By: Kathina Lee
What Pharmacy Is
Linking medical science with chemistry, pharmacy is a clinical health science. It involves the research, development, production, disposal, and use of pharmaceutical drugs.
What Pharmacists Do
Pharmacists are most commonly known for filling prescriptions and dispensing medications, but they do much more than just that. Explaining the instructions, side effects, and interactions of pharmaceutical drugs, they give guidance to their patients. They can also provide advice on over-the-counter medications. Their responsibilities include but definitely are not limited to ensuring the quality of medicines supplied to their patients, the supply of medicines is within the law, and the medicines supplied to their patients are suitable. Pharmacists make sure that the medications they give their patients are used safely and effectively. A majority of pharmacists work in hospitals or community pharmacies, but they can also work in pharmaceutical production, prisons, primary care organizations, universities, the military, and elsewhere.
Subspecialties Pharmacists Work With
There is an immense range of subspecialties pharmacists work with. As a result, they have a vast amount of career opportunities beyond working in hospitals and community pharmacies. These subspecialties include academic pharmacists, ambulatory pharmacists, compounding pharmacists, consultant pharmacists, critical-care pharmacists, drug information pharmacists, home-care pharmacists, hospice pharmacists, industrial pharmacists, infectious disease pharmacists, managed-care pharmacists, nuclear pharmacists, nutrition support pharmacists, oncology pharmacists, pediatric pharmacists, pharmaceutical detailers, pharmacist attorneys, pharmacy benefit managers, poison-control pharmacists, psychiatric pharmacists, and regulatory pharmacists. From education to production to consultation, there are several pharmaceutical disciplines, but they all involve the knowledge of drug therapies.
Diseases Pharmacists Deal With
Pharmacists deal with almost any and every disease since they interpret and fill prescriptions from doctors. They can also help patients manage their blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels. According to Healthcare Business & Technology, eight of some of the most debilitating diseases pharmacists can help patients deal with are rheumatoid arthritis (RA), schizophrenia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis (CF), scleroderma, multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and dementia. Pharmacists can also play a role in preventing vaccine-preventable diseases by advocating and administering immunizations to their patients. According to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), immunizations are recommended for U.S. adults and children against 17 vaccine-preventable infectious diseases, some of which include tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), measles, varicella (chickenpox), influenza, hepatitis B, and HPV (cervical cancer).
Patients Pharmacists See
Since pharmacists work with a wide variety of subspecialties and deal with a wide variety of diseases, they also see a wide variety of patients. Since individuals can easily access them in retail pharmacies, pharmacists can also help people with over-the-counter medications and give advice without the need for appointments.
How High School Students can Prepare to Become Pharmacists
Classes
Taking plenty of math and science classes such as biology, chemistry, physics, and calculus can be beneficial. These classes at an advanced level will further strengthen a solid foundation of math and science. In order to build strong verbal and written communication skills, students can take advanced English and speech classes. Students can also learn a foreign language in order to communicate with patients in diverse communities.
Extracurriculars
Pursuing extracurriculars related to STEM, health, and communication can be beneficial. These can include Science Olympiad, Mathletes, HOSA (Future Health Professionals), hospital and nursing home volunteering, and Speech & Debate. HOSA has a competitive pharmacology event that provides students with the opportunity to learn about the uses, effects, and modes of actions of drugs.
Other
Students can also consider shadowing a pharmacist or conducting an informational interview with a pharmacist in order to further their interest and better understand a pharmacist’s role.
Pre-Pharmacy Majors
Since there is not a major called “pre-pharmacy” and pharmacy schools do not require any particular major for admission, undergraduate students can major in anything. As long as they fulfill the prerequisites for applying to pharmacy school, they have flexibility with their choice of major. Popular pre-pharmacy majors include biology and chemistry. Some undergraduate schools do offer pharmacology and pharmaceutical science as majors.
Pre-Pharmacy Requirements
The pre-pharmacy requirements for pharmacy schools can vary, so it is important to research the ones of interest, but there are commonly needed classes. These include general chemistry with lab (2 semesters), organic chemistry with lab (2 semesters), biochemistry, biology with lab (2 semesters), microbiology with lab (1-2 semesters), physics with lab (2 semesters), human anatomy with lab, physiology, microbiology, psychology (1-2 semesters), statistics, calculus, economics, and English (2 semesters).
Pre-Pharmacy Societies
Undergraduate schools often have pre-pharmacy societies that students can join. These organizations promote the career of pharmacy and provide a variety of resources such as workshops, volunteering, guest speakers, and networking. They aim to help prepare members for pharmacy school admission and help members explore career opportunities for pharmacists.
Programs Toward Becoming a Pharmacist
Students commonly follow one of two paths in order to become a pharmacist. The first path is through a traditional undergraduate program, usually earning a bachelor’s degree before applying to graduate pharmacy programs. The second path is through a combined or dual degree program, earning both a bachelor’s degree and PharmD. Lasting about six years, these programs are commonly referred to as “0-6” programs. Both paths are good options. However, the first path provides more flexibility if students are unsure and want to keep their options more open. On the other hand, the second path, besides taking less time to complete, provides high school students acceptance into pharmacy school, so they do not have to worry about taking the PCAT (Pharmacy College Admission Test) or applying to PharmD programs after undergraduate school.
Colleges With Programs Toward Becoming a Pharmacist
Traditional Route
Since pharmacy schools do not require any particular major for admission and as long as the pre-pharmacy requirements are fulfilled, any undergraduate school is good for the traditional route. Some undergraduate schools that offer pharmacology or pharmaceutical science as majors are Purdue University with Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California, Davis with Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California, Irvine with Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of South Carolina with Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Southern California with Pharmacology and Drug Development, and there are many more. The University of Southern California (USC) has a Trojan Admission Pre-Pharmacy Program (TAP) that provides undergraduate students with priority admission to USC School of Pharmacy’s four-year PharmD program. Earning a bachelor’s degree is not required in order to apply to most pharmacy schools, but some usually prefer students to. Most pharmacy schools also require students to take the Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT), a five-section exam covering biological processes, chemical processes, critical reading, writing, and quantitative reasoning. According to Live the Pharm Life, the Big Ten pharmacy schools are the Ohio State University College of Pharmacy, Purdue College of Pharmacy, Rutgers University Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, University of Michigan College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy, and University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Pharmacy. There are also many more pharmacy schools.
0-6 Route
Schools that offer 0-6 programs are Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Rutgers University, University of Rhode Island, University of the Pacific, and there are many more. Some schools even offer a five-year accelerated PharmD pathway, such as Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.
Pharmacy Residency
To further their education and experiences, many students choose to go through a residency after they receive their PharmD. There are two categories of pharmacy residencies: Post Graduate Year 1 (PGY1) and Post Graduate Year 2 (PGY2). PGY1 expands on the knowledge and skills gained in the PharmD program, while PGY2 offers opportunities to explore particular fields of interest in pharmacy.
Endnote
In addition to dispensing prescription medications, pharmacists have many responsibilities and work directly with many different patients in order to improve their health. With a wide variety of subspecialties and opportunities, a career in pharmacy is diverse and flexible. Pharmacists play key leadership roles and are important members of healthcare teams. The job of a pharmacist is stable and actually projected for growth, despite what some may say, because of the likely retirement of some pharmacists during the next ten years and the aging U.S. population. Advancements in science, such as quantum computing, create more opportunities for pharmaceutical research and development and thus more discoveries in pharmaceutical drugs. In closing, pharmacy is a very rewarding and fulfilling career.
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