Monthly pharmacy school field trips
Amilyn Arnel is a final-year PharmD candidate at the Union University College of Pharmacy.
Do you remember in elementary school when we were all so excited to leave the classroom for the day and go on field trips? Whether a trip to the zoo, watching a play at a local theater, or visiting a museum, teachers simply could not contain our excitement when we were able to leave our classrooms to experience “the real world.” When did we lose this excitement?
Have you ever considered that experiential education APPEs are our adult equivalent to the field trips we had the chance to go on as children? They represent the opportunity for us to leave the classroom setting and experience what we’ve learned—an opportunity for us to explore all of what pharmacy has to offer.
A mistake most student pharmacists make is considering APPEs to be simply unpaid full-time jobs that they just have to get through to graduate. Some choose rotations based on what is “easiest,” “closest,” and/or which ones let you off early for the day. However, I’m here to tell you that if you fully lean into the APPE process and open yourself up to new opportunities, you could grow yourselves both professionally and personally and become the best version of yourself.
Exploring an array of settings
Personally, I signed up for the widest variety of APPE experiences available. I wanted to explore all of what was available to new pharmacy graduates. I signed up for any APPE that sparked my interest. Some interesting pharmacy practices in which I have completed APPEs have included a dentist’s office, an emergency department, and a pharmacy association.
One of the most unique rotations I have taken would have to be my ambulatory care elective in a dentist’s office in Germantown, TN. During this rotation, my preceptor taught me the importance of pushing the boundaries of the profession and continually seeking new, innovative ideas to further the profession of pharmacy. In his practice, the pharmacist partners with the dentist as a consultative service to provide antibiotic and pain management recommendations, review patients’ medication lists to check for dental adverse effects including gingival hyperplasia and xerostomia, and check BP and anticoagulation regimens to ensure that the patient is not at risk for major bleeding from a dental procedure.
Another unique practice I had the opportunity to experience was an emergency medicine APPE in a hospital in Jackson, TN. During this APPE, I had the opportunity to attend and participate in Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support codes, including administering chest compressions and preparing medications from the crash cart for use during the code. This fast-paced environment challenged me to grow in confidence with my medication knowledge in a way that no other APPE could have.
The last APPE I had the opportunity to complete was a pharmacy association management rotation at the Tennessee Pharmacists Association in Nashville, TN. This rotation was the perfect ending to my APPE experiences. It was during this rotation that I learned how to advocate for the profession, how to network and create intentional professional relationships, and the importance of using our voice to support advances in the profession. I had the opportunity to attend Tennessee state House and Senate committee meetings and a Tennessee Board of Pharmacy meeting. In pharmacy school we learn the written laws but seeing them in action in real-world scenarios helped the information become more relevant to me and my future practice.
Challenge yourself professionally and personally
I want to share my experiences with student pharmacists who are approaching the time to schedule their APPEs in hope that they will use this opportunity to challenge themselves to grow both professionally and personally into the best pharmacist they can become. I want every student pharmacist to see the potential in themselves and seek out experiences that help develop their future careers. I encourage every student pharmacist to approach their experiential opportunities with the same excitement and curiosity we once had for field trips when we were young.