Background
I first joined the pharmacy workforce when I was a post-grad student, getting my MSc in Health Psychology, as a means to fund the course. After I had completed my MSc, I chose not to continue my academic journey at that time and chose to stay within the field of Pharmacy.
Since then, I have completed my Pharmacy Technician qualification and have worked within a variety of sectors, including community pharmacy and secondary care.
Currently, I am a Clinical Educator for the MPharm degree at the University of Sheffield.
INSIGHT programme and costs
As a way to increase the number of professional health roles in research, the NIHR introduced an INSIGHT programme, offering funded studentships to a variety of healthcare professionals to complete a post graduate course in research.
My MA is fully funded by the NIHR INSIGHT studentship. Not only do they cover the course fees, but they also give me a stipend payment of around £19,500 to cover the full length of the course. I use this to cover loss of wages, as I have had to reduce my hours in order to commit to the MA.
Challenges
The most notable challenges I have faced in my journey is time and motivation.
One of the reasons I gave up my previous academic journey was that I had lost enthusiasm and thus motivation to develop myself further in that area. For this reason, it has been important to me that the subject area that I endeavour to explore within my MA and any future research is on a topic that I find personally and professionally interesting and worthwhile. I also value a work/life balance, and so I need that motivation to keep on track.
As well as my MA, I still work part-time and have a 4 year old at home to look after when I am not at work or uni. This has meant that the organisation of my time has been key to being successful. The more factors I have to organise, the more complex it becomes. I also have to allow for some degree of unknown – you sometimes don’t know when childcare falls through, or lecture timetables change, etc.
Impact
The impact of my journey as a Pharmacy Technician in research supports the drive to increase pharmacy input and involvement into research. It also promotes the utilisation and versatility of Pharmacy Technicians, as we are a subgroup of the pharmacy workforce that is evolving all the time and has yet to be utilised to it’s full potential.
I am now just over the halfway point of my MA, and it has already had a significant impact on my career and myself personally. I have been reintroduced into the world of research and academia, developing forgotten skills and learning new ones. I have discovered a renewed passion for the research area I have chosen – inclusive pharmacy practice and education – and have already had success in the application of my garnered skills and knowledge within my work. Last year, I received the Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity Award from APTUK for my contributions to EDI within Pharmacy Technician practice. I completed an audit level project on gender inclusive language in antimicrobial guidelines which went on to be presented at key working groups regionally and nationally, such as NHS England. Most notably, I have, since starting my MA, gained a position with the University of Sheffield and now work as an academic Pharmacy Technician, putting my gained skills to use.
Lessons
- Make sure it is definitely something you want to do, and that it is a subject area you are invested in.
- Consider how your journey will affect others. Sometimes it isn’t as simple as saying “I’m going to do this degree”. Multiple things have to align to make it possible – changing of work hours, personal commitments, ensuring you can afford to live, etc.
- My most valuable asset was having a mentor that has already been through a similar journey. Having someone to help me through the process of finding funding, applicable courses or even just bouncing ideas off has been intrinsic.
