Pharmacy school vs undergrad

[becomingapharmacist]

How is pharmacy school vs undergrad? Workload/amount of content etc. I'm thinking of a career change. I did my BMSc at western and working in software development for maybe 3-4 years, maybe go into pharmacy school since I have the marks? (will apply and see what happens if I plan on going this route). I feel like there's less job security in software developer career vs. pharmacy career. I'm 24.

Thanks

[Intransition]

Pharmacy in my opinion isn't worth it. Spend some time as a pharmacy assistant and at any retail chain and you'll see that's it just a glorified retail job with more stress and corporate pressure.

Also not alot of opportunity for career advancement.

I am currently finishing six months as a pharm assistant at superstore and some days it's okay and other days you want to cry.

[Pizza11MS]

Pharmacy school is mainly a system-based approach (digestive, respiratory, oncology, infectious disease, etc.) to learning pharmacology (how drugs work) and pharmacotherapy (considering the patients' needs and characteristics in the treatment of their disease). Mostly memorizing drug compounds and their mechanisms of action, adverse effects, and profile for drug/disease/food interactions. The primary outcome being able to use that knowledge to analyze treatments and adjust doses/choices of drugs according to the patient and ensuring adequate follow up (effectiveness of the treatment, tolerance, and patient's ability to take the therapy as prescribed). 

IMO, retail pharmacy practice varies according to the pharmacy. Understaffed and busy pharmacies will focus on the "distribution" aspect of pharmacy rather than prioritizing clinical interventions. Other pharmacies might maintain clinical practice as a priority (following up, communicating proactively with prescribers, promoting health), which is pleasant. However, customer service skills and priority/stress management are necessary with retail pharmacy - it's still a business, after all. 

Hospital pharmacy practice is more oriented towards pharmacotherapy review and interacting with prescribers. 

Job prospects depend on where you're from. I do agree that there are few career advancement opportunities: salary starts high, but doesn't increase that much over the years. 

I personally think pharmacy is a great field for those willing to get involved in the health field without having to do procedures or surgeries. It also offers a better work-family balance. Those who prefer being a first-line health professional and who enjoy the customer service and even business aspect (following patients throughout the years, patients loyal to your pharmacy, management/HR) usually go into retail pharmacy. Those who prefer the hospital setting (access to prescribers and other health care providers, etc.) might go towards hospital pharmacy.

Pharmacists can also work in other fields, but retail and pharmacy are the main ones.

I've only briefly summarized what is pharmacy and pharmacy school. Feel free to PM if you need more info! 

Edit: I definitely agree with above that working as a pharmacy technician or at least shadowing a pharmacist (in retail or hospital) is the best way to understand the career. Especially in retail pharmacy, there is so much that goes on behind the scenes. 

[becomingapharmacist]

I really appreciate your comments. I have a relative in 4th year pharmacy and he said it's not worth the money (even though pharmacists make bank IMO). Maybe I"ll stick to being software developer though this field also gets stressful and unlike pharmacy, there is no job security at all. If I can't accomplish what the boss wants in a specified amount of time... there goes my job. And harder to get future jobs due to resume saying "lost job" etc..

Thanks again though, really appreciate the above 2 replies

[patient2doctor]

Hey there,

I know I'm a bit late here, but I figured I'd add my thoughts to the discussion.

I've worked as a retail pharmacy assistant for 3 years now, in 2 very different settings.

In the more corporate pharmacies (think big chains like Rexall or Shoppers) the pharmacists have a lot more corporate oversight, and the work can be pretty thankless at times. But it's a fairly unique healthcare position in that once your shift is done, IT'S DONE. Whereas physicians, nurses, etc. are usually bringing their work home with them, or are constantly being inundated with phone calls from patients or the office, a staff pharmacist rarely has that problem. The work is very hands on while you're there, but it doesn't typically interrupt an anniversary dinner or your kid's birthday. If work-life balance is a priority to you, its by and large the best healthcare career. Most of the pharmacists I've worked with have the time, freedom, and definitely the money, to travel or pursue exciting hobbies. And if you're more of a workaholic type with an interest in the business side, big chains have great advancement opportunities. Three of the Shoppers in my area have associate owners who are under 30 years old.

On the opposite end, independent retail pharmacies are a really interesting place to work. The pharmacists there have a lot more control over their schedule, and how they practice. You're not tied up by MedsCheck quotas (or other similarly annoying corporate policies) and *usually* the staff are more of a tight-knit group. There's always opportunities to get involved with special projects, like marketing initiatives or community involvement. The owner of the store I work for has always been interested in women's health, so she got a special certification in that field and now runs weekly clinics for pregnant patients to review their medications. I've seen other small pharmacies that specialize in diabetes care, or travel immunizations. So this route is definitely choose-your-own-adventure, which can be very rewarding. 

Anyway, that was kind of a long-winded way to say that retail pharmacy gets a bad rap, but I think that's kind of undeserved. I can definitely say that pharmacy assistants / technicians get horrible pay for the stress they endure, and they rarely get to experience the more rewarding parts of the job (ex. counselling, running clinics). But a pharmacist has more opportunity to create the career they want.