In addition, while communicating with a patient at the pharmacy, I believe a pharmacist needs to be aware of their environment. The pharmacist needs to be aware of keeping their patient’s information confidential by speaking only to the patient involved and making sure nobody else is listening in on the conversation. In addition, a pharmacist should always use a soft voice when speaking to patients because it may be embarrassing for a patient to have their medical issues spoken about aloud. For example, when speaking on the phone with a patient, the pharmacist must confirm that they are speaking directly to the patient. I believe it is essential to ask the patient for particular information, such as their home address and date of birth to make sure that they are speaking to the correct individual. This will ensure the quality of care extended to the patients I will serve.
Furthermore, attending various health fairs allowed me to learn more about myself and the people in the community. Such events include, the “Health First Harlem Health and Wellness Expo.” From my experience, I learned that this community health fair was created to help inform people about being healthier. Its mission was to engage the public in conversations about health-related concerns, issues and available resources. This activity affected the pride I have in the profession of pharmacy through my dedication to patients and the profession. By attending this health fair, I have learned that pharmacy is a real community effort. Hundreds of volunteers donate their time and expertise to manage booths and run screening tests. I admire that many professionals gave up a Saturday to help inform others in the community on how to live the healthiest lives possible. Moreover, I learned that being compassionate and empathic allows me to build a relationship with others. Attending this health fair event showed me that as healthcare professionals, our role is to share our knowledge to provide the best service to our community. Overall, this activity has created an extremely useful learning environment for me, where I learned more about myself and my role in the practice of pharmacy.
Recently, on September 17, 2018, I had the opportunity to attend an information session on pursuing careers in the pharmaceutical industry, and ultimately aspired me to be an industrial pharmacist. Although I was not aware of the various roles of industrial pharmacists, after the information session, I learned a vast amount of information and was fully aware of the industry field. According to the activity, the Industry Pharmacist Organization is an organization whose pharmacist members are universally organized within the pharmaceutical industry. They are recognized as being the most professionally prepared to contribute to the commercialization, promotion, development, and optimal use of medicines.
The activity aided in my growth of my personal knowledge, skills, and abilities. Over the years, I learned that being compassionate and empathic to others is extremally important to me. During the session, I learned that industrial pharmacists are committed to shaping compassionate health care professionals to serve humanity through excellence in biomedical research and health care. Thus, during the activity, I realized that I can enhance my skills and abilities of being compassionate when serving others. In addition, I learned that industry pharmacist have responsibilities in various roles, such as drug developments and appropriate medication use. Therefore, this allowed to me to self-reflect on my professional knowledge.
There are many goals that I hold for myself as a pharmacist. One of the main goals is to serve others. At the end of the day, the profession of pharmacy is a service profession. We have the opportunity to lower costs and increase the quality of life for patients with various types of medical problems. However, sometimes one can get involved in many other things related to the profession of pharmacy that patient care is neglected. Thus, focusing on helping patients improve their health and well-being will help us provide optimal patient care.
Finally, staying informed of the profession is another critical goal that I have. By reading and staying aware of the news related to pharmacy, it will allow me to be mindful of professional developments. I believe that learning information regarding pharmacy and patient care will prepare me to meet any challenges I will face as a professional. In addition, since pharmacists are a vital part of the healthcare system, not only do they need to challenge themselves to improve their education, but one should also strive to educate the public about health and medication. Overall, as a pharmacist, I endeavor to possess the skills and qualities Dr. Shah and other mentors share with their patients. I have absolute confidence that dedication, commitment, knowledge, communication, and persistency will allow me to serve others to the best of my abilities.
