High school students learn firsthand about pharmacy in California Central Valley

More than 20 high school students from California's central valley city of Fresno spent a day in early February 2005 with local pharmacists in various practice settings to get a close look at pharmacy as a career option. “There is a real disconnect between the perception high school students hold of pharmacists and the actual way pharmacy is practiced,” says Mitra Assemi, PharmD, assistant professor of clinical pharmacy, UCSF School of Pharmacy and director of the School's Fresno Pharmacy Education Program. “We used National Groundhog Job Shadow Day as a way to make that connection. It was a tremendous success.”

1. Mary Pung, PharmD, a critical care pharmacist at University Medical Center, Fresno, California, explains how she monitors the effects of medications in critically ill burn patients in the intensive care unit.

 
2. Rich Sakai, PharmD, director of pharmacy services for Children's Hospital Central California, Madera, California, explains the business aspects of hospital pharmacy management, cost control, and quality care assurance.

 
3. Dale Dodd, PharmD, pharmacy manager of Longs Drug Stores, Clovis, California, shares tips for counseling patients about their medications and helping them select over-the-counter remedies.

Source

UCSF Fresno Job Shadow Day Encourages Future Pharmacists, UC ValleyConnection, Winter 2005 (PDF, 4 pages, 259 KB).