FROM TEXTBOOK TO
Richard Stephenson speaks to Amy Biggans about her first six months as a Foundation Training Year pharmacist.
S
ix months into her Foundation Training Year, Amy Biggans has already
discovered something university could never fully replicate: real life in community pharmacy is rarely textbook.
“What has surprised me most is the unpredictability of practice,” she explains.
At university, clinical cases are structured and contain all the relevant information needed to reach a diagnosis. In practice, patients do not present with neat symptom lists or supporting blood results.
Instead, Amy must rely on asking the right questions, identifying red flags and making informed decisions in real time.
“The shift from exam questions to having a patient sat in front of you
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can be challenging,” she says, “but it’s also highly rewarding.”
That unpredictability has accelerated her growth. Rather than feeling overwhelmed by the scale of knowledge required, Amy has embraced the idea that pharmacy is a career of continuous learning.
Now almost seven months into training, she focuses on incremental progress. Daily learning opportunities are recorded in her portfolio, allowing her to reflect on how far she has come.
Completing over 50 hours of prescribing practice, including time in warfarin clinics and shadowing primary care pharmacists and ANPs, has broadened her clinical exposure beyond the community setting and highlighted areas for development.
Her mindset has shifted significantly since her days as a dispenser and student.
Previously, the focus was task oriented and centred on accuracy. Now, as a trainee thinking like a responsible pharmacist, she considers the wider clinical picture. Indications, contraindications, monitoring requirements and patient counselling are part of every decision.
“I find myself asking whether I would be confident making this decision independently,” she says.
That reflective approach has strengthened both her clinical reasoning and professional confidence.
Building relationships with regular patients has been one of the most rewarding aspects of the role.
Continuity of care has allowed Amy to develop trust and understand individual patient concerns and goals. She has followed up patients after minor infection treatments and weight loss prescribing, seeing outcomes first hand.
Over time, patients have begun proactively seeking her advice, a clear sign of growing rapport.
Support from her supervising pharmacist and the wider team has also played a crucial role. She is encouraged to lead consultations and then discuss her reasoning, helping refine her decision making.
Increasingly, colleagues direct patient queries to her and involve her in conversations around patient safety, including identifying and discussing dispensing errors during blister pack checks.
THE SHIFT FROM EXAM QUESTIONS TO HAVING A PATIENT SAT IN FRONT OF YOU CAN BE CHALLENGING
TREATMENT ROOM
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