<p>This post receives an honorary slow clap. I think this is one of the most ridiculous posts I have ever read on college confidential. Congrats!</p>
<p>I think VandyHopeful hit the nail right on the head.</p>
<p>All I have to add is that it appears someone is insecure. Why else would this individual come onto a website and anonymously bash an entire profession? </p>
<p>But here's a simple answer to your question: No. Don't do it. If being comfortable is your life's goal and you think it will make you satisfied, then take the path you think will help you achieve that. But remember, take into account how you may overglorify the pharmacy path at this point.</p>
<p>@ slow clap.. i agree that the profession of pharmacy is overglorified.... lol..</p>
<p>i though Opener of this thread pretty much answered himself, he wanted more motivation to do what he does not wish..lol..</p>
<p>@ oreo.. by you do u mean me?.. if so, im very "stable".. haha, ive figured some of my earlier mistakes already.... (like supporting a fallen cause- stem cell research..)</p>
<p>This thread is hilarious. As someone who's studied pharm (in med school), I personally can't see why anyone would want to devote their career to that boring crap. (Thank God someone does, but really.) Also, I can't see the excitement that one would get as a pharmacist...you don't go to work and see cool stuff everyday and the highlight of a shift may be setting a speed record for filling all the phone in prescriptions. How can that compare to diagnosing and debrillating a patient with vtach? Or delivering a baby? Or detecting an aortic dissection and performing a life saving operation? Or seeing Tetralogy of Fallot on ECHO? </p>
<p>It's often said that being a doctor is like having a nagging mistress (or mister?) that constantly interferes with and complicates your life. Yet people still continue to put themselves through misery to become doctors. Is the career perfect? No. But if you went into it with realistic expectations, it can be fantastic. </p>
<p>I also caution you against trying to plot out your entire life (lol) at the ripe old age of 18. Puts way to much pressure on you. BTW, you can actually have a life during med school/ residency; many people have kids during residency, etc.</p>
<p>First and foremost I would like to say to the OP… Just don’t become a doctor. You obviously have some issues with the profession cutting into your personal life, and to be honest it’s quite alright. Take on a profession that better suits you but if you do it with dignity and honesty and I don’t see a problem. Although, to be honest, I don’t know how you’re going to work in pharmacy school. Trust me when I tell you, they are going to bust that brain open the moment you step into those classes and working will be a futile activity to which I advise against. Now, if you’re some type of genius, go right ahead, but I’m sire you’ll learn eventually, and the only way for you to really know is to experience it.</p>
<p>To everyone else I would like to say… COME ON hahaha! You have got to be kidding me. Pharmacy (while a bit over-glorified I must admit) Is not just about filling prescriptions everyday. I’d like to believe there are educated individuals present on this forum, so if you’re going to downplay pharmacy THAT BADLY then please exhaust your research. Sure, sure society has perpetuated the idea that pharmacist sit behind a counter laughing at you while you wait 45 minutes for your antibiotics or pain medication while they sit back and chat for hours on end about last nights episode of American Idol, but society has also over-glorified doctors as the saviors of everyone. Right, and then when the pharmaceutical companies give them a bag of medications these medicinal options become the only thing they want to prescribe, whether it’s best for the patient or not, but hey, they have to make money, right. And then we pharmacists have to catch it before a patient takes some drug that could potentially kill them (It’s happened to me twice which is part of the reason why I chose pharmacy over physicians). My point, is things aren’t always what they seem. Physicians are no better than pharmacists and vise versa.</p>
<p>With that said, I’d like to point out the fact that NOT ALL PHARMACISTS WORK AT WALGREENS, since no one is here to back up pharmacy as a profession. Have you ever heard of a Nuclear Pharmacist… or how about a Coumpounding Pharmacist… or my favortie, the clinical pharmacist… ya know, the 1 who your Physician will probably run to when he’s deciding on drug therapy options for a sick patient but can’t figure out what to do because of the multiple issues with say your heart and/or liver. Why else would you need an expert in drug thereapy? We provide more services than just standing behind a counter and shuffling out prescriptions like a card dealer at a Las Vegas casino. Clinical and Compounding pharmacist have an exciting day everyday… (ok maybe not everyday but close to it), and they don’t “stare at pills all day”, so could you all stop for one itsy-bitsy second and just do a little research on the profession before you start knocking it. I know society doesn’t paint the prettiest pictures, but if you would just step away from walgreens and alberstsons for just a minute and dive into the different branches of pharmacy (much like medicine, residencies and all), you’d see what I am talking about.</p>
<p>Pharmdapp87- You sound very defensive about pharmacy. I certainly know no one who looks down on pharmacists. I am just thankful YOU will not be a doctor because you seem to have an acidic personality.</p>
<p>I knew this girl who applied to all these prestigious MD/PhD programs and got into a lot of them, but chose to go dental school because she wanted to start a family. I think you have to take into account the lifestyle you want, and whether or not prestige matters to you. I would say that for you, being a pharmacist is the safe choice. You might be leaning towards it only because you are uncertain about whether or not you will cut out being a doctor. If this is not the case and you really do not like the typical 60+ hours a week work schedule for typical doctors, I think you should go with the Pharm program.</p>
<p>Pharmdapp,
Even if all pharmacists did work at Walgreens: what’s wrong with working at Walgreens? What good would a prescription be if there were no place to fill it? I think that being a pharmacist is a very worthwhile profession, I just know that I personally would find it incredibly dull. But I’m glad someone is willing to do it. BTW, I’ve seen the pharmacists on the floors in the hospital save the physicians’ butts by helping them with dosing, interactions, etc. We learn that crap, but as soon as the test is over I forget it. I’m sure I’ll remember the drugs I’ll use over and over and over again though (i.e. beta-blockers end in -olol, prednisone, -statins, metformin, ACE inhibitors end in -pril, ARBs in -sartan etc.) and what I don’t remember I will consult the pharmacist on.</p>
<p>Pharmacists play an important role hospital safety as well as setting important policies. While it may seem sufficient to know that beta blockers end in -olol, it is sometimes important to know which beta blockers have membrane stabilizing properties and how to treat beta blocker overdosage refractory to catecholamines – that’s why there’s a pharmacist on the code team.</p>
<p>As a physician interested in “exciting” diagnoses it’s easy to believe that you understand the drugs you often prescribe while overlooking important contraindications and drug interactions. Again, that’s why hospital pharmacists review physician’s medication orders.</p>
<p>oreo45:
Acidic personality? All because I defended the profession? All I did was provide information regarding pharmacy as a profession, so excuse me if I sounded a bit passionate about pharmacy. If someone called your profession “boring crap” or if your day to day life was defined as “staring at pills all day” then I’m sure you’d try to shed a little light on the profession as no one here seems to fully understand it. Otherwise there would have been less “pill counting” remarks and more information regarding the many settings and services pharmacists provide outside of the community setting. Pharmacists face more challenges than trying not to get the blue pills mixed up with the pretty purple ones. That would have been like me going to every Asian person and calling them Chinese. I like bringing forth knowledge to those who lack it in certain areas. And while I’m glad you have never met anyone who looks down on pharmacists it doesn’t mean it’s not possible. I’ve yet to come across a patient who outright declines a doctor/pharmacist/nurse’s services because of their skin color but it doesn’t mean it’s non-existant. And I’m glad I’m not going to be a physician, I’d much rather be an expert in drug therapy and chemical-physiological interactions in the body. Acidic, I am faaaaaar from. So please, don’t make irrational assumptions, you don’t know me and I don’t know you. You wanna see acidic… google The Angry Pharmacist. Now that’s acidic! </p>
<p>PrincessND:
I think you may have misconstrued my message and that may be partly my fault. I wasn’t saying that Walgreens was the a bad place to work in or that it was unimportant. It’s a very important pharmacy setting and without it, much like all other health care profession employees, our health care system would have some issues. What I was trying to convey was that not all pharmacists work in a community pharmacy, and that other branches do exist. The possibilities are endless. Those interested in pharmacy will encounter individuals in their life who will say things like “Pharmacy? I could count pills with my eyes closed… I could do that for 100k a year”. They don’t necessarily look down on the profession but they do not appreciate or fully understand it. When individuals work as pharmacy tech’s in a pharmacy they are only getting a glimpse of the profession’s many services. Point: Community Pharmacy is not the only career path. Go to the other settings I have stated and I’m sure you’ll have a different experience and understanding. I just thought I’d bring my life experiences to this forum and present some facts about the profession often overlooked by undergraduates pursuing medicine, health care, etc. so that you may have a better idea of things. This way you won’t go into your profession taking other individuals that do not have the same title as you for granted. But I believe you don’t have that problem! You seem very respectable and humble. Good luck with school (Are you in med school? How is it going so far?)</p>
<p>my$0.02
Great point. This is why we compartmentalize certain areas of health professions. Physicians have excellent expertise on diagnosing and treating patients, but pharmacists have excellent expertise in understanding drug interactions in the body, so the collaboration is very necessary. Everyone has a calling, you just gotta pursue it with as much passion as possible and success is sure to follow.</p>
<p>I know this began in 2008, but I was curious…what did you end up deciding? I am going through the same decision right now, and I’m leaning towards Pharmacy…for similar reasons. I was just wondering what you decided and how you feel about that decision now… Thanks!</p>