Newly Qualified Pharmacist looking for job in London

[AmyLondon2010]

HI everyone....I qualified recently and been registered...the problem is the last time i was working in pharmacy was in april...so been quite a while and I feel as if I have less confidence now specially to do locuming.....what do u think the best solution would be? shall i just start locuming without any preparation?
Also been looking for permanent job but because i live in north london haven't been able to find any avalabilities...looked on websites like C+D and PJ but haven't been useful at all....Many tnx for reading my thread guys...looking forward to ur suggestions...

[AmyLondon2010]

145 views and no suggestions!!!???.....surely some of u must have some suggestions???....common colleaguesss.....Helpppppp Plzzzzzzz....

[johnep]

North London super saturated with pharmacists. You could try rural areas further out. I retired to East Anglia as one of the places with a shortage. Within a week I had lots of locum offers. Same for Essex and Bedfordshire. Get on yer bike!
johnep

[AmyLondon2010]

many tnx for the info john....my other concern is the fact i haven't worked in a pharmacy for about 5 months...just feel a bit scared to be honest to do locuming...what do u think i can do to get rid of this feeling? or is it just being over cautious?

[johnep]

You will be fine as long as all usual staff in place.
johnep

[AmyLondon2010]

Tnx john....what do u think the most important things are in my first day that i should be aware of or maybe do some preparation before going to work? by that i mean e.g. interactions ( becausse the system usually shows alot of them...shall i just ignore them if they've had the medicines before?? and also things like methadone? doses? etc......i just dont wanna look like a clumsy locum lol

[dippsy]

Hi Amy, we have all been in that situation at least once in our lives. Most of us is on the first day as a qualified pharmacist. I think the best advice I can give you is that you will make mistakes like all of us at some point - expect this to happen but learn from it. When I do a (rare nowadays) locum in a place I have never been to I always to the following:

1) Phone them the day before and ask them if there is anything I need to know - passwords, methadone scripts, support etc
2) If you are starting out, would avoid Saturdays if possible. This is the time when most pharmacists are on their own. Wait a few months and then do weekends if that is what you want to do.
3) Go with the flow ... ask the staff how they normally work. I have never found pharmacy staff that will belittle you for asking sensible questions
4) You do need a reasonable level of clinical competence - but more importantly you need confidence in your actions. If you go running to the GP for every query, then the staff will normally sniff this out and mark you accordingly

The key is experience. Remember you will make mistakes but you must learn from them. Above all, do not get demotivated. With time, you will become a fantastic pharmacist!

[johnep]

If it is London, will need to know how to get there by public transport, and/or parking facilities. My London locums were by motorbike so no problem.
johnep

[AmyLondon2010]

Manyyyyy thankssssss to both of you.....reallyyyyyy appreciate ur help....

[pharmer7]

Good advice so far, only thing I can add is to try and avoid Health & Beauty Boots stores and stores which are beside health centres. Get the address of the place before you confirm the booking, and just check on google maps. No point going to insanely busy pharmacies when you are just starting out. The agencies will bs you saying they will stick to quiet places, but some of them don't bother their backside to even check. My second locum was in a small town with just one pharmacy, had no manager for months, and running on part-time staff and relief staff. Won't go into detail about how that went, but just stick to the advice and it won't happen to you. Also, don't book too many on consecutive days if they are far away, you'll be physically and mentally exhausted from the experience.