Anyone in pharmacy?

[One Taste]

I just went to a big college fair yesterday and I'm thinking about going into pharmacy. I'll admit it's the money that attracted me at first, but I've always been pretty good at science and even though I thought I hated it when I was younger, I've started to like it in high school, and I know the field of health care is going to keep growing and growing. I've heard the classes are pretty tough..

If I do decide to try going into it, I'd still have trouble deciding whether to go to a school that has the full 6-year pharm.d. program, or to do pre-pharmacy at another school and then transfer somewhere else to do the final four years. Just wondered if anyone had any experience in this area and could tell me a little about it, both the schooling and career.

[diddlysquat]

1. Both parents were pharmacists....

granted this was a while ago but my dad always said that if you go into pharmacy the best field was hospital pharmacy and not drug store pharmacy. My dad became chief pharmacist of the Public Health Service before he finally retired in the '70s.

[burythehatchet]

2. That part of health care - the chemistry

is going to be the most important for the forseeable future. Current demand is already greater than supply. In terms of job security and money, you really can't go wrong.

Good luck.

[One Taste]

3. Thanks..that's one of my major concerns..

...job security.

[rockymountaindem]

4. Money, what money?

Trust me, with insurance companies willing to reimburse you for no more than $2 over cost, you'll have to do a ton of busniess if you want to get rich.

[One Taste]

5. according to Drug Topics magazine..

http://www.aacp.org/site/tertiary.asp?TRACKID=&VID=2&CID=686&DID=4750#Salaries

"SALARIES
The demand for pharmaceutical care services has resulted in a dramatic increase in salaries in all sectors of pharmacy. According to a 2003 survey by Drug Topics magazine, the median annual earning of pharmacists (including overtime and bonuses) in 2002 was $82,607, as compared to $78,624 per year in 2000 and $64,980 per year in 1999.

"Of the six practice settings studied, health maintenance organization pharmacists were the highest paid ($89,247), while independent pharmacists were the lowest paid ($76,724). The average yearly salaries for pharmacists employed in other settings were $81,978 (hospital), $84,565 (chain), $87,561 (discount store/mass-merchandiser), and $87,589 (supermarket). Other findings from our survey: Most pharmacists love their job, and the majority would pick pharmacy as a career again, if they could."1

1LoBuono, Charlotte, "Exclusive R.Ph. Salary Survey: Cashing in - Most pharmacists are working hard, earning good money, and loving it," DrugTopics.com, 3 March 2003"

[One Taste]

6. kick for the daytime people

:kick:

[Snow]

7. There're going to be some changes, though....

already the pill-counting machines have taken that part of the job in many places (no big loss that!), and there's some bar-code developments right around the corner to reduce prescribing errors - check the thread on that in the health/education forum.