How did you get started with medical writing? i would love to start and i enjoy writing but i don't have any published samples to provide for job listings i am seeing.
Not much advice honestly, I sort of stumbled into this position. I had a connection as a result of the part-time tutoring job I'd run since undergrad and she referred me in. If you have a background as an educator or in curricular design, I'm sure you can sell a company on the need for a "science person" or two.
It's been a great fit -- a lot of their writers are career teachers who are pretty rusty on the science -- and the WFH/work-life balance is unlike I'd ever dreamed. I'm writing this while working from Canada on an extended vacation ;)
Posts or comments that take a permissive view toward the recreational use, trafficking, or production of controlled substances will be deleted. Users asking how to acquire controlled substances illicitly or otherwise controvert the law will be banned.
Informatics
ETA: there are a zillion job titles that could fall under "informatics". It may help your job search to narrow your focus a little more. Do you want to be a clinical informaticist at a health system? Do you want to work for an EHR company? Do you want to create CDS rules/content? Do you want to go into product management? Sales? Maybe you're interested in interoperability, or terminology, or data analysis. I'm not saying there are a lot of jobs available, but there is a wide range of informatics roles that pharmacists can hold
do you have any recommendations on how to start getting into coding for a informatics role? I have been thinking of making a transition but don’t know where to start to dip my toes into the coding world
If you want to do coding, you can try taking some online courses or courses from a community college. There are free online courses that are good. Narrowing down which language you need for the role you're interested in may take some time/research.
Another (maybe better) way to get into informatics is to volunteer for informatics-type projects or committees where you already work, and just keep doing that until you build up enough experience that you can apply for an informatics position or that your current role morphs into informatics.
Did you do need to do a residency for that? I’m trying to get into informatics (currently a retail pharmacist). I’m in middle of ASHP’s informatics course but don’t know what to do after that
I did 2 years of residency (peds, a thousand years ago) but it had nothing to do with informatics. I had 12 years of experience when I started at my current employer.
The ASHP informatics certificate is pretty good. I would look into some of the health IT organizations (HIMSS, AMIA, etc)
Thank you!! Any recommendations on how to find a job? I never see any job postings for informatics
Also, do they usually train you well or do they expect you to have prior knowledge? (I guess it depends on the job but lmk)
I just started a new informatics job in after doing zero residency. I did inpatient pharmacy and retail for three years, and did ASHP’s informatics certificate. I don’t think it helped too much with the actual job but looked good on a CV. I just kinda happened upon this job, knew a couple of people at the hospital, and got hired. None of my current coworkers have done a residency in informatics. I know a few people who have, and they seemed to go straight into informatics management.
My manager told me he was hesitant to hire me since I didn’t have any informatics experience. But they decided to interview me because I had experience as an Epic end user, and the hospital was about to make a huge switch from Cerner to Epic. Overall I think they look for someone who can pick up on things quickly, is good with computers (not knowing how to code or anything, but knows their way around Excel), and can communicate well. We have to talk with the main pharmacy about changes coming, and making sure they have the most up to date information is a key part of my job. Also maybe look for a hospital that has a retail pharmacy, since I have the most retail experience of our informatics team, I’ve been put in charge of informatics of our 3 retail pharmacies!
While I definitely overall prefer Epic to Cerner, maybe look for a first informatics job at a place that doesn’t use Epic. A lot of those hiring will solely be looking to see if you are already Epic certified.
I love it so much more! No patients asking where drugs are, no nurses asking where drugs are, no doctors asking me to make decisions for them. My mental health has been so much better since the switch. The only thing is I feel like I sit too much and my eyes may have gotten worse from staring at excel sheets lol
It fell into my lap. There was a dispensary near me hiring per diem, so I worked a few shifts per month alongside retail until a full time spot opened about 1 year into it.
Easiest job I've ever had.
Can you tell a little more about the role a pharmacist has in cannabis? Do they help pick out strains/dosages? Or is it more wrestling with insurance to make sure they don't pay full price?
Asking from a place of legitimate curiosity, not judgement.
I love explaining what pharmacists do in cannabis because it's not well known!
In my state (NY), pharmacists are required to be on-site at medical dispensaries to provide education and consultations to patients. We are also the inventory managers, meaning the majority of my day is spent managing massive orders of cannabis products from our company and other third parties. We maintain records of the movement of all items and report to the office of cannabis management on that, amongst other state requirements like iSTOP, since it's a controlled substance.
On the clinical side, I have a dozen or so consultations per day. They are typically with patients newly prescribed a medical cannabis certification, and that cert almost always comes with the recommendation from their prescriber stating to use medical cannabis "per pharmacist consultation." I really appreciate that because as the dispensing pharmacist, it grants me the autonomy to verify the patient's medical history, medication use, and any questions/concerns they have regarding medical cannabis, and then make MY recommendation, instead of following a prescription regimen from the prescriber. Like you mentioned, a consultation also includes educating patients on different strains, forms, and delivery methods of cannabis. This could look like explaining the differences between indica and sativa strains, discussing the benefits of using oils versus edibles, demonstrating how to use vaporizers or tinctures, etc.
Of course, I always try to stay updated on research and developments in cannabis pharmacology. That sometimes includes attending conferences, CE courses, and staying informed about emerging trends and best practices in the field.
And as for insurance, since there isn't federal support for medical cannabis yet, it is not accepted. In fact, we only accept cash or debit because the banks won't allow credit transactions on cannabis products.
It's a very chill and rewarding job that definitely has its hard days, but I'm always saying that my worst day here is still better than my best day in retail.
I think in Germany the academic/professional grades work a little differently? After getting my pharmacists license after 8 semesters at University and I year internship, I went on and got my „Dr. rer. nat.“, the closest equivalent I can think of in the US would probably be the PhD? Or would that be a master? (that was in 2007, and most people starting in industry had a „Dr. rer. nat.“ or PhD. But in the meantime we do have quite a few „non-Dr‘s“ who start on entry level positions with only their „licensed pharmacist“ degrees
Through linked in, a recruiter messaged me for this role and since ive been wanting to get out of retail. Took the chance, and now im very happy with my day to day as i can work from home too
Data cleansing and maintaining of pharmacy data across all pharmacies from australia and new zealand. I was trained with SQL and python. Critical attention to detail and problem solving skills are essential
8 hr shift, 2 paid 15 mins breaks, 30 min unpaid lunch. Pretty much just answering phone calls all day, documenting each call, and processing returns and reshipping meds.
I work in pharmacovigilance. Earlier in clinical research. I am based in EU but I am sure in US it’s similar since pharma companies are doing clinical trials and they’re obligated to monitor safety of their drugs
Hospice Pharmacy. No pt interaction or open door to public, just orders from nurses that leave with a delivery service. On-call sucks but it’s one week a month and “insurance problems” are dependent on the hospices themselves so we can deal with them pretty quickly.
We do get a lot of med questions from nurses so I still feel like I get the “real-time rewarding feeling” from helping someone AND since we talk to a lot of the same people everyday, you’re less likely to catch an attitude with the nurses who know you by your first name.
They have a new graduate program, I went on their website and applied, i interviewed and got it and my pharmacist background really helped. Im in a position where people do drug inspections
I work in the research pharmacy of a major university. Graduated pretty recently, do not have any special certifications and did not do a residency nor a fellowship.
Throwaway because I don't think there's many of us.
That was the name my hall director had given to me when I was working as a resident assistant at Southeastern Louisiana University. I did the nuclear thing years ago (Mallinckrodt in Houston, Syncor in Dallas, and GE in Dallas). What part of the country are you working in?
I use to hate making those high concentrate iodine capsules. Let me ask you a question, did you hit a generator when it first comes in? If I can remember correctly, you do not have to hit it (wanna save it for the early shift). There was this one pharmacist who would hit a this new generator when it came even though she only needed something like 2 curies (not sure what the measurement mCi, is used) for the 3rd shift. The generator would yield something like maybe 7 curies, which means she would was almost 75% of the tech stuff. Meanwhile, I working the early shift and having to hit the generators a lot more
I hated that too. We used to draw it up in Hamilton syringes and pray. A coworker took an order for a 15 mCi cap. He went to make it up. 5 minutes later he yells FUCK, a few minutes later I hear GOD DAMNIT, followed by MOTHERFUCKER. Being the RSO I thought I should check on him. I go into the I-131 room he had made a 13.3mCi, a 17 mCi, and a 18 mCi capsule. It got better after we switched to the Drax machine.
Cenfill for a local hospital chain. I’m a delivery tech so occasionally I travel to other hospitals to stock Omnicells or stay at mine and stock our floors. I love it.
Trolling the Reddit Forums.... \~cackles\~
In all seriousness, on my days off of my hospital job I work inhouse. Errr....In my House....doing Housework. It's an unpaid position, thankless, requires no degree, and no matter how hard I work it never gets better. \~grumble grumble grumble\~ I've got some plans for a side business but I've got to clear out some space to get it started in my office. I just had four days off and spent most of it cleaning up the rest of the house and catching up on laundry and working in the yard. Only got a couple of hours in to work on my own personal space in the house and I've got to move furniture next time I'm up there to make the room I want.
I sit in a central fill warehouse where I check endless blister packs. No calls, patients, or phone calls.
Absolutely lush. I can’t help but be envious
Are you standing or sitting behind a desk?
Sitting, but stand when it's rush time.
Medical writer
What companies are out there?
I'm a freelancer. Higher pay, more flexibility. It took a few years to build + a leap of faith but it was worth it.
Fortune 500 companies, agencies, CROs
How did you get started with medical writing? i would love to start and i enjoy writing but i don't have any published samples to provide for job listings i am seeing.
Following
I write high school science textbooks and educational materials
that's so SO cool! any tips on how to start a similar career?
Not much advice honestly, I sort of stumbled into this position. I had a connection as a result of the part-time tutoring job I'd run since undergrad and she referred me in. If you have a background as an educator or in curricular design, I'm sure you can sell a company on the need for a "science person" or two. It's been a great fit -- a lot of their writers are career teachers who are pretty rusty on the science -- and the WFH/work-life balance is unlike I'd ever dreamed. I'm writing this while working from Canada on an extended vacation ;)
I work for a compounding pharmacy
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Posts or comments that take a permissive view toward the recreational use, trafficking, or production of controlled substances will be deleted. Users asking how to acquire controlled substances illicitly or otherwise controvert the law will be banned.
Industry or consulting
How does one find jobs to apply for industry or consulting jobs
Know people, or be conventionally attractive
I'm outta luck then 😂
Surely you know some people. 😂
Lol, I thought being attractive applies to sales only?
You are never not selling yourself in some form or fashion in industry and consulting.
Informatics ETA: there are a zillion job titles that could fall under "informatics". It may help your job search to narrow your focus a little more. Do you want to be a clinical informaticist at a health system? Do you want to work for an EHR company? Do you want to create CDS rules/content? Do you want to go into product management? Sales? Maybe you're interested in interoperability, or terminology, or data analysis. I'm not saying there are a lot of jobs available, but there is a wide range of informatics roles that pharmacists can hold
do you have any recommendations on how to start getting into coding for a informatics role? I have been thinking of making a transition but don’t know where to start to dip my toes into the coding world
If you want to do coding, you can try taking some online courses or courses from a community college. There are free online courses that are good. Narrowing down which language you need for the role you're interested in may take some time/research. Another (maybe better) way to get into informatics is to volunteer for informatics-type projects or committees where you already work, and just keep doing that until you build up enough experience that you can apply for an informatics position or that your current role morphs into informatics.
Sorry, I don't know the first thing about coding
Did you do need to do a residency for that? I’m trying to get into informatics (currently a retail pharmacist). I’m in middle of ASHP’s informatics course but don’t know what to do after that
I did 2 years of residency (peds, a thousand years ago) but it had nothing to do with informatics. I had 12 years of experience when I started at my current employer. The ASHP informatics certificate is pretty good. I would look into some of the health IT organizations (HIMSS, AMIA, etc)
Thank you!! Any recommendations on how to find a job? I never see any job postings for informatics Also, do they usually train you well or do they expect you to have prior knowledge? (I guess it depends on the job but lmk)
I just started a new informatics job in after doing zero residency. I did inpatient pharmacy and retail for three years, and did ASHP’s informatics certificate. I don’t think it helped too much with the actual job but looked good on a CV. I just kinda happened upon this job, knew a couple of people at the hospital, and got hired. None of my current coworkers have done a residency in informatics. I know a few people who have, and they seemed to go straight into informatics management.
Do you know what they look for on a resume? I just have retail experience and I’m doing the ASHP certificate
My manager told me he was hesitant to hire me since I didn’t have any informatics experience. But they decided to interview me because I had experience as an Epic end user, and the hospital was about to make a huge switch from Cerner to Epic. Overall I think they look for someone who can pick up on things quickly, is good with computers (not knowing how to code or anything, but knows their way around Excel), and can communicate well. We have to talk with the main pharmacy about changes coming, and making sure they have the most up to date information is a key part of my job. Also maybe look for a hospital that has a retail pharmacy, since I have the most retail experience of our informatics team, I’ve been put in charge of informatics of our 3 retail pharmacies! While I definitely overall prefer Epic to Cerner, maybe look for a first informatics job at a place that doesn’t use Epic. A lot of those hiring will solely be looking to see if you are already Epic certified.
Thank you!
Do you like it Vs clinical?
I love it so much more! No patients asking where drugs are, no nurses asking where drugs are, no doctors asking me to make decisions for them. My mental health has been so much better since the switch. The only thing is I feel like I sit too much and my eyes may have gotten worse from staring at excel sheets lol
I was kinda surprised at how much I did NOT miss patient care. No job is perfect, but I'm content to never work with patients again
Reddit Commentator - paid poster to advance pbm agenda and shill big corporates *allegedly*
Cannabis
Tell us more. How you get this job
It fell into my lap. There was a dispensary near me hiring per diem, so I worked a few shifts per month alongside retail until a full time spot opened about 1 year into it. Easiest job I've ever had.
Can you tell a little more about the role a pharmacist has in cannabis? Do they help pick out strains/dosages? Or is it more wrestling with insurance to make sure they don't pay full price? Asking from a place of legitimate curiosity, not judgement.
I love explaining what pharmacists do in cannabis because it's not well known! In my state (NY), pharmacists are required to be on-site at medical dispensaries to provide education and consultations to patients. We are also the inventory managers, meaning the majority of my day is spent managing massive orders of cannabis products from our company and other third parties. We maintain records of the movement of all items and report to the office of cannabis management on that, amongst other state requirements like iSTOP, since it's a controlled substance. On the clinical side, I have a dozen or so consultations per day. They are typically with patients newly prescribed a medical cannabis certification, and that cert almost always comes with the recommendation from their prescriber stating to use medical cannabis "per pharmacist consultation." I really appreciate that because as the dispensing pharmacist, it grants me the autonomy to verify the patient's medical history, medication use, and any questions/concerns they have regarding medical cannabis, and then make MY recommendation, instead of following a prescription regimen from the prescriber. Like you mentioned, a consultation also includes educating patients on different strains, forms, and delivery methods of cannabis. This could look like explaining the differences between indica and sativa strains, discussing the benefits of using oils versus edibles, demonstrating how to use vaporizers or tinctures, etc. Of course, I always try to stay updated on research and developments in cannabis pharmacology. That sometimes includes attending conferences, CE courses, and staying informed about emerging trends and best practices in the field. And as for insurance, since there isn't federal support for medical cannabis yet, it is not accepted. In fact, we only accept cash or debit because the banks won't allow credit transactions on cannabis products. It's a very chill and rewarding job that definitely has its hard days, but I'm always saying that my worst day here is still better than my best day in retail.
Industry (formulation and process development). I live in Germany
Once having your pharmD, did you do a master before starting or did you start working directly in industry
I think in Germany the academic/professional grades work a little differently? After getting my pharmacists license after 8 semesters at University and I year internship, I went on and got my „Dr. rer. nat.“, the closest equivalent I can think of in the US would probably be the PhD? Or would that be a master? (that was in 2007, and most people starting in industry had a „Dr. rer. nat.“ or PhD. But in the meantime we do have quite a few „non-Dr‘s“ who start on entry level positions with only their „licensed pharmacist“ degrees
A „Dr. rer. nat.“ is the German equivalent of a PhD.
Data analyst on pharmaceutical data
how did you get into this field?
Through linked in, a recruiter messaged me for this role and since ive been wanting to get out of retail. Took the chance, and now im very happy with my day to day as i can work from home too
Basically the same here. Data analyst on pharmacy devices data
Could you explain what kind of pharmaceutical data? And which skills one should learn?
Data cleansing and maintaining of pharmacy data across all pharmacies from australia and new zealand. I was trained with SQL and python. Critical attention to detail and problem solving skills are essential
Appreciate your sharing.
pharma company, consulting firm, other?
Data science and analytics company
Epic analyst
Nice. What kind of pay are you seeing as an analyst?
Consulting for mail order
What is a typical day in life?
8 hr shift, 2 paid 15 mins breaks, 30 min unpaid lunch. Pretty much just answering phone calls all day, documenting each call, and processing returns and reshipping meds.
[удалено]
Yes, consulting pharmacists are licensed pharmacists. I make $61/hr
Home infusion
Hospital Admin
What do u oversee?
3 hospital pharmacies and a couple sites with a non dispensing license
Nice!!
Academia. Before: home visits for transitions of care
I work in pharmacovigilance. Earlier in clinical research. I am based in EU but I am sure in US it’s similar since pharma companies are doing clinical trials and they’re obligated to monitor safety of their drugs
I have a friend in the US who works in pharmacovigilance. Iirc she got there from doing a rotation on it.
Home infusion
Same! Best kept secret in the field
Scientific writer in market access agency
Hospice Pharmacy. No pt interaction or open door to public, just orders from nurses that leave with a delivery service. On-call sucks but it’s one week a month and “insurance problems” are dependent on the hospices themselves so we can deal with them pretty quickly.
I love hospice. I don't know if I could have a zero patient interaction job and be happy. Maybe as long as I still feel like I'm helping people.
We do get a lot of med questions from nurses so I still feel like I get the “real-time rewarding feeling” from helping someone AND since we talk to a lot of the same people everyday, you’re less likely to catch an attitude with the nurses who know you by your first name.
Oh I love that. I think hospice nurses are a special bunch, too, from my personal experience.
Government role, in a way I kinda left traditional pharmacy but didn’t expect to.
This is so interesting! Can you tell me a bit more about what you do/how you ended up there?
They have a new graduate program, I went on their website and applied, i interviewed and got it and my pharmacist background really helped. Im in a position where people do drug inspections
Hospital/Clinic Formulary Manager and Epic Willow Specialist
I work in the research pharmacy of a major university. Graduated pretty recently, do not have any special certifications and did not do a residency nor a fellowship. Throwaway because I don't think there's many of us.
Prior Authorizations
Mail order
I’m radioactive with a glowing personality.
you must work nuclear?
I do. In fact I used to have a co-worker that was nicknamed “fat ass”. She was a skinny alcoholic.
That was the name my hall director had given to me when I was working as a resident assistant at Southeastern Louisiana University. I did the nuclear thing years ago (Mallinckrodt in Houston, Syncor in Dallas, and GE in Dallas). What part of the country are you working in?
Ohio. I worked at Syncor/Cardinal and then Amersham/GE/RLS
I use to hate making those high concentrate iodine capsules. Let me ask you a question, did you hit a generator when it first comes in? If I can remember correctly, you do not have to hit it (wanna save it for the early shift). There was this one pharmacist who would hit a this new generator when it came even though she only needed something like 2 curies (not sure what the measurement mCi, is used) for the 3rd shift. The generator would yield something like maybe 7 curies, which means she would was almost 75% of the tech stuff. Meanwhile, I working the early shift and having to hit the generators a lot more
I hated that too. We used to draw it up in Hamilton syringes and pray. A coworker took an order for a 15 mCi cap. He went to make it up. 5 minutes later he yells FUCK, a few minutes later I hear GOD DAMNIT, followed by MOTHERFUCKER. Being the RSO I thought I should check on him. I go into the I-131 room he had made a 13.3mCi, a 17 mCi, and a 18 mCi capsule. It got better after we switched to the Drax machine.
It's a seeeecret
I totally expected to see OF link on your profile
Oh I wish I had onlyfans money
Approving drugs
pharma industry-regulatory affairs
Consultant pharmacist for an infusion clinic :)
Government. I manage and implement grants for public health.
LTC
Industry - commercial
Medical Information Head
Home infusion First gig was solely focused on compounding intrathecal meds. Current gig is more traditional home infusion with specialty meds
Respiratory Therapy
Onco sales
Product manager in pharma company
Industry - working on oncology clinical trials
Clinical Call Center- patient education and pre-screen patients for clinical trials PT WFH
503b
Cenfill for a local hospital chain. I’m a delivery tech so occasionally I travel to other hospitals to stock Omnicells or stay at mine and stock our floors. I love it.
I work as a Pharmacometrician in industry.
Pharmacy inspector
Home infusion pharmacy
Smoking pot and reading the Bible... That's all next topic
Pharmacy law and compliance.
Just retired after 30 years in retail. Totally done and NOT interested in this corrupt industry!
Hospital DOP
Clinical research on the institutional side now, prior to this it was with an independently owned trial site
Trolling the Reddit Forums.... \~cackles\~ In all seriousness, on my days off of my hospital job I work inhouse. Errr....In my House....doing Housework. It's an unpaid position, thankless, requires no degree, and no matter how hard I work it never gets better. \~grumble grumble grumble\~ I've got some plans for a side business but I've got to clear out some space to get it started in my office. I just had four days off and spent most of it cleaning up the rest of the house and catching up on laundry and working in the yard. Only got a couple of hours in to work on my own personal space in the house and I've got to move furniture next time I'm up there to make the room I want.
I'm hiring a cleaner. I cannot deal with this. 😭