March 1, 2016, by Editor

Pharmacy Fun and Games

This blog has been written by Sean Quay, a 4th year undergraduate student on our MPharm programme.

Fun and games

We’re just getting into the rhythm of the second semester and the Pharmacy Leadership and Management (PLM) game just started this week. Some of you from years one, two and three might have heard of the module which is being run for the fourth years.

Cue the questions: ‘Is Pharmacy all fun and games for these fourth years?’ and ‘What does management and business have to do with healthcare?’. A lot apparently. Before you make any assumptions, here are three reasons why the PLM module may be one of the best preparations you could possibly have for your pre-registration year:

1. Interested in getting into management? This is definitely your cup of tea!

The module starts off with introductory lectures to management strategies. The School of Pharmacy collaborates with the Business School to bring you seminars and workshops to steer you in the right direction when thinking about managing a pharmacy as a business. You will learn the principles of management strategies, industry analysis tools and maybe even get a shot at redesigning some aspects of one of your favourite businesses. So it’s especially useful for those thinking about going into marketing, sales and strategic management of pharmaceuticals.

 

 

2. It gets you ready for working life

When they say manage your own pharmacy, they mean, manage your own pharmacy. You and your group will be in charge of the layout, the services provided, choosing the training programs to go for, etc. No, there is no real money involved, but you are scored based on how well you do and how many customers you attract to your pharmacy. Think of it as Monopoly or The Sims,  however, instead of properties or people you manage healthcare and medicines. Did I mention that you have to deal with angry patients shouting at you? Don’t worry, they’re not actually that scary, you’ll have a cup of tea together when it’s all over.

3. It gets you working with people

Let’s be realistic here, in a class of 250 people you would probably know only a handful of them closely. This module gets you interacting and working with people you may not even have known previously. You’re going to grow and learn before you start working and that’s great because you’ll know the pitfalls to look out for in the future when real patients are involved and the money is real and not from a board game.

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