Pharmacy: The Best Job?

I saw this news item in the PCMA Smart Brief dated March 5: “A new report reveals pharmacists made a median salary of about $111,500 in 2010.” The US News & World Report “Best Jobs of 2012” report also found that job prospects for pharmacists should be excellent in the years to come and earnings potential remains high.

“This new report runs counter to claims that independent drugstores need new legislation that protects them from competition,” Pharmaceutical Care Management Association President and CEO Mark Merritt has said.

Several comments seem warranted. Isn’t it interesting how people can use news to promote their point of view? Maybe there is a lesson for pharmacists here. We need to take advantage of news reports to share our message. For example, did you write a letter to your local newspaper when the US News & World Report was released about how pharmacists are an important neighborhood health resource?

Of course, the other comment, or perhaps question, this report raises is: Where did they get their information?

Talking to upcoming graduates from pharmacy schools, the same picture about all the jobs available isn’t present in their world. Is this year just a blip that will improve dramatically in the near future or did US News & World Report get it wrong?