Building relationships for a healthy community

“I love being a pharmacist. I love developing those relationships and going on the journey to help them achieve their health outcomes.”

The desire to help people combined with a love of the health sciences has been with the James Cook University graduate since childhood.

With both parents involved in the pharmacy sector, he often found himself helping out at industry events and trade shows. This gave him an insight into the industry and confirmed his love for the profession.

“I loved the idea of so many health services and businesses coming to speak with pharmacists. This meant the pharmacists would be better able to serve their communities. That appealed to me,” he said.

It was during a school trip to James Cook University that he realised not only did he know what he wanted to study, but also where he wanted to study.

“The university had a great feel to it. Everyone was personable and down to earth, I didn’t feel like another number. Also, the Pharmacy Department had built a brand new purpose-built facility.

He said it’s a decision which led to four fantastic years as he progressed through JCU’s Bachelor of Pharmacy. An experience enriched by his involvement with the uni’s Pharmacy Students’ Association (JCUPSA) from his first year.

“We developed such a strong bond within the cohort. We made lifelong friends, received strong mentorship and advice, and played many interfaculty sports. I enjoyed JCUSPA organised events and was a member of the JCUPSA committee.”

It also instilled in him the importance of regional, rural and remote practice.

“I went on some amazing placements and developed a sense of what I want to achieve in my career. One of which was to be a community pharmacist in regional Australia,” he said.

“JCU encourages its’ graduates to be part of the rural, regional and remote healthcare community. You get out of it what you put in, so the more involved you are in this, the more you can take away from it.”

Since graduating from JCU Shane has worked as a community pharmacist, a role he is passionate about.

“The community pharmacist has such a vital role as the first port of call for many patients. We’re a vital triage point. We can manage some ailments in the store and also refer patients who need a more in-depth diagnosis.”

“The relationships that you build can be very rewarding as you can go through the journey with your patients.”

While he’s chosen to go into community pharmacy, Shane believes there’s a range of interesting and diverse careers for pharmacy graduates.

“This includes hospital pharmacy with a focus on acute clinical care, Defence Force pharmacy which looks at the logistics of managing medications and industrial pharmacists. There are also pharmacists who work for industry bodies, or in general practice and many more.”

He believes the opportunities are endless.

“A qualification in pharmacy can open up many doors for many different career options,” he said.

As a pharmacist manager in Townsville, Shane relishes the opportunity to use his expertise to plan strategies to ensure best care for the patients who come through his door.

“This means doing all the basics and gathering the information needed to work on a plan together,” he said.

“I love the fact that I have a good relationship with other health professionals. This includes GPs, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists, dentists and so on. It means I can refer patients to these professionals in times of need.

“Inter-professional collaboration is key to achieving the best results for our patients,” he said.

“I love to see my patients through their journey and back to full health as soon as they can.”