[parent of pre-reg student]

Hi Raf,
I am very sorry for your troubles. If you have read my posts since last September you will know that my daughter went through a terrible time on her pre-reg placement and didn't want to go anywhere for help and advice - she was so embarrassed and ashamed having done well at school and university - hence I was the one who subscribed to this forum for guidance. I was bullied at work for 7 years and put up with it because I am the breadwinner with a big mortgage and three kids, but I didn't see why she should - a young girl still free of responsibilities living back at home after 4 years away at Uni working incredibly hard for her degree. Since then I have heard from lots of other pre-reg students who are having an awful time, and I have had a range of advice, some very good, some less so, from pharmacists. She managed to transfer after an horrendous struggle - and from "failing" her pre-reg in a small independent community, she has actually now gained a three year contract as a step/rotational hospital pharmacist band 6, if she passes the exam in September, and will complete her pre-reg training in the hospital. She is no "worse" than 2 other pre-reg students (both "passing") who have been there since September, but without standardisation of competences, she had no one to judge herself against before this, and her first tutor had never tutored before. She also receives study time, £4000 per yr more in salary and praise/constructive criticism. This change has been entirely fortuitous - had she not gone there on a cross sector placement she would not be in training now at all - had the hospital staff not been appalled by her treatment and prepared to do something practical and honourable about it - had I not battled alongside her relentlessly, researching the nuances of a profession I was totally ignorant about - I was eventually able to cite precedent from studies into dyslexia in the workplace concerning health professionals. Thank God for the Internet - I forget the name of the Brit who invented it. Anyway, the gist of all this is you are generalising - the profession is like all others - with its fair share of heroes, villains, victims and fellow strugglers on life's rugged path! It's all about problem solving, with a new set of problems every day, and pharmacists, it seems to me, are particularly adept at this and quite "sharp" in the old-fashioned sense of the word. This is not always akin to patience or kindness - but yet I have met with incredible help and support - one member of this forum even posted her a drug guide; and she has now met with a wealth of good will and professionalism in her current placement. She did 4 weeks in another hospital several years back and they were so short staffed they were dementedly stressed - this, too, is not conducive to training students who are generally "slower"; less able to transfer knowledge/skills quickly. I think she would have been failed there too. But I sympathise with your anguish - I believe you will get another placement as there is money involved in training - and you will start anew, older and wiser. Could you not return to your community placement where you were happy and successful? Good luck.