Floater Pharmacist - Career Profile |
Career OverviewA floater pharmacist is a trained pharmacist that covers vacancies by full or part-time pharmacists that are on regular working hours. A floater pharmacist may work for just one pharmacy with a very small staff or he or she may work for a large chain pharmacy and may cover staffing vacancies in more than one pharmacy.
A floater pharmacist must be able to easily adjust to different staff members, different pharmacy set-ups and different work schedules. Often floater pharmacists cover regular vacations so they may be at one pharmacy for a few days or even weeks at the same time. Other times they may be called in on emergency basis for unscheduled absences.
A floater pharmacist must have excellent communication skills and should be able to work with a wide range of people and customers. The floater pharmacist often must leave detailed information for the staff pharmacist or may be required to keep logs, records or other data as per company policy.
As a floater pharmacist there may be longer hours with more travel involved. Usually travel will be reimbursed by the company or agency. Many pharmacists that wish to only work part-time or are trying to gain experience working in pharmacy start their careers as a floater pharmacist.
The floater pharmacist usually works very closely with the District Manager for the chain or with the senior or managing pharmacist in a privately owned pharmacy to ensure that adequate staff coverage is always maintained.
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Career RequirementsA floater pharmacist must have all the requirements of a full-time pharmacist. This means that they will have completed their Doctor of Pharmacy, Pharm-D, as well as all necessary exams.
All pharmacists are required to complete the North American Pharmacists Licensure Exam, NAPLEX, and in some states a pharmacist is also required to complete the MPJE exam that test legal knowledge as it relates to pharmacy practices.
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Job OutlookThere is an increasing demand for all types of pharmacists as the United States Department of Labor predicts that the demand for trained pharmacists will be far greater than the number of job seekers on the market. This trend is expected to continue at least until the year 2014.
The increasing ability of community based pharmacists, those that a floater pharmacist covers for, to engage in some medical treatments such as flu vaccinations, blood pressure testing and other basic test has increased the demand for pharmacists in both small and large stores.
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Career TrackFloater pharmacists usually plan to move into permanent, full time positions within the chains or stores that they are providing coverage for. Many floater pharmacists only wish to work part-time so they choose to stay as a floater pharmacist because of personal preference.
A floater pharmacist has the advantage of working with different staff members and stores to find out which pharmacy in the chain or area is the best match for their personal style.
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CompensationMost floater pharmacists are paid on an hourly rate plus expenses for travel and other incidentals associated with being a floater pharmacist. The average floater pharmacist works approximately half the hours of a full time pharmacist and may expect to earn between $45,000 and $60,000 per year, depending on the number of days worked.
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