WINNER
OVERALL DIANE CAN ONLY BE DESCRIBED AS A LIFE-LONG LEARNER WHO, FROM THE TENDER AGE OF SIXTEEN, TRULY IMMERSED HERSELF IN COMMUNITY PHARMACY.
Diane made the suggestion that, instead of employing more staff, they enrol her onto the Accredited Checking Pharmacy Technician course, as she believed that it would improve the capacity of the pharmacists, freeing them up to do more of the services that were to be delivered through the Scottish Pharmacy Contract.
her potential and, in 2002, when a vacancy arose in the dispensary, Diane was asked to transfer through to enhance her knowledge and skills. With this opportunity and a clear vision that her future remained in pharmacy, she enrolled at Stow College in 2003 where she studied for two years and gained her national qualification in pharmaceutical science.
Following Diane’s success in completing her NVQ2, Rowlands enrolled her on to the NVQ3 Pharmacy Technician course and, over the course of two years, she worked tirelessly to complete it. Throughout this period, however, she continued to support her other colleagues both out on the counter and in the dispensary and encouraged them to complete further training.
With the pharmacy going from strength to strength, it was recognised that the team needed extra help and
On completion of this qualification she immediately took over the burden of checking many of the repeat prescriptions and weekly MDS packs, giving the pharmacist the opportunity to spend more time delivering patient- focused services and interventions.
This pharmacy sees, on average, year- on-year growth for NHS items in the region of nine per cent and an OTC sales improvement of approximately ten-eleven per cent. It goes without saying that the pharmacy team firmly believes that it can maximise its service income by delivering everything it can to the best of its ability.
Diane was seen as a key driver in this and, as a result, was offered the opportunity to become a temporary non-pharmacist manager in the Calderwood Square pharmacy in East Kilbride, where she would manage a team of locums plus a large staff of eleven while the regular pharmacist was on maternity leave. This was no mean feat as this pharmacy was the fourth largest of the 42 Rowlands branches in Scotland! Nevertheless, Diane took on this responsibility with
great enthusiasm and demonstrated great initative in developing her role by working alongside her colleagues and her area manager.
As the non-pharmacist manager, and in a role that was particularly new to the company, Diane was asked to work with her area manager to design a job description and recognised that throughout the year it would be scrutinised to see if her role could be replicated in eth business and could demonstrate efficiency and effectiveness in team working and service development.
Her main responsibilities included being accountable for the staff and the running of the pharmacy. She also had to support the locums to ensure they delivered her goals for service provision, while simultaneously continuing to carry out her role as an ACPT.
To support Diane in her latest role as a non-pharmacist manager - a fairly new position to Rowlands pharmacy - her area manager encouraged her to enrol on to the Rowlands Management Development Programme. At first, Diane was apprehensive as it initially had been designed for pharmacist managers and, as a non-pharmacist, she wasn’t sure how she would fit in. Nevertheless, she was so determined to succeed in this role that she decided there was nothing to lose and enrolled in the programme. The evening
sessions are held locally and they bring together small groups of managers with a range of experience to cover topics such as setting direction for the team; managing conflict; personal effectiveness (including time management); prioritising; dealing with difficult situations and people, and implementing change. Diane herself has admitted that these sessions have been truly worthwhile and have definitely helped to build her confidence, but have also provided her with a toolkit which enables her to confidently handle many of the different scenarios that arise in her role within community pharmacy.
Overall Diane can only be described as a life-long learner who, from the tender age of sixteen, truly immersed herself in community pharmacy. Her passion for pharmacy is clear for all to see and one of her greatest assets is how she manages to bring people along on ‘the journey’ with her. She quietly instils confidence in her fellow colleagues by coaching them rather than training. A star employee and an inspiration to all!
NOT ONLY HAS DIANE INVESTED HEAVILY IN HER OWN TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT TO EQUIP HER FOR HER ROLES IN PHARMACY, SHE HAS ALSO INVESTED IN SUPPORTING THE TRAINING OF OTHER PHARMACY STAFF.
•Target Healthcare• SCOTTISH PHARMACIST - 27
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