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Pharmacists Are Needed

As the use of prescription drugs increases, demand for pharmacists will grow in most practice settings, such as community pharmacies, hospital pharmacies, and mail-order pharmacies. As the population ages, assisted living facilities and home care organizations should see particularly rapid growth. Demand will also increase as cost conscious insurers, in an attempt to improve preventative care, use pharmacists in areas such as patient education and vaccination administration.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS, expects employment among pharmacists to grow by 22% between 2006 and 2016, which is much faster than most occupations. Excellent opportunities are expected for pharmacists over the 2006 to 2016 period. Job openings will result from rapid employment growth, and from the need to replace workers who retire or leave the occupation for other reasons.

The pay is good too. The mean annual salary is $104,260, according to May 2008 data from the BLS. The mean salary for a pharmacist in a hospital is $103,480; in a grocery store, $102,310, and in a community pharmacy, $105,560.

Creighton started its online degree program in 2001 when there was a severe shortage of pharmacists throughout the country. "The profession was switching the way it trained pharmacists, and as a result there was a year when we had no pharmacy class," says Jim Owen, director of professional practice for the American Pharmaceutical Association. Other online programs include offerings by Lehigh University, and the University of Colorado.

That severe shortage has ended as pharmacy degree programs have grown over the past decade. There are now about 112 of them, Owen says. Still, the demand for pharmacists remains strong. An aging population needs more prescription drugs. Also, pharmacists are now considered part of the medical team that treats patients at facilities like hospitals, long-stay care facilities and nursing homes. And in this economy some patients are consulting their pharmacists for advice instead of spending money to see a doctor, Owen says.

President Obama's proposed health care reform may also help the profession. "His plan stresses a team-based approach to care," Owen says. "There is a shortage of primary care physicians, so if pharmacists are included in a team-based approach there will be greater demand for them." Pharmacists may possibly provide immunizations and do blood monitoring for people taking blood thinners, for instance.

It's not an easy field to get trained in, particularly if you have a family and can't afford to leave the workforce. A doctor of pharmacy degree takes four years to complete if you've already had core math and science classes. If not, those classes add another year or two. Three years are spent in the classroom and in lab work; the final year is a residency in a setting such as a community pharmacy or a hospital. Then you need to take a state licensing exam.

There are now several programs that condense the four years into 36 months, Owen says. He recommends checking the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education to find a program in your area.

(Minnesota Future Work note: In Minnesota the University of Minnesota offers a Pharmacy Program.)

At Creighton, the curriculum online is exactly the same as on campus. The lectures are video recorded so students can watch them at their convenience. Exams are given on the same day for distance and local students. Distance students go to campus for several weeks during the summer to do lab work.

The typical age is 31 for telecommuters and 22 on campus, says Tom Lenz, the director of Creighton's online doctor of pharmacy program. Clearly many of those older non-local students are career switchers. "We've had former lawyers, engineers, Ph.D.s," Lenz says.

Despite his busy schedule, Lundstrum is pleased with his career switch and eager to get back into the workforce. "I wasn't happy with the job I had, and I'm almost 40," he says. "The next half of my life I want to feel good about what I do, instead of making a dollar for a corporation. My grandmother used to say--and I've had this in the back of my mind a lot lately--'What have you done good today?' I wanted a job where I could do some good."

For information on pharmacy as a career, preprofessional and professional requirements, programs offered by colleges of pharmacy, and student financial aid, contact the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy.

General information on careers in pharmacy is available from:

Source: Forbes, Tara Weiss, 6/25/09