Are still unsure what direction you want for your career? Perhaps you should consider pharmacy. Pharmacists do more than just fill prescriptions. They also advise patients on side effects, analyse interactions with other drugs, and help choose between different medications based on a whole range of factors. Read on to find out just some of the reasons pharmacy might be the right career for you.
You will help people
Are you the type of person that derives satisfaction from knowing you have helped your fellow man? Pharmacists play an important role in helping patients get well as quickly as possible. There could be many drugs on the market to treat a single ailment and as a pharmacist you would help people by choosing the best medication and help avoid side effects.
You get to work with people
Pharmacists are generally considered the most accessible members of the healthcare team. This is not going to be a good reason for everyone, because not everyone is a people person. If you do enjoy interacting and communicating with people daily though, then you might fit the profile of an ideal candidate.
You can enjoy a wide variety of career opportunities
Pharmacists can work in a variety of professional settings. Most pharmacists work in an independent or retail chain community pharmacy. They enjoy the freedom of using their own pharmacy management system and provide counselling to patients on the use of prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications. Pharmacists can also work in many other healthcare environments as well like hospitals, nursing homes, managed care organisations, the pharmaceutical industry, colleges and schools and the government.
You can be part of major innovations in drug therapy
Pharmacogenomics is a rapidly growing discipline in the pharmacy profession. Scientists now know that genetic variations in genes can affect a body’s response to a drug. Specialists hope to someday sequence the entire human gene in each individual. Pharmacists and other healthcare providers would then be able to use that information to choose the best medicines with individually-tailored drug therapies.
You get job stability
Pharmacists are needed in all parts of the country and there is always a demand. There are always new medicines on the market and more prescriptions to be filled out. Student pharmacists are able to easily find employment after graduation.