and am now looking for a summer job. I wanted to do something that is related to pharmacy because it will help me increase my experience. When I ask people what kind of work I should pursue they simply tell me to work in a pharmacy or shadow a pharmacist. They are indeed good ideas but...I realized it is "kind of" difficult finding such positions. Most chain pharmacy stores around my area (Los Angeles) such as CVS and target wants someone either with previous experience or a certified pharmacy technician. And how do you go about shadowing a pharmacist? Any suggestions? Any help is appreciated.
 
jchen0386 said:
Hi, just a little background information. I am currently a sophomore, Biochemistry major at the University of California, Berkeley finishing up my pre-pharmacy requirements. I just finished finals not long ago and am now looking for a summer job. I wanted to do something that is related to pharmacy because it will help me increase my experience. When I ask people what kind of work I should pursue they simply tell me to work in a pharmacy or shadow a pharmacist. They are indeed good ideas but...I realized it is "kind of" difficult finding such positions. Most chain pharmacy stores around my area (Los Angeles) such as CVS and target wants someone either with previous experience or a certified pharmacy technician. And how do you go about shadowing a pharmacist? Any suggestions? Any help is appreciated.
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go to a hospital. I couldn't volunteer at those chain stores either but I landed a position at the hospital so I got to shadow many pharmacists.
 
I'm a little down on this, because I went to a hospital (Kaiser Permanente, where I would actually want to work) and talked to the pharmacists, and they told me they have never heard of shadowing a pharmacist. "Doctor, maybe, but a pharmacist... I think you would get run over behind here!" There were quite a lot of people behind the counter.

I worked at a retail pharmacy filling in for a friend, but now I can't find another clerk job. I guess getting my tech certificate is the only way to go out here in competition cali.
 
I had a similar problem. I just took the PTCB exam after studying from a book, and then somebody hired me. The test isn't that difficult. I didn't even know most of the drugs and i still passed.
 
If you want to shadow a pharmacist, I would recommend contacting local independent pharmacies and speaking to the pharmacists there about it.

Independent pharmacies generally fill a significantly lower volume of scripts per day and therefore would be more likely to have the time to let you come in and actually spend some time talking with you about it in addition to just letting you observe. Plus a lot of independents also specialize in services like compounding or different levels of disease state management, so you'd have the opportunity to get some exposure to some aspects of pharmacy that you might not see in a retail chain.

Besides, most retail chains will be busy and probably view your presence as just a distraction, if not also a liability.

Hope this helps & good luck this summer.
 
Just go to a pharmacy and ask a pharmacist. I did that for walgreen and Providence (which is a hospital).
 
SoylentGreen said:
I had a similar problem. I just took the PTCB exam after studying from a book, and then somebody hired me. The test isn't that difficult. I didn't even know most of the drugs and i still passed.
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just wondering.........what is a PCTB😕
 
jchen0386 said:
Hi, just a little background information. I am currently a sophomore, Biochemistry major at the University of California, Berkeley finishing up my pre-pharmacy requirements. I just finished finals not long ago and am now looking for a summer job. I wanted to do something that is related to pharmacy because it will help me increase my experience. When I ask people what kind of work I should pursue they simply tell me to work in a pharmacy or shadow a pharmacist. They are indeed good ideas but...I realized it is "kind of" difficult finding such positions. Most chain pharmacy stores around my area (Los Angeles) such as CVS and target wants someone either with previous experience or a certified pharmacy technician. And how do you go about shadowing a pharmacist? Any suggestions? Any help is appreciated.
Click to expand...

just call, whether its a chain or hospital. even better to go in person so set up an appointment for shadowing--its more difficult to say no to someone in person than on the phone =)

just as a side, UOP was impressed with a girl i know that got accepted who shadowed pharmacists in different areas of focus.

good luck =)
 
Not too many pharmacists like the idea of being "shadowed."

Start with the basics. I think your best bet would be to find a job as a pharmacy clerk, which is at the very bottom of the pharmacy ladder. The chances of being hired in this position are far greater than as a tech who simply passed the PTCB with little to no pharmacy experience.

Even though your main function will be to ring people up for their prescriptions, at least you'll be working in the pharmacy. As you gain more experience you'll learn a great deal about pharmacy including recognizing brand and generic drugs, how to read prescriptions, and billing insurances to say the least. Just show the pharmacists that you are willing to learn and that you are reliable and the opportunities to advance will show up.

Also, you may want to apply to a busy pharmacy to increase your chances of being hired. Once you're hired you may be overwhelmed and you'll probably experience a lot of growing pains. But it is well worth it as you'll be well prepared for anything after that experience.
 
what kind of requirements are required for a pharmacy clerk? will a high school student who just graduated not over 18 be able to apply? thanks
 
Yep, high school students are hired for that job all of the time. At 19, I got a clerk job with nothing but a HS diploma and no experience. Actually, many of the people I know who want to pursue pharmacy started off working as a pharmacy clerk in high school. My friend's little sister is 18, and had been working for two years (she was just accepted into a 6-year program).
 
I'm lined out for my first shadowing in a private pharmacy.

I've been working a short list of questions I would like to ask. I just wondered if you thought of questions you wished you had asked. Also questions that you were really glad you asked.
 
"What do you hate about your job and this work environment?"

Really, asking "What do you like about your job" gives you the PC answers you probably could have gotten from places like this forum. There is more insight from a pharmacist about the type of environment. I think that when we look for a profession, we often slant our opinions towards the glamorous attributes of the job without taking a balanced look at it. Sure, we may do pros and cons, but its beneficial for a true professional pharmacist to tell us what may cause us to detest the job.

I think a lot of disappointment in one's chosen career is either the realization that the job's good attributes weren't all that great and/or that there were negative attributes of the job he/she never considered due to a lack of experience with the field. So when you shadow, don't have a "I'm at Disney World" type of mentality. Try to imagine yourself working overtime there. Maybe, the negatives are inconsequential but maybe they may not be.
 
omnione said:
Really, asking "What do you like about your job" gives you the PC answers you probably could have gotten from places like this forum.
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Haha, I actually asked my new boss that question. She said she liked the hours and pay, but she still wishes she would have gotten into medical school. It's just such a great feeling to know you'll be working for a pharmacist who picked that career as a backup.
 
Triumphbr,

For those that have not been able to work in a pharmacy or want to view different specializations of pharmacy, shadowing is a wonderful experience. Personally, I work two jobs in addition to going to school so actual pharmacy experience has been hard for me to complete, which is why I look at shadowing experiences.

Recently, I was able to shadow for a hosptal pharmacy. A brief description of the environment reminded me of what it would be like at a large chain retail store (i.e. Walgreens). Instead of pharmacy technicians preparing medications, you had a group of pharmacists doing this job that were led by one Pharmacy Manager. Learning a procedure in how to process each medication seemed to be the key to success. Using computer technology, collaboration with other medical professionals, communication with the patient, and humor with co-workers seemed to be the way to get through the day in this busy environment. One special area that I was able to observe was the preparation of oncology medication for cancer patients receiving chemotherapy in the hospital. This was especially good for me to observe because I was actually able to see where and to whom the medication was going. Within 15 minutes of preparing the medication, it was given directly to the patient, and I had the ability to take it straight to their room. This shows the rewarding side of the profession, which you may not hear about often from those in it.

As you can see, I digress, so back to your question. I would recommend getting as much information as possible. The only dumb question is the one that is not asked. Do not have so many questions that it annoys those whom you are observing, but certainly have enough questions to show you are interested in the profession. Not only should you show interest in what they do on a daily basis, but also the negative sides of the job. You may especially want to talk about insurance claims and how that process works. In my experience, I have heard this is a big issue (hassle) for pharmacists, especially since patients expect the pharmacist to know everything about their healthcare plan. I would also ask about the motives of the individuals your observing. In the short time I was able to observe.... in casual conversation, I was told by more than one pharmacist that they were not 100% interested in what they were doing, but the money was worth them staying. Just knowing this information may help give you insight to the type of individuals to expect upon entering the profession yourself.

Best of luck with your experience. Be proactive, enthusiastic, and have fun!

Sincerely,
FutureRxGuy
 
thanks for the snippets of wisdom guys/gals.

Lined up for saturday. I'm pretty excited about it.

I also got lined out for some steady volunteer work (i'm doing a pharm tech cert in addition to normal pre-reqs) before I do my intership for that at a hospital pharm.

really interested in that aspect.

Will post up after I get my feet wet.
 
i just recently recieved an oppurtunity to shadow a pharmacist at walgreens (very friendly people)

i was wondering how long is a good amount to shadow for one day without wearing out your welcome. maybe 3-4 hours?

also is shadowing usually a one day thing or can you extend it to maybe a once or twice a month or however long

any body here extend their shadowing experience to more then just one day?

thank you
 
UncertainRx said:
How did you receive this opportunity?
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Yea, I was wondering the same thing. Walgreens has gotten on my bad side. Since I have decide to become pre-pharmacy I have applied at Walgreens a total of three times, and they never have given me a call back. I haves spoken with the district hiring manger, and even a local pharmacist about shadowing, and they were no help. I guess you get no respect from them until you are actually in pharmacy school. If that is the case that is fine because that their right as a company, but now I am at the point where I am about to start pharmacy school, and when the time comes for me to decide where I’m going to work I will more than likely look over Walgreens now because they were so unhelpful in the past.🙁
 
just went there and asked..
the Pharmacist i talked to had no idea about shadowing and was skeptical at first but then she called another pharmacist that deals with pharm students and he told her it was ok..
if you look on their websight it says they have a shadowing prograram for highschool students and i just explained to them i am an undergrad looking for pharm experience and everything worked out..
when you go just mention to them on their websight they have a program for highschoolers to shadow then they should be more receptive about it..
 
Yep, BacardiGirl, I shadowed at Target. I just walked up to the pharmacy and told them what I wanted to do. I had to sign some HIPPA stuff and then my shadowing started the next week. The pharmacist I shadowed had previously worked at Walgreens so she was able to share the differences between Walgreens and Target. She said there was so much more pressure at Walgreens and it attracted a typically more elderly clientele, whereas Target generates most of their profit from other stuff and the customers were usually families.
 
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