Common Workplaces for Pharm D Graduates
Community Pharmacies
These independent pharmacies traditionally provide more boutique or personalized services such as medication synchronization services (all of your medications are filled at once, so you make one trip to the pharmacy per month), medication therapy management, influenza immunizations (flu vaccines), non-flu vaccine services (such as COVID-19 vaccines or routine or international travel vaccinations), and blood pressure monitoring services.
Additionally, many independent pharmacies specialize in durable medical equipment, blood glucose monitoring devices, and SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic testing. These pharmacists typically pride themselves in taking the time to counsel patients and caregivers on medications, dietary supplements, vitamins, and minerals. While the job growth for retail pharmacy positions will remain stagnant (or slightly decrease) over the next several years as large retailers close some stores near each other, the retail pharmacist will remain the predominant career path for most new graduates.
Hospital Pharmacies
The second most common workplace environment for pharmacists is the hospital pharmacy setting, with over 30% of all pharmacists practicing in this location. This environment boasts a large variety, as some pharmacists practice in the inpatient setting (taking care of acutely sick patients) while others practice in the outpatient or ambulatory care setting (taking care of patients who come in for routine visits or check-ups).
These positions can be further broken up into the traditional staff pharmacist role and the clinical pharmacist role.
Staff Pharmacist
While both positions are highly clinical, the staff pharmacist typically practices behind the scenes. A staff pharmacist is responsible for ensuring the dose is correct, and the pharmacy technician (pharmacy tech) prepares the medication appropriately and is typically responsible for the pharmacy's workflow. This pharmacist is also sometimes responsible for going to codes or traumas (life and death emergencies within the hospital) to provide immediate medications for sedation, intubation, cardiac or respiratory arrest, or septic shock. A staff pharmacist may work in a centralized location preparing IV medications or in a specialized satellite pharmacy that only cares for patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) or the hematology and oncology unit (blood disorders and cancer).
Clinical Pharmacist
Clinical pharmacists typically work within multidisciplinary teams, which include physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, dieticians, respiratory therapists, and social workers. They can provide patient care in the inpatient or outpatient setting. They typically have a pharmacy education beyond the Pharm D program and have usually completed a one—or two-year pharmacy residency.
Some ambulatory patient care settings for these pharmacy practice sites include diabetes clinics, anticoagulation clinics, HIV clinics, Hepatitis C clinics, general primary care clinics, gastrointestinal (GI) clinics, rheumatology clinics, endocrinology clinics, pulmonary clinics, neurology clinics, and oncology clinics. Some inpatient pharmacy practice settings include cardiology units, intensive care units, neonatal intensive care units, pediatric intensive care units, emergency medicine, hematology and oncology, psychiatric or behavioral health units, neurology units, pulmonary units, infectious disease services, surgery services, general hospital services, and transplant services.
Some pharmacists may specialize in end-of-life care, care of geriatric patients, pediatric patients, or even infants.