Though we may not often realize it, pharmacists are a very important member of our medical team. They are responsible for distributing the drugs we need to feel better and to heal, and in some instances to continue to live. If a pharmacist is incompetent, it’s possible that they will make a mistake that could cost someone their life.

There are many prescription medications that should not be taken by people who have certain conditions or by those who are taking certain other medications. There are instances when a patient has to go to a different doctor if their regular doctor is not available. At the office visit, the doctor or the patient should bring up any potential complications that a medication could cause if mixed with other medications the patient is taking or if they are suffering from any conditions that could be effected by any medications he could prescribe. This doesn’t always come up in a routine visit, though. This is where the competency of the pharmacist comes in. 

When picking up any prescription medication, the pharmacist is supposed to check the patient records for prescription history and then consult the patient on the new prescription. At this time, he or she should go over any side effects that are possible in the above mentioned circumstances. An incompetent pharmacist may not always do this. Even if they do, it’s possible that they are not even aware themselves of the side effects of the drug they are dispensing. This can be a potential danger not only to health but perhaps even to the lives of their patients.

Every year, more than 100,000 people die due to mistakes made by pharmacists. This is more yearly fatalities than those that are caused by traffic accidents, AIDS, or breast cancer. These mistakes could be the pharmacist dispensing the incorrect medication, incorrect strength of the medication, or incorrect form of the medication. Additionally, pharmacy errors account for around three percent of all hospital admissions.

Competency is a very valuable quality in a pharmacist. We not only want them to have it it, but we expect it. Everyday people is putting their lives in the the hands of a pharmacist. We trust that they know what they are doing and rarely question the things they tell us. Pharmacists accept that when they sign up for the job. Every single one of them needs to understand and respect that responsibility.

 

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Many pharmacists applying for jobs right now are having a hard time getting noticed from their competition, because of mistakes being made in the application process. One mistake is not tailoring your resume to the position you are applying for. Hiring managers are passing pharmacists up for that reason. This can happen even if you have a recruiter representing you for a position.

A misconception pharmacists have about working with recruiters is that recruiters will be able to get you over the hurdle of being just a resume on someone’s desk because they will be able to verbally tell the hiring manager about why you should be considered for a position, so you don’t need to do much to represent yourself well in a resume.

Recruiters can certainly move you in front of a pile of resumes. However, just as with networking, even if a recruiter provides you with the value of a direct connection and markets you to a decision-maker, the hiring manager still wants to see your strengths and responsibilities relevant to the position backed up by your resume. If you choose to highlight other things instead, or gloss over your related pharmacist experience, you can still be passed up even if you are qualified.

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For example, there is one hospital that is looking for a pharmacist who has started up an anticoagulation clinic or set up other pharmacy-run clinics. That is a main responsibility they are looking for experience in. I know a pharmacist who has had experience setting up pharmacy-run clinics, but she chose to just highlight all the anticoagulation clinic experience she’s had, not the experience she’s had in setting up a pharmacy-run clinic. It cost her an interview.

I know another pharmacist who didn’t answer objections upfront about things that a hiring manager could have concerns about within his resume. His resume did not explain clearly why he had made job changes within a 1.5-2 year period for the last few jobs, all of which were reasonable circumstances. Even though it may be explained to a pharmacy hiring manager by a recruiter, hiring managers are busy and can forget. When the hiring manager gets a chance to look over your resume, he/she passes a judgment based on what they see.

My advice to you is get clear about the responsibilities of the position you’re applying for and take the time to address those specific responsibilities as much as you can. Also meet potential objections upfront someone may have about why you would be a good fit for the position.

Sometimes you can think you’ve addressed this the best as possible without realizing how 1) you have really undersold yourself, 2) you have not crafted your resume to market yourself to give yourself the best chance possible to be invited in for an interview. Get a resume critique from a pharmacist job market expert before you send off your resume/application. Doing it yourself without expert feedback will only get you so far. You would be amazed at how many times you are getting overlooked for an interview because you are making this key mistake with writing your resume. Fortunately, if you make an effort to get feedback from an expert, you can take control of your job search results. You deserve the best shot, especially for positions that you are qualified for.

Remember, in this competitive pharmacist job market, doing the same thing you’ve always done will not get you the results it may have a few years ago. Use what you’ve learned to make changes in the way you are approaching your resume writing to get results.

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