Speaker: Meredy Ayers, CPhT-Adv, Events & Engagement Manager, Alliance For Pharmacy Compounding
How did you get started as pharmacy tech?
Meredy Ayers, CPhT-Adv: I actually got started in pharmacy as an after-school job when I was in high school. I grew up in a small town and the local independent pharmacy was simply where I landed. And at the time, I definitely wasn't thinking this is going to be my career. I was a high school kid with an after-school job, but as I started learning, taking on more responsibility, and realizing how much there was to pharmacy and the technician role, I knew I was golden and that's where I wanted to be. That afterschool job turned into 27 years in independent community pharmacy. And it eventually opened doors I could never have imagined back then. So. I think that's why I tell technicians now not to get too caught up in having their entire career mapped out. I, I certainly did not. So, sometimes you just start somewhere and you keep learning and you keep saying yes to opportunities. And one day you look back and realize how far that first little job took you. And you have to say yes to those opportunities before you're actually ready sometimes.
What has helped you advance into your current role?
Meredy Ayers, CPhT-Adv: So I think the biggest thing that has helped me advance was being willing to say yes to opportunities, even when I wasn't completely sure I was ready for them. So I volunteered and I joined committees and I got involved with professional organizations, local and, and countrywide, but I continued my education and I built relationships with people throughout pharmacy, and I've had some incredible mentors along the way who saw things in me that I probably didn't see in myself. And I've never been afraid to ask questions or learn something new, and I've tried not to limit myself by thinking that's not really a technician role because, yeah, it can be. So, all those experiences eventually came together and they helped me move from working in a pharmacy every day into administration in the pharmacy, into public relations, and then eventually into my current role now with the Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding. So, I didn't follow a perfectly planned career ladder. It was more like building a career, one opportunity, one relationship, and one, yes, at a time. So, I now like to be that person for other pharmacy technicians, because I had people who encouraged me and opened doors for me and helped me see the opportunities I didn't know were there. I think, if I can do that for another technician and help them see just how far this career can take them, that's incredibly meaningful.
What advice would you give to someone entering the pharmacy technician field?
Meredy Ayers, CPhT-Adv: My biggest advice is don't think of being a pharmacy technician as just a job you were hired to do. Learn everything you can, ask questions, be curious, get certified, add credentials, volunteer, join organizations, and then go to that conference, and then introduce yourself to people and find the person doing something interesting. And ask them how they got there. And when somebody gives you an opportunity that feels a little outside of the comfort zone, say, yeah, and figure it out. Also, don't underestimate the value of what you bring to the table as a technician. As technicians, we understand workflow and triage and patience and problem solving and what actually happens on the front lines of pharmacy, and that perspective really does matter.
