Pharmacist...

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: ZeroIQ
Doesn't it take 8 years of schooling to be a pharmacist?

can be done in 5-6...it's a bachelor's + 2-4 year (or more program)...I think there was an accellerated 1 year program (on top of the BS/BA) at one time.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: Zombie
My wife is retail pharmacist at Target. As other has said it is a very well paid job but could be boring at times. She also has to report to the store manager who has no clue of what is going on behind the counter.

She is happier at Target than she was at walgreens or CVS because she actually counsels the customers and the clientele is not as bad. From what I have heard retail pharmacists get paid the most but clinical might be more rewarding. Also she has never been out of a job and always keeps on getting new offers. Worst part of job is the hours. 10 hrs/day plus every other weekend.

This is why I stopped my Pharmacy education. I was interning at an Ecerds (now CVS) at the time and the freaking GM's in these places are constantly wanting upselling and little to no advice given due to potential lawsuits.

Your shifts are long, you have holidays and nights to cover. At the time they were doing 4 to 5 12-15 hour days and still only giving two days off, many times not even back to back. Vacation time is hard as there wasn't much back up, they'd get temp pharmacists but they weren't cheap and the GM would bitch.

As a day to day job with wireless internet it may not be so bad after all...in the mid 90's it wasn't popular and most of the day the pharmacist was sitting yawning with a book / magazine and just verifying filled prescriptions.

 

[stag3]

damn i'm 36 and wondering if this is something doable, like a lot of you im doing I.T. work but jobs are few
and far between now, and with a mortgage and bills, i can't go back to school full time, it would need to be
part time, what's the time frame part time? i'd go to a jc first i guess, since i never got a degree (don't really
need one in I.T. with experience) guess that came back to bite me in the ass eh haha
so by 42 would this be achievable?

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: stag3
damn i'm 36 and wondering if this is something doable, like a lot of you im doing I.T. work but jobs are few
and far between now, and with a mortgage and bills, i can't go back to school full time, it would need to be
part time, what's the time frame part time? i'd go to a jc first i guess, since i never got a degree (don't really
need one in I.T. with experience) guess that came back to bite me in the ass eh haha
so by 42 would this be achievable?

You really can't do a PharmD part time in 6 years. Pharmacy school itself typically is a very structured program where the class progression is very rigid and not available multiple times a year. Plus you'd have to cram in enough pre-pharm schooling to a) pass the PCATS and b) actually get accepted into a pharmacy program.

It really is a full time commitment. Your job would have to be part time. And in the last few years of your schooling, especially during your rotation year even that isn't likely.

 

[imported_mateo]

Originally posted by: vi edit

Originally posted by: stag3
damn i'm 36 and wondering if this is something doable, like a lot of you im doing I.T. work but jobs are few
and far between now, and with a mortgage and bills, i can't go back to school full time, it would need to be
part time, what's the time frame part time? i'd go to a jc first i guess, since i never got a degree (don't really
need one in I.T. with experience) guess that came back to bite me in the ass eh haha
so by 42 would this be achievable?

You really can't do a PharmD part time in 6 years. Pharmacy school itself typically is a very structured program where the class progression is very rigid and not available multiple times a year. Plus you'd have to cram in enough pre-pharm schooling to a) pass the PCATS and b) actually get accepted into a pharmacy program.

It really is a full time commitment. Your job would have to be part time. And in the last few years of your schooling, especially during your rotation year even that isn't likely.

That is spot on. Its a full time commitment.

The good news is that if you take out loans to help you through the process you will be able afford them and to pay them off unlike some other professions. My hospital even pays a portion of my student loans as incentive to keep me here.

Now if you take out the loans but dont finish... could be expensive.

 

[stag3]

ah ok, looks like no can do then
maybe i should check on radiology, i heard that's starting to do pretty good.

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: stag3
ah ok, looks like no can do then
maybe i should check on radiology, i heard that's starting to do pretty good.

Define "radiology"?

A radiology tech program is about two years for the basic schooling. Wait list is a good 2-4 years out though at many programs. That will get you around $40k'ish right out of the gates. Then you can go on for additional traning and do the higher end stuff like sonos or the nuke stuff like CT & MRI for even more.

A "radiologist" is an MD with a specialization in diagnosing medical images. That's an 8+ year program depending on how specialized you want to get.

If you are in IT, your best bet is to look into PACS administrator positions. Thats what I do. I manage the servers and workstations that are used to store and interpret xrays, MRI's, CT's, echos, caths, EKG's, ect. It's sort of a hybrid between a clinical and technical job, with a heavy lean on the technical side. Pay is decent, demand will be ever growing, and if you work with the big players in the field you are valuable to hospitals in pretty much any city. Plus hospitals are probably second to the goverment for job security.

 

[stag3]

yea radiologist tech, 2 yrs + cert to begin is what i'm seeing @ the local JC near me.
thanks, i'll check into the pacs admin.

 

[imported_Lothar]

Originally posted by: vi edit

Originally posted by: stag3
ah ok, looks like no can do then
maybe i should check on radiology, i heard that's starting to do pretty good.

Define "radiology"?

A radiology tech program is about two years for the basic schooling. Wait list is a good 2-4 years out though at many programs. That will get you around $40k'ish right out of the gates. Then you can go on for additional traning and do the higher end stuff like sonos or the nuke stuff like CT & MRI for even more.

A "radiologist" is an MD with a specialization in diagnosing medical images. That's an 8+ year program depending on how specialized you want to get.

Isn't there something in the middle of that?
I had an undergrad classmate switch from the pharmacy program to one.
It was a 4 year program and had nothing to do with med school.

 

[imported_Lothar]

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: ZeroIQ
Doesn't it take 8 years of schooling to be a pharmacist?

can be done in 5-6...it's a bachelor's + 2-4 year (or more program)...I think there was an accellerated 1 year program (on top of the BS/BA) at one time.

It's not a bachelor's.

 

[imported_Lothar]

Originally posted by: Row1and

Originally posted by: RichardE
My mom had a pharmacist that has saved her life a few times. He saw scripts coming from the doctor that conflicted with her scripts for High blood pressure, as well as other Epilepsy and MS scripts. I think that is the real point behind being a pharmacists, any monkey can fill bottles, but being able to look at a customer med list and go "oh hell no, we can't give her X if shes on Y she'll go into a coma!"

BUMP! As a pharmacy student, reading this put a smile on my face. Thanks!

I assumed you had graduated now based on your "where shalt thou settle" thread.

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: Lothar

Originally posted by: vi edit

Originally posted by: stag3
ah ok, looks like no can do then
maybe i should check on radiology, i heard that's starting to do pretty good.

Define "radiology"?

A radiology tech program is about two years for the basic schooling. Wait list is a good 2-4 years out though at many programs. That will get you around $40k'ish right out of the gates. Then you can go on for additional traning and do the higher end stuff like sonos or the nuke stuff like CT & MRI for even more.

A "radiologist" is an MD with a specialization in diagnosing medical images. That's an 8+ year program depending on how specialized you want to get.

Isn't there something in the middle of that?
I had an undergrad classmate switch from the pharmacy program to one.
It was a 4 year program and had nothing to do with med school.

All I'm aware of is a Radiology "Technologist" position. It's a 2 or a 4 year program depending on the school. Most CC's that offer are a 2 year deal. The 4 year is a full Bachelors program and gives you more headroom for promotions (management, tech leads, ect). You're either a tech, or a Radiologist. I'm not too sure of anything else in between. Some nursing programs will specialize in nuke med, you aren't thinking of that are you?

 

[imported_Lothar]

Originally posted by: vi edit

Originally posted by: Lothar

Originally posted by: vi edit

Originally posted by: stag3
ah ok, looks like no can do then
maybe i should check on radiology, i heard that's starting to do pretty good.

Define "radiology"?

A radiology tech program is about two years for the basic schooling. Wait list is a good 2-4 years out though at many programs. That will get you around $40k'ish right out of the gates. Then you can go on for additional traning and do the higher end stuff like sonos or the nuke stuff like CT & MRI for even more.

A "radiologist" is an MD with a specialization in diagnosing medical images. That's an 8+ year program depending on how specialized you want to get.

Isn't there something in the middle of that?
I had an undergrad classmate switch from the pharmacy program to one.
It was a 4 year program and had nothing to do with med school.

All I'm aware of is a Radiology "Technologist" position. It's a 2 or a 4 year program depending on the school. Most CC's that offer are a 2 year deal. The 4 year is a full Bachelors program and gives you more headroom for promotions (management, tech leads, ect). You're either a tech, or a Radiologist. I'm not too sure of anything else in between. Some nursing programs will specialize in nuke med, you aren't thinking of that are you?

Figured it out.
What I was thinking about was "radiation therapy".
I'm not sure if that is the same or different from what you were describing earlier, or if there's any relation.

I'm guessing that is completely different?

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: Lothar

Originally posted by: vi edit

Originally posted by: Lothar

Originally posted by: vi edit

Originally posted by: stag3
ah ok, looks like no can do then
maybe i should check on radiology, i heard that's starting to do pretty good.

Define "radiology"?

A radiology tech program is about two years for the basic schooling. Wait list is a good 2-4 years out though at many programs. That will get you around $40k'ish right out of the gates. Then you can go on for additional traning and do the higher end stuff like sonos or the nuke stuff like CT & MRI for even more.

A "radiologist" is an MD with a specialization in diagnosing medical images. That's an 8+ year program depending on how specialized you want to get.

Isn't there something in the middle of that?
I had an undergrad classmate switch from the pharmacy program to one.
It was a 4 year program and had nothing to do with med school.

All I'm aware of is a Radiology "Technologist" position. It's a 2 or a 4 year program depending on the school. Most CC's that offer are a 2 year deal. The 4 year is a full Bachelors program and gives you more headroom for promotions (management, tech leads, ect). You're either a tech, or a Radiologist. I'm not too sure of anything else in between. Some nursing programs will specialize in nuke med, you aren't thinking of that are you?

Figured it out.
What I was thinking about was "radiation therapy".
I'm not sure if that is the same or different from what you were describing earlier, or if there's any relation.

I'm guessing that is completely different?

Ah. That's an oncology job and not really related to medical imaging(although they use the modalities for it), so I'm kind of clueless as to what they do and the education for it.