I was recently speaking with a long-term locum of ours, who said whenever she goes to a pharmacy to locum and gets talking to a student or intern pharmacist she always gives them this advice “Go out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself. Go rural or country to experience pharmacy because you will never get that kind of experience in the city or if you stick to where you are most comfortable”. I believe that is some of the best advice for pharmacists that I’ve heard.
Many rural employers are offering excellent salary packages with additional benefits not seen in metropolitan pharmacies. You might go from finishing your internship, directly to the daily management of a pharmacy. This kind of experience gives you a huge advantage over someone working in the city who may not be able to move up as quickly with an established hierarchy already in place.
We’ve had pharmacists who have worked rural for 2-3 years and when they were ready to come back to the city, had absolutely no trouble securing a Management position straight away. The experience they gained, the friends they made and the financial benefit for their future was invaluable.
So why not consider going rural the next time you’re looking for a change?
- as published in Pharmacy Daily as the Weekly Comment on 14 August 2017.
For more information on rural work and feedback, contact Nivi Kent, Locum Recruitment Consultant at Raven's Recruitment on 1800 429 829 or nivi@ravensrecruitment.com.au.
