The following information was shared by the Steering Committee.
One innovative addition to the pharmacy recruitment pipeline is a partnership with local high schools. Boston Medical Center partners with Codman Academy Public Charter School to offer summer internships to students starting at age 16. Students obtain Pharmacy Technician Trainee Licenses and begin work in Outpatient, Inpatient, and Inventory Management areas of the department.
The program contains didactic teaching, simulated training, and an experiential component. If students complete at least two summer internship cycles they leave the program qualifying for full technician licensure. Organizations with existing pharmacy technician training programs can modify their existing material to accommodate students. Not only is this program an important part of the recruitment pipeline, it also provides local community members with the professional skills they will need to be successful after graduating.
Here’s a statement from the Boston Medical Center about the program.
Introducing Local High School Students to the World of Pharmacy
While everyone at the hospital plays a role in ensuring patients have a positive experience, there is one group in particular that makes a lasting impact – pharmacy technicians. And thanks to a special internship program, initiated through a partnership between our Pharmacy department and Codman Academy in Dorchester, nine high school students are one step closer to joining our team to be the helping hands our patients can rely on at the end of their visit.
Over the course of the program, students were placed in both inpatient and outpatient/retail pharmacies across campus, including the DOB Pharmacy and Yawkey and Shapiro Ambulatory Care Centers. Their efforts – which ranged from learning and keeping track of medications, creating labels, and interacting with patients – allowed them to gain the experience they needed to apply for tech trainee licenses at the end of the program.
We are #BMCproud of the students who recently completed this internship and excited to see how this program continues to increase exposure to thriving fields within pharmacy and beyond.