To address a significant gap in the availability of qualified pharmacy professionals in Northern Ireland, Pharmacy Forum NI has been engaging with post-primary schools, encouraging students to make pharmacy their career of choice.
A new virtual ‘pharmacy careers showcase’ programme hosted by celebrity radio presenter Rebecca McKinney and designed to give pupils an insight into pharmacy as a career option has been produced with the help of Pharmacy Futures NI champions.
The 30-minute long video which is now viewable on YouTube has been developed under Phase 2 of the Pharmacy Futures NI search and recruitment campaign.
The production is ideally suited to pupils currently studying chemistry and other subjects for GCSE, AS or A-Level and considering a potential career in a medical or chemistry-related discipline. It has advice from studying pharmacy at university to practising as a pharmacist in the community, in hospital, in a GP surgery or in a wide range of other industrial and academic settings.
Former Miss Ireland Rebecca Maguire who is a pharmacist and an medical aesthetic practitioner joins programme host McKinney to talk about her varied career and how she juggles all her careers at once.
Pharmacy Futures NI aims to fill 1,100+ additional roles in pharmacy sector in NI over the next four years.
The appointments – which will see current vacancies filled as well as new roles created – will include up to 560 community, hospital and general practice pharmacists and over 600 pharmacy technicians.
The campaign is led by Pharmacy Forum NI in partnership with the Department of Health for Northern Ireland.
