Insider’s perspective
Respondents listed the following critical factors as those being the most important to them. Please note
that a factor can rank high based on wanting the factor or wanting to avoid the factor. As an example,
some may rank repetitive activities as a top factor as this is something that they want or look to avoid
in their practice. The factors listed below are based on the number of respondents that indicated these
would be the top five factors they would like to have in a role. Note that there are 25 total critical
factors to select from.
Top 5 – first tier
Of interest is the fact that there are two factors that were rated the same across the group.
- Application of knowledge (e.g., clinical or scientific) (22.6%)
- Collaborating with health professionals (22.6%)
- Ongoing coworker/client relationships (20.8%)
- Autonomy (15.1%)
- Area of expertise (general versus specialized) (13.2%)
In addition to the top five factors, the second tier of critical factors are listed below. Note that
four of the factors—application of knowledge (e.g., clinical or scientific), collaborating with health
professionals, ongoing coworker/client relationships, and autonomy (15.1%)—are also listed in this Top 5
tier.
Top 5 – second tier
- Application of knowledge (e.g., clinical or scientific) (22.6%)
- Ongoing coworker/client relationships (20.8%)
- Collaborating with health professionals (17.0%)
- Autonomy (15.1%)
- Leisure and family time (13.2%)
One respondent from Illinois looked at ongoing coworker/client relationships and stated, “Having a
network internally is important.” Another from Wisconsin added, “Long-term coworker and patient
relationships are critical to my happiness and success at work.”
One respondent from Ohio looked at autonomy and stated, “My job is very self-directed, and I enjoy that
I build my own day knowing what my primary deliverables are.” Another from Virginia added, “It's great
to have control over your own work environment (and) feel heard.”
There are many rewarding and challenging experiences in being a pharmacist working in ambulatory care.
Twenty-four percent of the respondents indicated that working with/helping patients was a rewarding
experience. Another 15.1% indicated that they felt rewarded helping / educating others. Working with
difficult students/patients was listed as a challenging aspect by 7.55% of the respondents.
Numerous other areas were highlighted by the respondents. One respondent from Massachusetts stated,
“Rewarding/supporting colleagues who are struggling with difficult patient cases and need the support to
solve clinical issues.” Another respondent from Virginia indicated that it is rewarding, “Getting to be
creative with solutions to caring for patients.” From the challenging side a different respondent from
Virginia listed, “Challenging: introducing new concepts/projects to clinical teams and being accepted as
part of the health care team.”
Seventeen percent indicated that their work schedule is an additional factor that is important to them.
In addition, the following factors were also listed as important factors to consider: self-worth/value,
job security, and geographic work location, flexibility, each at 15.1%, and multiple task handling at
11.3%.
The ambulatory care pharmacists listed a variety of responses that they consider highlights of their
career and where they see the future of the role. Several of the responses are listed below:
- "Helping to manage treatment for a critically ill patient presenting with an intentional calcium
channel blocker overdose that made a full recovery and was grateful that he had a second chance at
life."
- "I see a lot of potential for being able to serve underserved communities in ambulatory care."
- "Seeing student pharmacists, resident pharmacists, fellows and junior faculty grow and learn and
then
engage with the pharmacy profession."
- "If we could get the billing issues fixed, there are lots of opportunities to make a difference in
people's lives."
- "Moving into new areas for advancing community pharmacist."
- "Playing a key role in improving patients' lives whether it is globally with the hospital (process
improvements) or individually with patients."
- "Experiences helping patients afford crucial and needed medications."
- "More pharmacists in primary care. This is where we need to be, and they desperately need
pharmacists."
Critical factor ratings
Opportunities for advancement
[To what degree does your work allow for advancement?]
Respondents rated opportunities for advancement at 6.90, a mid-range response.
One respondent from Pennsylvania indicated that it is, “Difficult to advance in health care without
business acumen.” Another from Florida added, “Show through actions and/or training you are capable of
more.”
A respondent from Massachusetts listed the different roles in their organization, “Senior Manager,
Director, Senior Director, Vice President, Group Vice President.” A different respondent from
Massachusetts added, “I think that residency helped me. Most advancement opportunities are in
administration.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Little advancement opportunities
10 = Great opportunities for advancement
Leadership development/professional involvement
[To what extent does your work allow for the development of leadership skills and
professional involvement in the pharmacy profession?]
Respondents rated leadership development/professional involvement in the upper mid-range at 7.96.
A respondent from Georgia stated, “I am reimbursed for 2 professional organization memberships and 2
conferences each year.” Another from Florida added, “Opportunities to attend conferences of various
pharmacy organizations, present CE, precept students.”
A different pharmacist in Florida indicated, “I work a lot with senior organization leaders.” On the
other side, a respondent from Minnesota said, “Was told ‘it's our responsibility’ to seek professional
development."
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Little development of leadership skills and professional involvement
10 = Great opportunities for leadership development and professional
involvement
Community impact
[How much impact does your work have in terms of serving the community?]
Community impact was rated in the high range at 8.00.
A pharmacist from Arizona provided a brief comment, “Community safety net.” Another from Massachusetts
added that they, “Hire, [train] and develop the teams that will serve patients and have 100% patient
contact.”
A respondent from Florida was very positive about the role and indicated that they have, “Great impact
on multiple levels. The is my reason for fierce advocacy.” Another from Arizona added, “I am involved in
community engaged research with refugee communities.” One additional pharmacist from Wisconsin stated,
“I volunteer once a month at a clinic for medically underserved people.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Little impact
10 = High level of impact
Autonomy
[To what extent does your work allow for autonomy in decision making?]
Autonomy is rated in the upper range with an 8.08 response which is the second highest response for
this group.
An ambulatory care pharmacist from Missouri stated, “High autonomy due to nature of job that blends
many roles.” Another from Arizona added, “Pharmacy leads allow me to make my own clinical decisions,
and collaborative practice agreements with providers allow me to do the same.”
One the other side is a comment from a pharmacist in Florida who stated they work in a for-profit
hospital, “All decisions regarding policies/formulary must go through owning company, which takes
months to years.” Another pharmacist from Illinois added, “Ten for decision making with patients,
one for decision making regarding pharmacy improvements.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Very little low autonomy
10 = High level of autonomy
Focus
[To what extent does your work allow you to be focused on the future versus a focus only
on
immediate tasks?]
Respondents rated the factor of focus with a mid-range 6.76.
A respondent from Ohio indicated, “It's been amazing to see what a pharmacist can do and how to
flourish in the appropriate team setting.” Another from Virginia added, “Obviously need to get daily
tasks completed but also have a very strong focus on building future initiatives.”
A pharmacist from Arizona had a different perspective and provided the following, “Every day is
focused on triaging critical ill and no focus on prevention.” In a similar vein, a respondent from
Florida added, “Immediate tasks prioritized and only staffed for immediate clinical
responsibilities, anything future oriented likely has to be completed on my own time.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Immediate tasks only
10 = Tasks focused on the future
Prestige
[To what extent does your work provide professional prestige?]
Respondents rated this factor at 7.22 a mid-range response.
At times there can be a dichotomy based on how one looks at prestige. One respondent from Utah
stated, “Pharmacists within my organization are typically undervalued.” Opposed to this is a
statement from Florida, “Pharmacists are well respected and relied upon by practicing physicians at
my institution for recommendations, drug dosing, etc.”
A different pharmacist from Florida provided concern with looking at prestige by stating, “I think
people need to get over prestige. Focus on providing excellent patient care, not how good you look
on paper or how many initials you have behind your name.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Provides low prestige
10 = Provides high prestige
Creating value/positive outcomes
[To what extent does your work allow for personal fulfillment through the creation of
value
and positive outcomes?]
Respondents rated this factor at the upper mid-range with a 7.88.
One respondent from Ohio provided a very positive statement, “This is the most rewarding job I have
had in my 30+ years of practice.” Another respondent from Florida stated, “I am able to receive
immediate positive feedback from my work from patients, colleagues.”
A respondent from Illinois has a slightly different take when they added, “Working with my clinical
team gives me a fulfillment of 10 because it allows me to perform near the top of my license.
Pharmacy leadership cares little about this and would rather have me verifying orders and doing
discharge deliveries, which is not at the top of my license.” A pharmacist from Virginia felt
similar and stated, “I haven't felt personally fulfilled by this work due to less patient
interaction than traditional clinical roles. There is opportunity to feel fulfilled/valued, but
working on these types of programs tends to be more of a long game (takes time to see the fruits of
your labor). Definitely no instant gratification in this work.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Little extent
10 = High extent
Patient relationships
[To what degree do you have ongoing or long-term relationships with
patients?]
Respondents indicated that patient relationships are rated at the mid-range at 6.35.
A pharmacist from Illinois indicated that, “Acute care long-term relationships with patients are
difficult.” Another from Florida added, “In (a) critical care setting only managing until stable
then transferred out.” One additional respondent from Massachusetts stated, “As I am in ambulatory
care I have the opportunity to develop long-term relationships with patients.”
Another respondent from Wisconsin stated, “Why I find it difficult to consider other career paths.
My work with patients is extremely meaningful.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = No ongoing/ long-term relationships
10 = All are long-term relationships
Coworker/client relationships
[To what degree do you have ongoing or long-term relationships with coworkers or
clients?]
In contrast to patient relationships, coworker/client relationships are the highest rated factor by
this group at an upper-range 8.44.
A pharmacist from Virginia stated, “I have strong long-term relationships with coworkers as we
constantly collaborate on value-based/population health projects together.” A respondent from
Florida added, “Better collaboration with all HCPs and the patient results in better outcomes of the
disease management because everyone is focused on the same collective goal rather than individual
goals that might be outside the patient's benefit.”
One respondent from Pennsylvania added that, “Hybrid does make this harder than it was previously
when we were all located in the same area.” A different pharmacist from Florida indicated, “As a
consult (ambulatory care) service, we do not follow many patients longitudinally. However, with
coworkers there is opportunity for collaboration longitudinally on different projects.”
Another respondent from Wisconsin added, “There's a great deal of comfort and efficiency when
relationships are longitudinal.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = No ongoing/ long-term relationships
10 = All are long-term relationships
Writing/conducting research
[How often do you engage in writing and/or conducting research?]
Respondents are not heavily involved with writing/conducting research as noted by her low mid-range
response of 4.15.
One respondent from Arizona indicated that, “Research has not come up yet but may potentially come
up with additional students and opportunities.” Another from Virginia added, “There is opportunity
for research related to this field, but I haven't engaged in any yet (been in my position a year).”
One additional comment from a practitioner in Florida, “Perform research as opportunities arise. We
share our practice frequently through the literature.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = None of my time
10 = All my time
Generating new ideas
[To what degree does your work involve generating new ideas?]
Respondents rated this factor at 7.33, a mid-range result.
One respondent from Florida indicated, “Our institution encourages new ideas and institutionalizes
this. I am a key member of our organization innovation group.” A different respondent from Florida
added, “Generating new ideas is encouraged but limited room for implementation on an institutional
level due to resource allocation and restriction by owning company.”
A respondent from Massachusetts who holds an academic ambulatory care position stated, “Faculty are
expected to be innovative in both their teaching, research, and services they provide.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Little innovative thinking
10 = High degree of innovative thinking
Supervision/management
[To what extent do you spend your time organizing, managing, or supervising others and/or
business operations?]
Pharmacists rated this factor mid-range with a 5.40 score.
One respondent from Illinois simply listed, “Student pharmacists and residents.” Another from
Florida stated, “I am a coordinator and responsible for other clinicians.” An additional respondent
from Arizona stated, “Mainly through technician work is when I am managing others.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = None of my time
10 = All my time
Patient interaction
[How much time do you spend interacting with patients?]
Patient interaction was rated mid-range at 5.34.
A faculty ambulatory care specialist from Massachusetts stated, “As pharmacy practice (member) your
service is usually expected to be at a clinical site. This is typically expected to take up 30–50%
of your role. ”Another respondent from Florida listed, “Patients--performing med recs, counseling,
education.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = None of my time
10 = All my time
Public interaction
[How much time do you spend interacting with the public?]
Public interaction is the lowest rated factor at 3.19.
One respondent from Massachusetts interacts with the public through, “Vaccine clinics.” Another
respondent from Virginia stated, “I work remotely so no interaction with the public, but patient
interaction to help close care gaps represents a little less than half my role (the rest is
administrative/managerial).”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = None of my time
10 = All my time
Collaboration
[How often do you work or collaborate with other health professionals or educate other
professionals in your work?]
Respondents indicated that they collaborate or educate other health professionals with a rating of
7.08.
One respondent from Florida stated, “Work in primary care offices, work with PCPs more than other
pharmacists.” A different respondent from Florida added that, “60–70% of my daily responsibilities
are collaborating with nursing/physicians on medication management; long term projects focused on
physician and nursing education.”
A respondent from Wisconsin indicated, “At least 50% of my work time involves directly or indirectly
collaborating with other health professionals.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = None of my time
10 = All my time
Family/leisure time
[How much free time do you have for leisure and family activities in your work?]
Respondents were mid-range with a rating of 6.25 for this factor.
A respondent from Florida stated, “Weekends and holidays are off. Unlike my past roles where I
worked holidays, weekends, and nights.” Another from Virginia added, “Huge perk of this type of
position. Typical M–F 9–5 although some nights I do need to work a little late to finish a report or
project. I never work weekends or evenings/overnights. I'm off all major holidays with no blackout
dates.”
A different pharmacist from Florida indicated that they, “Purposely make an effort to include
hobbies/family in daily life.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Little free time
10 = Plenty of time for family and leisure activities
Impact on well-being
[To what degree do you impact the well-being of individuals?]
Respondents feel that they do have any impact on the well-being of individuals with a high mid-range
rating of 7.85.
A respondent from Ohio stated, “My goal is to educate patients on ways to improve lifestyle,
minimize need for medications, and improve outcomes.” Another from Massachusetts provided a
different perspective when they added, “Indirect impact—when staffing levels are where they should
be then the teams have more well-being.”
A pharmacist from Florida indicated, “Creating a positive work environment through attitude and
support is important for well-being both at work and in general.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Low degree
10 = High degree
Problem solving
[To what degree do you solve problems with tried-and-true alternatives versus untested
alternatives in your work?]
Problem solving is rated at 5.44 for this group.
A respondent from Florida provided a lengthy response, “I try to stay away from the "tried and true
alternatives." If one says "this is how we have always done it" I know it is time to take a step
back and look to see what other new alternatives we can consider. We have way too many ingrained in
what has been done and tested, very few who are comfortable going through the problem-solving
process including embracing the brainstorming process, utilizing critical thinking, and having some
courage to try something new.” A different respondent from Florida added, “lots of problem solving
in terms of technology; occasionally problem solving in terms of patient care with challenging
cases.” An additional respondent from Massachusetts added, “out of the box ideas-problem solving
skills.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Tried and true
10 = Untested alternatives
Expertise
[How general or specialized is the expertise required in your work?]
Respondents lean toward the specialized side with a rating of 7.15. A pharmacist from Ohio stated,
“Working in primary care requires a specialized knowledge in quite a few disease states.” Another
from Arizona provided a brief statement, “Emergency medicine.”
A respondent from Wisconsin indicated, “Work in a pulmonary clinic, so focus is on pulmonary disease
states, but providers also value my general medication information.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Generalized
10 = Specialized
Repetition
[To what degree is your work composed of activities and tasks that are highly repetitive
versus highly variable?]
Respondents are mid-range with a rating of 5.52 regarding repetition.
A respondent from Ohio indicated, “Structure of seeing 14 patients a day is repetitive. Seeing many
different diagnoses is highly variable (mood, hypertension, diabetes, tobacco cessation, weight
management, migraine) and these are just tomorrow's patients.” Another respondent from Florida
added, “Lot of double documentation. Documenting the same information in both the patient chart and
in a different monitoring application. Daily responsibilities are the same but day-to-day priorities
can vary depending on criticality of patients.”
A pharmacist from Virginia stated, “I would say my work is variable as I am frequently creating and
implementing new initiatives on varied topics, but usually once implemented that workflow is quite
repetitive.” Another from New York added, “Balance between repetitive the schedule/tasks from day to
day is never the same.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Highly repetitive
10 = Highly variable
Applying scientific knowledge
[How much of your time is spent applying scientific knowledge in your
work?]
Respondents indicated that applying scientific knowledge is rated a 6.10. A respondent from
Wisconsin related what they feel is important with the application of scientific knowledge,
“Pharmacist and clinicians are problem-solvers by nature. Some problems are more significant
(science based) and require more time and effort to solve than others.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = No application
10 = High level of application all the time
Applying clinical knowledge
[How much of your time is spent applying clinical knowledge in your
work?]
Respondents indicated that applying clinical knowledge is higher at 7.77.
A respondent from Virginia indicated, “A lot of administrative knowledge to create and implement
clinical initiatives but need clinical knowledge at baseline.” A respondent from Maine added,
“Application of guideline/evidence-based medicine through multidisciplinary rounds and medication
management.”
A respondent from New York stated, “Utilize and continually update clinical knowledge to teach
evidence based clinical decisions making.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = No application
10 = High level of application all the time
Parental leave
[To what extent does your work setting offer parental leave opportunities?]
Respondents rated parental leave in the mid-range with a 5.75.
One respondent from Wisconsin stated, “Twelve weeks FMLA, though pay is low.” Another from Florida
added, “Not relevant to me but coworkers have had to take full FMLA leave; company provides bare
minimum.”
A pharmacist from Massachusetts indicated, “My work only utilizes the state provided parental leave,
but it is encouraged to do and use all the time allowed. Most do not feel pressured to return to
work early.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Limited opportunities
10 = Unlimited opportunities
Compensation
[To what degree do you feel compensated for your responsibilities in your work?]
Compensation is listed at a 6.40 rating slightly toward the well compensated side.
A respondent from Florida stated, “Pay grade based on tenure/seniority, not necessarily effort or
contribution. This causes some frustration with younger, more clinically involved pharmacists.” A
respondent from Massachusetts included that their, “Position is not bonus eligible.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Not well compensated
10 = Well compensated
Benefit package
[How comprehensive is the employee benefit package offered in your work setting?]
Respondents indicated that the benefit package is rated a 6.92 leaning toward being comprehensive.
A respondent from Florida stated, “All standard benefits with pension.” Another from Viginia added
that they have a, “Competitive benefits package.”
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Not comprehensive
10 = Very Comprehensive
Advice for student pharmacists
Respondents provided advice across several areas and what the future brings. A total of 17% of the
ambulatory pharmacists indicated that they see growth in this area moving forward. Information from
several of the pharmacists is listed below:
- "Keep up with the literature. It is continuously changing."
- "More clinical work with physicians and more wellness programs led by pharmacists."
- "Value-based care."
- "I see this as a growing field since health care is moving towards value-based health
arrangements."
- "Expansion of pharmacy services and prescriptive authorities, with novel revenue-generating
opportunities."
Professional organizations
Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP)
675 North Washington Street, Suite 220, Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 684-2600 | www.amcp.org
Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE)
190 South LaSalle Street, Suite 3000, Chicago, IL 60603-3446
(312) 664-3575 | www.acpe-accredit.org
American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP)
1400 Crystal Drive, Suite 300, Arlington, VA 22202
(703) 739-2330 | www.aacp.org
American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS)
Avedisian Hall, 7 Greenhouse Road, Kingston, RI 02881
(703) 556-0650 | www.aaps.org
American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists (AAPP)
8055 O Street, Suite S113, Lincoln, NE 68510
(402) 476-1677| www.aapp.org
American College of Apothecaries (ACA)
2830 Summer Oaks Drive, Bartlett, TN 38134
(901) 383-8119 | www.acainfo.org
American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP)
13000 West 87th Street Parkway, Lenexa, KS 66215-4530
(913) 492-3311 |www.accp.com
American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education (AFPE)
11325 Random Hills Road, Suite 360A-105, Fairfax, VA 22030
(571) 404-0471 | www.afpenet.org
American Pharmacists Association (APhA)
2215 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20037
(202) 628-4410 | www.pharmacist.com
American Society of Consultant Pharmacists (ASCP)
1240 North Pitt Street, Suite 300, Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 739-1300 | www.ascp.com
American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP)
4500 East-West Highway, Suite 900, Bethesda, MD 20814
(866) 279-0681 | www.ashp.org
Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS)
2215 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20037
(202) 946-5026 | www.bpsweb.org
Hematology/Oncology Pharmacy Association (HOPA)
555 East Wells Street, Suite 1100, Milwaukee, WI 53202
(877) 467-2791 | www.hoparx.org
National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations (NASPA)
2530 Professional Road, North Chesterfield, VA 23235
(804) 285-4431 | www.naspa.us
National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP)
1600 Feehanville Drive, Mount Prospect, IL 60056
(847) 391-4406 | www.nabp.pharmacy
National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS)
1776 Wilson Blvd, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22209
(703) 549-3001 | www.nacds.org
National Association of Specialty Pharmacy (NASP)
300 New Jersey Ave, NW, #900, Washington, DC 20001
(703) 842.0122 | www.naspnet.org
National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA)
100 Daingerfield Road, Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 683-8200 | www.ncpa.org
National Pharmaceutical Association (NPhA)
10810 North Tatum Boulevard, Suite 102-965, Phoenix, AZ 85028
(480) 405-9291 | www.nationalpharmaceuticalassociation.org
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)
670 Maine Avenue, SW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20024
(202) 835-3400 | www.phrma.org