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A Day in the Life of an Oncology Pharmacist By Aprille Espinueva When I first heard about the RAMPS program, I was excited at the opportunity to gain more insight into various pharmacy fields that I was interested in and that I would get exposure to how pharmacy is practiced in different settings. After applying, I was ecstatic to learn that I was paired up with my mentor, Dr. Courtney Yuen, who is a clinical pharmacist in the Adult Hematology/Oncology Service at UCSF and is also a professor in the school of pharmacy. My first meeting with my mentor took place over coffee at a nearby café. During our conversation, I learned that the pharmacist’s role in oncology is diverse and versatile. Not only do pharmacists have to dispense medication, but make significant contributions to the patient’s care with their knowledge on side effects, symptom management and proper handling techniques. Knowledge of appropriate doses, pharmacokinetics, incompatibilities, special administration procedures, acute and cumulative toxic manifestations, unique databases, counseling and avoidance of personal exposure are all attributes that are brought to the interdisciplinary team by an oncology pharmacist. When I asked about the work hours, I was told that although the hours may be long, schedules are usually flexible. During my meeting, I also received advice on school and my career. Dr. Yuen told me that while it was quite early to decide on a certain specialty, I should continue to explore different career paths throughout school. He was also helpful and encouraged me in my search for a summer internship (which I was very nervous and actively searching for at the time) which was great. Overall, my mentor not only helped me to understand more about the oncology specialty, but to realize that there are many opportunities available to us that can help further guide our interests. The RAMPS program benefited me by not only helping me gain a better sense of knowledge about pharmacists in a field I was interested in, but helped me gain personal advice on how to guide my career choices and gain professional relationships. I highly recommend any student who is interested in learning about a particular specialty in pharmacy to participate in the RAMPS program because it will give you a chance to learn about pharmacists who have “been through it” and of course, hearing stories on how they reached that certain point in their career is always an interesting and rewarding experience. Aprille Espinueva is a second-year pharmacy student.
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