PharmD's are not doctors!

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Ok, let's get this straight. Firstly, I am a pharmD and no we are not doctors, we are pharmacists who have a Doctorate degree pharmacy studies; however, 99.999% of the time, we are not called 'Dr.' bc we are NOT doctors!!

In pharmacy school, the idiot professors insisted we call them 'DOCTOR X, Y or Z' in the classroom setting; but once we got in rotations/clinicals, these same exact professors said to NOT call them 'Dr' the clinic/hospital/pharmacy. Bc they would get laughed at, if people knew what they have been brainwashing pharmacy students the past 4-6 yrs of their academic life!

Secondly, pharmacy students take a course called Pharmacy Law (required by all pharmacy schools) are taught to do the least amount of counseling for patients due to possibly of getting sued. So when we do counsel, the counseling is pretty much on how to take the medication (the directions), anything else beyond that, they have to ask THEIR DOCTOR/PHYSICIAN! We counsel on how to take the meds and when their next prescription expires and how many refills left.

Thirdly, retail pharmacists probably make the most at a maximum of$120k/year (anything over $125k is the biggest lie, let alone I am reading $150k on this thread). Walgreens and CVS pays about $120k, but this entails 8-10 hour shifts of standing on your feet ALL DAY, staring at a computer screen all day, getting yelled and bitched at by all sorts of people from the average worker to Rx addicts, and fighting with third party insurances all day long and calling doctors' offices for the simplest things like getting the drug substituted bc we ran out of the medicine, changing directions of the script, managed care crap, ALL BECAUSE THE PHARMACIST THEMSELF HAVE NO PRESCRIBING RIGHTS NOR have any power or say so in regards to the patients' therapeutic management. Oh and did I mention, NO LUNCH BREAKS. You get maybe a 5-10 min break to eat your microwavable lunch from the frozen section and have to get right back to filling those scripts, or you will have a line of bitching customers upset you couldn't get their meds ready in 5 minutes. Also, you have to consider the fact that us pharmacists also HAVE TO WORK WEEKENDS AND NIGHTS AND HOLIDAYS! We work same hours as a physician and make half as much!!

So, overall, being a pharmacist is very stressful job and no one respects you. Customers/patients don't respect us, physicians don't respect us, NPs, nurses don't respect us. If i had to do it all over again, i would not have spend 130k+ of student loans on pharmacy degree at all, when I could've gotten in another profession/career that didn't cost so much to attain.

My brother is in biotech sales, makes $180k(isn) take home and has a great schedule. He works about 6 hours a day, he's OFF on ALL HOLIDAYS AND WEEKENDS, has great stocks in his company and he is just a biotech rep. Not a DM, not a regional manager. No additional student loans (he was also thinking of being a pharmacist but decided not to bc of the loans).

I have friends who are in medical device sales who rake in an average of $180k+ with a sweet schedule and no one yelling/cursing at them on a daily basis, and they dont have to stand in one position for 10+ hours straight.

Basically, the only thing good with pharmacy is that the turnover is not as high, however, many folks have been laid off due to a lesser number of pharmacies opening up due to economy.

How many times have u talked to the pharmacist at your retail location?? They are very busy and most of the times they are busy as heck and don't have time to 'counsel' patients.

So if I could do it all over again, i would not have chosen pharmacy as a career. I have a lower back injury from standing on my feet over the years that I had to go to my podiatrist to get a certain type of shoe/soles so that it doesn't make the nerves any worse.
I would not have taken out so much private loans bc now I have to work my ass off just to pay them back. And also, some days I don't even get a chance to eat bc the company is too cheap to hire another pharmacist on board, that the store is dispensing so many scripts with only one pharmacist on schedule and therefore, I can't just take a lunch when I want to. I used to think 100k was alot, but it really isnt. it's peanuts and I know pharma companies are paying their reps 6figures even in primary care.

Behind the pharmacy is pretty much like a factory, the pharmacy cannot operate if the pharmacist is not there even if they are taking a 10 min break. The law is the pharmacy is supposed to be shut down if the pharmacist is not behind that counter, so therefore, that is the reason why pharmacists DON'T TAKE A LUNCH BREAK!

Pharmacists on here should not be lying and glamorizing pharmacy as a profession. If you're in clinical like a clinical pharmacist, that's a different story, but then again, they don't make that much either. Pharmacists hate to speak of reality, yes we make a decent amount of money, but will we ever make $150k+ or 200k+, no way!!! We make about 100k on average and very little pay increase each year or maybe no raise, even. For the amount of crap we deal with every day, I am sure there are other careers I could've chose that could've provided a much better QUALITY OF LIFE.
 












Anonymous said:
We have a clue…it is the embarrassing degree that Asian, Middle Eastern, and Indian kids get that shames their families since they couldn’t get into medical school or god forbid dental school…seriously how many African American, Caucasian, or Hispanic pharmacist have you seen recently, especially under 40 years old? I haven’t seen many and I work half the country dealing with both retail and academic pharmacists, and attend every national and regional pharmacy conference…at least 8 or so a year at a minimum. Ask ANY of them why they chose to ‘become’ a pharmacist and 90% or better will say...”because I didn’t get into medical school”…sorry but it’s the truth.

Lastly if you really wanted to be a ‘scientist’ working in medicine and drugs why not get a real PhD. in biochem or something like that? Very few pharmacists are developing drugs from the bench…it’s your PhD. biologists, biochemists, chemists, etc…NOT PharmD’s…again sorry but those are the facts. So have fun with your grossly inflated and somewhat obsolete degree…and no Obamacare is not going to give Pharmacists more clout or patient care despite what you may read in your PharmD trade journals and other outlets that are PR’d to death by the APhA ofnthe “important role of the pharmacist in Obamacare”…not until we have real tort reform and we know that’s not changing anytime soon.
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This the most real comment on this thread! LOL.. Very much agree! I know, because I am Asian and it's very true. Med school is first tier, then dentistry 2nd, then pharmacy 3rd tier..
Pharmacy is ALL MEMORIZATION, you even memorize what a drug structure, but in no way shape or fashion, do you think beyond and see how you can formulate one structure to another so that it can have a faster absorption, elimination etc because that is MEDICINAL CHEMISTS AND BIOCHEMISTS AND ANYONE WITH A PHD'S job is.

So this comment holds all truth. PHd's have the brain and all the pharmacists do is count pills and make sure the right tablets were inserted in the bottle. Clinical pharmacy you may have more say so, but at the end of the day, it's the DOCTOR/PHYSICIAN with an MD after their name who receives ALL CREDIT bc they have been trained to make such decisions.
 






Can we please let this fricking thread DIE already??? It's been going on for WAY too long with no end in sight. We're all smart. (MDs, PhDs, PharmDs) We all fit into the MSL role in some way or another (whether warranted or not - depends on the company). Let's stop right here and not let the next douchebag reinstate this dumb-ass thread past 1/23/14.

Let's move on to more important MSL topics to complain/snark about...(there are plenty)...
 


















Anonymous said:
This the most real comment on this thread! LOL.. Very much agree! I know, because I am Asian and it's very true. Med school is first tier, then dentistry 2nd, then pharmacy 3rd tier..
Pharmacy is ALL MEMORIZATION, you even memorize what a drug structure, but in no way shape or fashion, do you think beyond and see how you can formulate one structure to another so that it can have a faster absorption, elimination etc because that is MEDICINAL CHEMISTS AND BIOCHEMISTS AND ANYONE WITH A PHD'S job is.

So this comment holds all truth. PHd's have the brain and all the pharmacists do is count pills and make sure the right tablets were inserted in the bottle. Clinical pharmacy you may have more say so, but at the end of the day, it's the DOCTOR/PHYSICIAN with an MD after their name who receives ALL CREDIT bc they have been trained to make such decisions.
Click to expand...

Tell that to your board when you memorized all of that information but forgot how to counsel the patient.

Sounds like you are a wannabe with a room-temperature IQ.
 






I'm an MD with about 15 years in pharma. This thread is such a joke, you obtain your degree in your late teens/early 20's, still an immature kid, and from there move on to either practice or pharma. I've met RNs who could run circles around MDs, PharmDs who were the smartest guys in the room, and MDs who knew more than I thought was humanly possible. When I finished med school I was a few weeks from 24 and even though I was at the top of my class and class president I was immature and lost, no business caring for patients even as a resident.

The big unifier though was that all of these people gained 95%+ of this knowledge once they finished these degrees, it all came either working in pharma or their chosen professional practice. If we're going to talk which clinical position is most relevant to pharma, I'd go MD>PharmD/NP>RN but I really don't think any of those jobs prepare you for pharma that much at all. Everything anyone with above average intelligence needs to know to succeed in med affairs/clin dev and become an expert in a TA can be learned over a couple of months (at most) of reviewing materials put together with the sole purpose of getting up to speed asap.

Really pharma is all about being able to function within a very specific and unique business environment and be able to learn and discuss complex ideas specific to a certain TA as an expert, and I really don't think your degree really matters all that much. If anything it's just a weeding process for who is likely to be able to function within this environment.

Also, from what I understand there are 2 very distinct classes of PharmD program - there are the Rutgers, USP, UCSF, UNC, UT, etc and then the Southeastern Panhandle Distance Learning: Appalachian Branch of Northwestern NC type schools. It's almost like there are 2 different types of PharmDs, but I guess you could apply that to some of my colleagues who went to questionable foreign MD/DO programs as well.
 






None of it really matters. People with high school diplomas are multimillionaires. Some are billionaires. Some people with an MD or PhD are barely making six figures. The world goes on.

Just do what you want to do in life. You are only as valuable as you choose to be.
 






From Parade Magazine two Sunday's ago in the paper.

What people earn!
http://parade.condenast.com/277366/alisongwinn/what-people-earn-gallery/#fullscreen_gallery

KT - 33
North Liberty, Iowa
Clinical Pharmacist
VA
$104,472

I am a 32 year old oncology rep and my base salary is $142K, bonus at plan is $40K, car allowance of $800 a month and 51 cents per mile. Not to mention stock options and 4 weeks of vacation!

Tell me again how a pharmacists are respected when you make less money than reps! Money talks bitches...

F-OFF dorks!!!
 






Anonymous said:
From Parade Magazine two Sunday's ago in the paper.

What people earn!
http://parade.condenast.com/277366/alisongwinn/what-people-earn-gallery/#fullscreen_gallery

KT - 33
North Liberty, Iowa
Clinical Pharmacist
VA
$104,472

I am a 32 year old oncology rep and my base salary is $142K, bonus at plan is $40K, car allowance of $800 a month and 51 cents per mile. Not to mention stock options and 4 weeks of vacation!

Tell me again how a pharmacists are respected when you make less money than reps! Money talks bitches...

F-OFF dorks!!!
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You tried to make a point by choosing a salary from VA in Iowa? I'm a 2014 grad and I'm making way more than that!
 






Anonymous said:
This the most real comment on this thread! LOL.. Very much agree! I know, because I am Asian and it's very true. Med school is first tier, then dentistry 2nd, then pharmacy 3rd tier..
Pharmacy is ALL MEMORIZATION, you even memorize what a drug structure, but in no way shape or fashion, do you think beyond and see how you can formulate one structure to another so that it can have a faster absorption, elimination etc because that is MEDICINAL CHEMISTS AND BIOCHEMISTS AND ANYONE WITH A PHD'S job is.

So this comment holds all truth. PHd's have the brain and all the pharmacists do is count pills and make sure the right tablets were inserted in the bottle. Clinical pharmacy you may have more say so, but at the end of the day, it's the DOCTOR/PHYSICIAN with an MD after their name who receives ALL CREDIT bc they have been trained to make such decisions.
Click to expand...

This comment is a disgrace. If you are so unhappy being a pharmacist, QUIT!
 












Anonymous said:
You tried to make a point by choosing a salary from VA in Iowa? I'm a 2014 grad and I'm making way more than that!
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Sure you are...I can pull NYC, LA, or Chicago rates if you really want to be embraced...let's put it that way in the major metro you may, and I mean may be pulling a bit more but the cost of living puts your wage index well below...sorry loser...it's still a blue-collar job in medicine...count by fives, manage the tech's and candy bar inventory and drive home to your 1 bedroom condo in your used Hyandai...
 






I came across this forum while looking at a different topic altogether. I have never encountered any statement as misinformed and ignorant as that one. I am pursuing my PharmD/MBA degree, having worked with Pharmacists as a Pharmacy Technician for over 12 years. In all the years I have spent working in Pharmacy, where I have had the privilege of working in every Pharmacy Practice setting except manufacturing, I have never worked with a single incompetent Pharmacist. The pharmacists I work with are humble and never boastful. They work very hard for their money, often under difficult circumstances imposed upon them by their employers. I do not know of any profession that is as vital to society as Pharmacy. No wonder, survey after survey has shown that, Pharmacy is the most respected profession.

When the Pharmacy entry-level degree was upgraded to the PharmD, the curriculum was also changed so that today Pharmacy students spend more time with patients than before. We are challenged everyday. Our degree is known to be one of the most difficult in comparison to other fields. It is truly an advanced degree in my judgement and that of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy who instituted it. I would have expected anybody looking at the PharmD degree, to get acquainted with the background leading up to it, before making such a silly, irresponsible and insulting statement.
 






I can't help but notice that everyone on here posted as anonymous users. Who would feel comfortable repeating what they posted here at work? Some of you have multiple advanced degrees! This kind of behavior doesn't embarrass you?
 






Anonymous said:
I can't help but notice that everyone on here posted as anonymous users. Who would feel comfortable repeating what they posted here at work? Some of you have multiple advanced degrees! This kind of behavior doesn't embarrass you?
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Yes it does embarrass us. That is why we are posting anonymously and would never share these views at work. Anything else, genius?
 






1. From my experience, most PharmDs will tell you not to call them "Dr." just because it causes confusion. However, I do know that in pharmacy school, the professors tell the students to call their preceptors by "Dr." just as a respective courtesy (b/c some people are finicky).
2. It doesn't matter what degree you have because there will always be a variety of good/bad MDs, PharmDs, PAs, NP, etc making more or less than you. Salary and degree have varying effects on importance.
3. You get most of your knowledge base from experience.
4. You can always learn something from someone. Acting self-important really does nothing for anyone.
5. Are we including PharmD residents in this conversation? Some of those residents are crazy intelligent. I'm sure the PharmD with the 2-year oncology residency and years of experience could give you a run for your money.
6. Some PharmDs are given prescriptive authority if they've been authorized with a scope of practice. I've seen it in VA practice.

It's pretty normal for people to get paid more for specializing, so it's not really a surprise you get paid a lot for being an oncology drug rep. Plus, drug companies invest A LOT into selling drugs, because obviously that's how they make money. Therefore reps are highly valued by the company and paid high salaries. No point in bitching about titles, enjoy your money.

Also, don't put PhDs on a pedestal. PhDs are just as specialized as any other post-grad degree. Yeah, they know a lot about that specialty, but overall, what is that knowledge compared to everything? This puts things into perspective: http://www.united-academics.org/magazine/mind-brain/the-illustrated-guide-to-a-ph-d/
 






Anonymous said:
I can't help but notice that everyone on here posted as anonymous users. Who would feel comfortable repeating what they posted here at work? Some of you have multiple advanced degrees! This kind of behavior doesn't embarrass you?
Click to expand...

Multiple advanced degrees are never a singular sign of intellect or intelligence...many times it's merely young people who lack direction on what they really want to be when they grow up and lack the maturity to enter the real world so they hang in academia and collect degrees until they figure it out...which usually takes a long time or never happens at all.
 






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