My name is Alisha. I am a pre-registration pharmacy technician and I started in the month of September 2021.
I'd always been interested to work within the NHS and I found out they had apprenticeships on the careers website. I signed up for the email alerts and saw the pharmacy technician one come through and I applied for that.
When I saw the opportunity, I thought I put myself forward for it because I'd always been interested in sciences in school. The things I've done in school is what I needed to do for it, so I thought why not?
So, in the morning we'll wipe down the pharmacy, make sure it's clean, then we would pull off prescriptions from the system that's been prescribed to patients where we would label the items on the prescription to then dispense the medications that are prescribed for the patient.
The most important skills to carry out my job well, I would say, are communication, as you need to communicate with other members of staff, healthcare professionals, and most importantly patients. Teamwork is another important skill, as you need to work with other members of the team to ensure you're carrying out the highest and best quality care possible, and problem-solving, as you need to make sure you find ways to work around the problem.
So, one thing I wish I did know before I started my apprenticeship is how much help and support you get from the team in regards to it. I thought it would be a bit more independent and I would have to balance everything out myself, but you actually get a lot of help and advice to help you get through it.
The thing I like most about my job is helping people, as this is something that i really wanted to do and this reason why I took up this job. The amount of things you learn each day, so you're always learning something new. You've never learned everything within pharmacy. I'm always learning so I don't feel left out. Well, if you think oh you're a student, you're the only one learning, everyone else is learning with you, so that's something I really enjoy about this job.
I would say a Modern Apprenticeship with the NHS is the best way to start off your career, if you're interested in working with the NHS. It gives you a lot of opportunities and insights to what it's really like to work there, whilst learning, and if you have any queries it's always okay to ask, even at the start, email back, ask anything. They'll let you know and give you a bit more advice.