David

Am I a little disappointed about yesterday? Yes. I had my mind set on getting it all done at once and hoping to not have to initiate a discontinuance. 

But, there is little anyone can do about the weather and as we all know, Florida weather can throw a wrench into any plans.

Now you may be asking yourself if I am getting an instrument, why should clouds be a factor? Isn't that the whole reason why I am working on this rating? The answer is two-fold and what one might say is a Catch-22.

First, to fly through/in clouds, legally, I need to file an instrument flight plan. To do so, I need to be instrument rated; the point of doing this exam! We could file a flight plan under him, but then let's assume the weather deteriorates to the point of near zero visibility. As a pilot, you have what are called personal minimus, what weather conditions you are comfortable with at this point in your flying time. Would I be comfortable flying in near, true zero, visibility? No. Most of the training is done in a simulated environment with a view limiting device. I have some actual IFR experience, but it is very limited. Not only that, but fuel is another consideration. If the entire area is covered in bad weather, I would have to consider an alternate or worst case, declare an emergency and land in horrible visibility. Needless to say, adding those elements to a checkride, while definitely a learning experience, are not additional stresses desired for this event. 

But, the second problem then arises. While I can go fly under visual flight rules, which is what a private pilot does, I still have to be mindful of distance limits from the clouds. During approaches, there are minimum altitudes one must be flying to cross a point.

(In the attached image, there is a point called PETSE and the 2500 with the line under it, means you have to cross it AT OR ABOVE that altitude, NOT BELOW.) Yesterday, if we were to fly, there was a very high probability that to meet that minimum crossing altitude, we would be flying too close or into the clouds. Hence, we would have been breaking the rules and not only should I not do so, it would look especially reckless if the DPE did too. 

Even though it is two months away, there are a few things to consider. It allows some more time to polish the flying portion. Second, this DPE is returning within the 60 day window and even if, some worst case scenario happens and it is after the 60 days, legally say the 61st, as I brought this situation up, he said that even though technically we would have to redo the whole checkride, that we have done the oral and would not need to again. Some DPEs, even when they issue a discontinuance, will charge you an additional fee to come do the flight portion. I understand if he does not come back, I will have to pay someone else to finish the flying part. But, he flat out said, he does not charge an additional fee for a flight portion secondary to a discontinuance. While the fee is not the end of the world to me, it is still a savings. More importantly, I want to start and finish with the same DPE. 

For now, I am just going to fly with my instructor or someone else until he departs for his new job and then get this done when able!

Que será, será.

I walked across the stage at the FedEx Forum and received my Doctor of Pharmacy diploma.

I do not know what this journey called life still has for me, but I am plodding along the path until there is none left to travel.

This past weekend, I completed two big milestones in pursuit of the private pilot license.

First, Saturday was the first time I flew in nearly two weeks. Within that flight, we simulated instrument flight, as it is one of the requirements of private pilot training (3 hours). And with that, all of my FLYING requirements have been completed to fulfill the FAA’s prerequisites.

We took off and flew down to Naples airport, a first for me and then came back.

But since we were under what is called flight following (air traffic control is watching us and directing us as necessary), we were able to fly right over RSW.

Looking out towards Page (the far left side, middle of the picture), we noticed a wall of rain north of the field. After landing at Page, there was a little sprinkle as we parked. Fast forward just a little bit after I left the airport and the weather became fierce.

Yes, that is PEAK WINDS at 48 knots (55 mph)!!

Sunday, I decided to have an expensive fun day. We like to visit Busch Gardens and soon enough, Atticus should be tall enough to ride ALL the rides. The drive up can be about 2 – 2.5 hours, depending on traffic. But, conveniently, there is an airport relatively close to the amusement park, KVDF, Tampa Executive.

I asked if we could fly up there early in the morning not only to get a better sense of the airport, but more importantly, to practice flight following and requesting clearance into a Class Bravo (B) airspace. These are the big, busy airspaces in the country. A pilot MUST HAVE explicit permission to enter these areas or must fly below the “shelf” of the airspace. If you fly through it without permission, you will likely be asked to speak with someone from air traffic control or the FAA. Since it was early in the morning and it was not busy, we were given clearance into the airspace to continue to the airport. We landed, had a coffee and then headed back. The flight time up was about 50 minutes, which, if all conditions are ok, the round trip flight is the same as a one way car ride.

To finish out the aviation weekend, Monday morning I had my written private pilot exam. Looking back, I should have completed all the online ground courses and exam earlier in the learning experience as concepts and methods would have been clearer in training. The other part is in the event one does not pass, you must wait 30 days to retake the exam. With that hurdle out of the way, it is one step closer to the check-ride. To top off the weekend, I had a late afternoon (6 PM) flight Monday. Usually the weather might be questionable during this time, but amazingly, the rain/showers occurred earlier in the day, thus making the late afternoon flight quite enjoyable. We were flying around Fort Myers while the sun was beginning to set and came back to work on lands right at the last little bit of day light.

The instructor took this one while we were turning to land.

With Paragon, they do everything in stages. Stage 3 is the final one and next week, I will have my Stage 3 check, basically a mock of check-ride, which includes an oral segment and a flight segment. If all goes well with that, I can be placed on the cancellation list for the examiner flight for my license. Otherwise, I am scheduled for September 17th for my check-ride.

This has been a long journey, but one that has been fun and a completely new experience. I took this one after we had parked Monday night and, to me, it encapsulates the reason I am doing this and the continuing journey of this adventure!

As previously noted, I am taking lessons to obtain a private pilot license. In order to obtain a pilot’s license, one must pass both a written and flight examination. But, one does not simply get in an airplane and take an exam. As part of the journey to the license, one must complete certain prerequisites with respect to the actual flying part. Your instructor must feel you are competent or able to make the appropriate decisions based upon the situation. Below are those prerequisites and the progression of each.

Requirement	% Complete	Date Completed
40 hours of flight time	100	Current
20 hours of flight training	100	Current
10 hours of total solo flight	100	2022-07-29
10 hours of ASEL solo flight	100	2022-07-29
5 hours of solo cross country	100	2022-07-16
Solo cross country flight of 150 nautical miles total distance	100	2022-07-29
3 takeoffs solo at a towered airport	100	2022-05-09
3 full stop landings solo at a towered airport	100	2022-07-02
3 hours of cross-country flight training in a single-engine airplane	100	2022-06-12
3 hours of night flight training in a single-engine airplane	100	2022-06-12
Night cross-country training flight of over 100 nm total distance	100	2022-06-12
10 takeoffs at an airport at night	100	2022-06-12
10 full stop landings at an airport at night	100	2022-06-12
3 hours of flight training in a single-engine airplane solely by reference to instruments	100	2022-08-13
3 hours of flight training in a single-engine airplane within the preceding 2 calendar months	100	Current

Updated: 2022-07-29 Today was the day! I arrived early for a 6 AM pre solo assessment (go up with instructor a few times) and then if all is well, proceed to the solo. This was the big solo; the one I was unable to finish last time due to clouds. I went the reverse this time: Fort Myers –> Venice –> Sebring –> Fort Myers as Venice usually picks up in traffic as the day progresses. The flight from Fort Myers to Venice was fine, in fact, it went very well. I did have to land on runway 13, which A) was new for me at this airport and B) it has a RIGHT hand entry pattern, which is opposite the normal. After getting reconfigured, I took off and headed east to Sebring. The Saharan dust was present, making the view hazy and unclear for most of the flight east. I configured to land in Sebring, but came down too steep and flared too much, causing a bounce or two. With that I applied full power and started my climb, slowly retracting the flaps while gaining altitude. I made a second attempt and that one was much better. After getting configured for the final leg, I took off and started my travels southwest. And lo and behold, clouds again. For a moment, I thought another diversion was going to be necessary as the size and layering was much more than when I started in the morning. I found an opening and climbed up to 4,500 feet and stayed above them. I activated the GPS to Fort Myers just in case and kept Punta Gorda in the back of my mind if the situation worsened. Thankfully, the closer to Fort Myers I got, the more the clouds dispersed and were less of a problem. I made a straight in approach for runway 13. I taxied over to Paragon. With that the solo cross country is complete!

Updated: 2022-07-22 This is a late entry as we are on vacation. Last Saturday, I attempted my solo, long cross country flight between Fort Myers, Sebring, Venice and then back to Fort Myers. I left Fort Myers without issue en route to Sebring.

https://videopress.com/v/DAbauoF0?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true Fort Myers to Sebring

As I approached the area, I listened to the weather and overall it was favorable, but they did report distant lightning. After landing and configuring the airplane for a flight to Venice, I took off and started west. That is when everything changed. I noticed the clouds were quite big up ahead and as I continued my journey, also noticed the layering and increased amount of them. As I am a VFR pilot, I have restrictions about flying around clouds. I listened to the weather coming out of Venice and the report was the cloud layer was at 2,500 feet. As I continued, I noticed an opening in the clouds and descended from 6,500 to 2,500 feet. But, this was not enough. I continued my descent until reaching 1,800 feet. This was going to be the make or break moment. Realizing the cloud layer could continue to lower, I began my diversion to Punta Gorda.

https://videopress.com/v/vDO1k61J?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true This was supposed to be Sebring to Venice.

I decided this airport for a few reasons: it is a controlled tower during the day and if the weather got worse, they could vector (direct) me in for a landing. I radioed to Punta Gorda and gave them a quick description of the situation and told them my plan is to continue to Fort Myers if able. They instructed me to stay west of the field and let them know if I needed to change my plans. I was able to continue on to Fort Myers without issue.

The problem is: I will need to reattempt this flight as I did not meet the requirements for this solo, long cross country. But I did learn something valuable from this experience. Being a pilot is not just about flying a plane, but more so, knowing your limitations and personal margins such that you make the necessary changes to ensure the safety of yourself and others.

Updated: 2022-07-12 This morning, I completed another solo flight to Venice. I chose this location for two reasons: A) it was a new place and B) it will be the second stop on my long cross country flight, which, hopefully, will be Saturday.

With that long solo flight, I should have my “big” cross country complete along with the 5 solo hours of cross country time. The only remaining requirements will be additional time as solo pilot and “foggle” time. I have been working on the written practice exam, but honestly, cannot beat 75% at this time. Much of this learning I have done over the past year and some of it is not as fresh as it once was. With each practice exam, I am remembering and understanding more of the principles of flight and the various rules associated with private pilot. Once I complete two practice exams, scoring over 80%, I can receive my endorsement for the actual written test.

Updated: 2022-07-03 While the holiday weekend did not start off with the best of news with respect to the pilot license, the rest went well. Paragon called me late last week to finalize scheduling for my lessons and also informed me the DPE (Designated Pilot Examiner) will not be available until likely September. There could be a cancellation, but there is no guarantee I will have all prerequisites done nor my scheduling will be agreeable to a cancellation. I still need to take the written exam; it is just a matter of studying for it and receiving my approval to test. But, otherwise, the holiday weekend has been very productive in the pursuit of the private pilot prerequisites. Friday, along with the instructor, we flew to Labelle, did a touch and go and continued to Punta Gorda with a touch and go too.

During these flights between these two airports, I put on “foggles” (foggy glasses, which only allow you to look at the instruments) to simulate flying solely with instruments only. As a private pilot, I am to follow visual flight rules, but the FAA requires training with instruments as one could fly into weather, which rapidly deteriorates and obscures your visual references. With that flight Friday, I am nearly complete with respect to the instrument training prerequisite. I also practiced working with VOR navigation. VOR (Very High-Frequency (VHF) Omnidirectional Range) is an older, but still in use technology, which is less favored than GPS based navigation as it can be much more precise. It is good to learn other ways of navigation as one can experience issues with GPS (rarely, but possible) and will need additional navigational aides during the flight.

But the much bigger achievement this weekend were the two cross country solo flights. Saturday, I flew to Wauchula, FL and performed a touch and go and came back to Page Field (Fort Myers).

KFMY –> KCHN –> KFMY

This flight utilized the previously mentioned VOR navigation system to direct me to the airport. Using my knowledge of this system, along with pilotage, I was able to find the airport.

Then, this morning, I flew to a new place: Sebring, FL.

KFMY –> KSEF –> KFMY

I have never been to this airport, but again, utilized pilotage and VORs to navigate my way. After performing a touch and go, I headed back to Page Field to complete the second cross country solo.

This is the MFD (multi-function display) which is the right panel. In front of me is the PFD (primary flight display) displaying relevant information about the plane (altitude, speed, heading, etc.). I took this quick photo on the way back just as a memento of the cross country adventure.

My hope is that the next cross country solo will be my “long” one, which will complete the cross country prerequisites.

It is weird not having a “right hand” person next to me on these journeys. It is just me, flying above, through and below the clouds in pursuit of a destination and more importantly, a lifelong goal.

Updated: 2022-06-19 This morning, I met with a stage sign off instructor to review the ground material for Stage 2. This stage encompasses the solo work, which is the last big block of prerequisites for my private pilot license. The review covered a navigation log (nav log) and weight and balance/center of gravity worksheet for an aircraft in various stages of the flight. There was an oral review of some information pertaining to maintenance, weather and some of the flight systems. The only part I did not do my best on was the sectional and the airspaces depicted on the chart. I am still learning these and how to tell the differences between them and what rules change depending on what airspace you are flying. I have already bookmarked some websites, which will hopefully best review this topic so I can have a better understanding. Tomorrow is a mock stage check for solo work in which we actually fly (likely to Arcadia) with a nav log, sectional and VOR work to learn about lost procedures. Next week is the stage check in which I will fly to another field, likely Wauchula, and if successful, will obtain the endorsement to start the solo work. Updated: 2022-06-19 This morning, I met with a stage sign off instructor to review the ground material for Stage 2. This stage encompasses the solo work, which is the last big block of prerequisites for my private pilot license. The review covered a navigation log (nav log) and weight and balance/center of gravity worksheet for an aircraft in various stages of the flight. There was an oral review of some information pertaining to maintenance, weather and some of the flight systems. The only part I did not do my best on was the sectional and the airspaces depicted on the chart. I am still learning these and how to tell the differences between them and what rules change depending on what airspace you are flying. I have already bookmarked some websites, which will hopefully best review this topic so I can have a better understanding. Tomorrow is a mock stage check for solo work in which we actually fly (likely to Arcadia) with a nav log, sectional and VOR work to learn about lost procedures. Next week is the stage check in which I will fly to another field, likely Wauchula, and if successful, will obtain the endorsement to start the solo work.

Updated: 2022-06-13 Last night, I was able to complete multiple requirements with a night flight from Fort Myers to Sarasota. Even though we had a later departure than anticipated, it was a calm flight and refreshing to be one of the very few airplanes in the air. There were some clouds, but overall we maintained a direct route to Sarasota and made a “straight in” landing on runway 32. My landing was definitely not the best, but I chalk that up to unfamiliar airport and night flying (it really does warp your perception). Sarasota then had us taxi to another runway, 22, for our departure and we headed south to Fort Myers. It is rather nice to have a collection of these prerequisites done at once. Except for some more instrument flight training (IFR), the last big block are the solo requirements. It is getting closer and closer to a finale!

Updated: 2022-06-07 This weekend, weather permitting, I hope to complete three of these prerequisites at once: night cross country of at least 100 nm (Sarasota and back), night takeoffs/landings and three (3) hours of cross country flying.

#privatepilot #flying #aviation

Twenty minutes can change your life!

Much like the lyrics from Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice:

I’m on a roll, it’s time to go solo

These lyrics were apropos this morning. Twenty years ago, I started training for my private pilot license. Cost, school and the airport shutting down put a slight damper on completion. And, for a variety of reasons, of which I will question for the remainder of my life, I never continued the training and always put it on the back burner.

But, as you age, life and regrets gnaw at you. You reach a point where you either pursue something or not. I chose the former and dove back into the adventure. For the past year, I restarted my work on my private pilot license. Initially, this was with Fort Myers Flying Club1, which was recommended to me by a coworker. Unfortunately, there have been some setbacks while trying, again, to achieve this goal:

• Instructor getting COVID-19
• Misty and Atticus getting COVID-19
• Instructor getting fluid in ears, putting flying on hiatus for a while
• Student involved in ground accident, destroying one of the club planes, thus limiting time in the remaining one
• Me moving to Paragon to continue flight training
• The beginning of the Florida summer storms

I started my training with the Fort Myers Flying Club, but at the beginning of this year, changed to Paragon for better airplane availability. I have been working to solo for a bit now, but the last SEVERAL tries were no go situations due to weather and/or winds. (You are not allowed to solo with Paragon if the winds are greater than 10 knots.) Most of my training is mid-morning based on scheduling, but after yesterday’s flight, my instructor suggested we move this morning’s flight to 6 AM with the hope that winds, clouds and weather would be more favorable.

The first part of the solo, the instructor flies with you. We took off towards the east as the sun began to crest over the horizon and did two touch-and-goes and then a full stop landing. We took the plane back to the parking area and after completing shutdown, she said, “Now it is your turn.”

The next twenty minutes of my life were nothing I had experienced. After having someone to the right of me for the last year, I got in the plane by myself; no one else to guide or correct me. After starting the airplane back up and when ready, I contacted Page ground and told them I was a student solo pilot and wanted to stay in the pattern (touch-and-goes). Doing this solo work is necessary to obtain a private pilot license. After taxing to the runway and getting my clearance, I lined up on the center line, took a deep breath and applied full power. I completed two touch-and-goes and then requested a full stop. Upon my final landing, the controller, most known for his overall crotchety and cranky attitude, actually said, “Good Job,” and believe you me, I was shocked (so too were the people in Paragon as they heard it).

I now move on to the next stage, which will include cross country flights (both dual and solo) and night flights (Fort Myers will look thoroughly different at that time). There is no turning back now!

https://www.fortmyersflyingclub.com ↩

By general standards, I do not have a “cool” job. When people hear I am a pharmacist, there are four automatic perceptions:

• I make A LOT of money!
• I know detailed information about most drugs.
• I count pills.
• I work in a retail/big box store (Walgreens, CVS, etc).

And although this is too much for Atticus to read and understand, I want to break these four points down between perception and reality.

Perception 1

The first perception is true. By the United States median pay, my compensation is above the national average. I do not believe this will last forever though and within the last ten years, many new pharmacy schools have opened, meaning, more students graduate. These graduates are facing reality: an oversupply of pharmacists and shock from decreased salaries. This article reiterates my opinion of the profession moving into the future. Not only are there too many pharmacists in certain localities, but salaries are decreasing as it is a supply and demand issue. Last year, I saw a posting for a position in Colorado with a starting rate of $35 an hour. Many will say that is a lot of money for a salary. (If one basically doubles an hourly rate and add three zeroes to the end, an annual salary can be estimated (2080 hours worked in a year = 40 hours a week x 52 weeks in a year). This would translate to approximately $73,000 a year. Not only is the cost of living higher in the Colorado area than other places, but another consideration is MANY of these new graduates have loans exceeding $100,000 (and I know of graduates with $200,000 — 300,000+). Several coworkers are utilizing the public service loan forgiveness program as the prospect of ever paying off $200,000+ (with interest) would otherwise burden their monthly financial situation. (This is not just limited to pharmacy, but many other professions: physician, dentist, lawyer, undergraduate/graduate degree, etc.) I am not trying to justify my salary against the student loan debate, but the unfortunate reality is, the pharmacy career has been sold as one with a rewarding financial compensation package, but the truth is, the cost for that reward can be quite high for many seeking a life in this profession.

Perception 2

Perception number 2 is I know everything about most medicines; that I am a drug expert. Under no circumstance is that accurate. I know a good deal of information about the medications I routinely use in everyday practice, but there are many, many drugs out there for which I have very limited, if any knowledge, unless I research the information. From an FDA website, I think this should help give an idea:

There are over 20,000 prescription drug products approved for marketing.

First, based on their wording, I am assuming this does not include the OTC (over the counter) products. (Prescription meaning an order from a licensed practitioner, not an OTC.) No human can retain that much information about so many different products, including names, interactions, pharmacodynamic and kinetic profiles and costs, just to name a few of many data points for a medication. Point is, I feel confident with the medications I use on a daily basis (although I do go back and double check information all the time), but that is a very small subset of the total number of available medications.

Perception 3

Perception number 3: I count pills. This is completely false. I am willing to bet, many pharmacists in the retail setting do not either. That work is likely performed by a technician or an automated machine. As I was preparing this post, I saw an article which confirms my statement. The process for the retail setting is the pharmacist or technician will receive the prescription and enter the details into the patient profile. The prescription is checked against other medications for duplicates or interactions, if applicable, and also processed through insurance to determine if a copay or prior authorization is necessary. The technician or pharmacist will fill the script once those processes are complete and package the prescription for distribution to the patient. Usually, but not always, these medications may come from “stock bottles” in which large quantities of medication are stored (100 – 1,000 count bottles). This is because those prescriptions are for 30 or 90 days, hence the need for higher pill count bottles. This is the opposite of the hospital world where we dispense individual (single) doses of medicines. Take a common cholesterol lowering medication, Lipitor (atorvastatin): in the outpatient world, a bottle of 30 or 90 tablets will be dispensed. In the hospital, the pill is packaged in an individual setting, with a barcode, in which the patient and medication are scanned to ensure “right patient, right medication”. (Not all facilities do this, but many do.) Do errors still happen? Sure, but technology is advancing to try and limit these incorrect scenarios to lessen the chance of patient harm.

Perception 4

The final perception is I work in a retail setting. I have not worked in a retail setting for over 11 years. Initially, after graduating and obtaining my license, I worked in a retail store, Rite Aid, floating between Tennessee and Arkansas. After six months, I had an opportunity to transition to a hospital, specifically, The MED (now known as Regional One Health) in Memphis.

I took that opportunity and never looked back. Several months after starting at The MED, I was asked if I wanted to work in the emergency room as the then current pharmacist was leaving. There was much trepidation and honestly, the prospect was enticing, but I felt I was in over my head. Talk about a training experience: The MED is a Level 1 trauma center, along with a burn center, and high-risk OB service coupled with a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). (Side note, I was able to see conjoined twins in the NICU before they were transported to Le Bonheur for separation.) We also served a large majority of indigent patients throughout the community, who had many challenges, not just with affording care, but also reading, knowledge and understanding of their medical situation as many had low levels of education. Initially, before graduation, I applied for and did not match in a spot for residency. Hence my work in retail for half a year. But luck has a way of working out and after working at The MED for a while, I was granted an opportunity to complete a “non-traditional residency” to enhance my training, experience and knowledge in pharmacy. Now, one might ask, what exactly does a pharmacist in the emergency room do? I have been asked this question by family and friends and have never been able to explain the answer as most everyone's perception is that of a “retail” pharmacist. I am going to try to with this post. Although this is in not definitive, here is a subset of what a day might involve:

• One of my most basic job functions is a medication reconciliation. I will interview (or review paperwork or call a patient family representative) and ask what medications he or she is taking at home (prescription, OTC, etc.). I will compare it with what is in the hospital system prior to admission (PTA) list for accurate dosage, formulation, addition of new medications or deletions of inaccurate ones. This process, hopefully, ensures that if the patient is admitted, most of the medications ordered are correct. I try to prioritize those with high risk medications: blood thinners, certain cardiac medications and anti-rejection medications to name a few. As an example, Gulf Coast used to perform kidney transplants. These patients would receive the transplant and, if necessary, return to the hospital if there were complications or became sick. What medications the recipient was on depended on the time since the transplant. Having an updated and accurate record of that information is vital as we do not want the anti-rejection medications to be too much or too little in dosage given the sensitivity of the transplanted organ. Just an example that will make more sense later.
• Along with medication reconciliation is verifying medication orders. These are orders for patients who are admitted and what medications will be administered. Just like in retail, a physician or midlevel provider will order a medication. I review the patient’s current medication profile and clinical presentation to make sure it makes medical sense. (An example is a physician orders a blood pressure lowering medication for someone who is already on medicine to RAISE their blood pressure. I will contact the physician and ensure he or she did not mean to order a different medication given the clinical presentation of the patient.) I can do this anywhere I have a computer and access to our electronic health system (although it is vastly easier to be physically at the hospital); I even worked from home when I had COVID in August of 2020. This is not just limited to when I work in the ER, this can also be when I work in the “central” pharmacy. But those orders not only cover the ER, but also the ward patients throughout the hospital.
  • But, my primary work environment is the ER. And within it, I have a variety of functions. An example may be a physician wants to send a patient home (non admission), but the blood pressure is elevated. I may be asked how I would adjust or add medications to help achieve a desired blood pressure goal. Again, I review the profile for what might be some options, speak with the patient (assess understanding and competency) and then give a recommendation. This may hold true, but not limited to, someone who is diabetic needing adjustments in therapy prior to visiting a primary or endocrinology doctor.
  • Most days, I receive an alert in our electronic health system, which notifies me of a positive culture result of a discharged ER patient. When a patient visits and an infection is suspected, a collection from blood, skin, or urine, etc., may be obtained and sent for analysis. At discharge, the provider prescribes an antibiotic which is presumed to be useful against the suspected organism. Cultures can take a few days to grow for analysis and antibiotic sensitivity, hence there could be a mismatch in the bug/drug combination based on results of the culture. If a mismatch exist, I will decide if a change is warranted or not. I send the recommendation to the physician and he or she will sign off on it. Having pharmacists involved in this process cut our culture follow up times from an average of 2 days to less than 6 hours.
• But, there are other, more exciting, clinical aspects of what I do, especially in the emergency room. Being in the ER, I respond to multiple types of codes. These include CODE STROKES, BLUE (cardiac/pulmonary arrest), and TRAUMA. (We have an actual 'red phone' which is a direct connection to Lee County Dispatch, who calls ahead with these types of codes or other serious events.)

The black one is a two way radio with EMS to give us information about the inbound ambulance's patient. This can help us determine what type of room the patient will need (high level or normal). Sometimes I will be the one to speak with them and record the information on the paper next to the phone. If it is something serious, I let the charge nurse know so patients can be moved if necessary.

As Gulf Coast is the comprehensive stroke center for southwest Florida, we receive ALL EMS stroke alerts. Part of this treatment may involve giving the patient a ‘clot buster’ which will hopefully dissolve the clot. (In addition, the patient may go to the NI (neurointerventional lab) to have the clot removed with a catheter guided wire.) – To continue, a physician may come by and say, “Room 1 has sepsis; fix them.” What does that mean? It means order the proper medications. First, can the patient tolerate getting fluids and if so, how much? What antibiotics would be best for this patient? How is the blood pressure and what is (are) the best agents to use if say the blood pressure is low but the heart rate is elevated. Will this patient need any additional testing (i.e., a test where we can see if fungus is growing in their blood)? Using these questions as a baseline I start order what I think is the best answers to those questions. – I may retrieve those fluids, antibiotics and blood pressure medications I ordered and help prepare and hook them up to the patient. It can be invaluable to be an extra set of hands to a busy nurse. – But, if I am busy with something else and the nurse taking care of the patient with sepsis calls, he or she may ask if multiple medications are compatible, meaning, he or she has limited intravenous (IV) access and needs to administer multiple medications/fluids through maybe one or two IV lines. Usually these patients receive boluses of fluids, multiple antibiotics and potentially one or more 'pressors' (medicines to raise the blood pressure). I will review the medications and using what I know and a few clinical programs, will determine the best way to administer the medications as some medicines cannot be mixed within the same IV line (we call this ‘Y-site compatibility’). – Speaking of anti-rejection medications, some medications need to be monitored given there is a therapeutic index for what is ideal between not effective, just right and too much. Pharmacy is usually the group who monitors these types of medications and in cases, depending on the laboratory work, will make adjustments to the dose to ensure that the drug remains in that therapeutic range.

• A drug concentration may be too low in someone and thus we need to load them to achieve a higher concentration in a short amount of time. Think of someone who might be on an anti-seizure medicine. If he or she has not been taking it, subtherapeutic concentrations are likely to the result. I will calculate a loading dose of the medication given certain parameters.
• Conversely of that, if a drug concentration is too high, I may be asked to reverse the effects, if applicable. An example is a blood thinner Coumadin (Warfarin) that has a fairly narrow therapeutic window. But if a patient presents with a brain bleed while on it, it is imperative to try and reverse the effects of the blood thinner as quickly as possible.
• If a CODE BLUE situation occurs, I am usually standing by the code cart (which stores medications and supplies). I may prepare and administer (or hand to the nurse to do so), medications used during resuscitation. There are times, since the defibrillator sits on top of the cart, I may 'shock' the patient to try and ‘reset’ the electrical rhythm of the heart. Rarely, but there have been times, I administered CPR (pumped on someone’s chest) during resuscitation.
• And on top of all that, I precept pharmacy students and residents (those who have graduated pharmacy school and seeking additional training). These individuals are with me for about a month and depending on if he or she is a student or resident, depends on the level of autonomy and supervision. We were all one, but students are generally the hardest as they have limited knowledge and functionality within the acute care setting.

Many people think of a pharmacist and envision someone at a retail store, standing behind a counter, dispensing medications in bottles and counseling patients. Of the approximately 300,000 pharmacists in the profession, I would estimate MAYBE 1 – 2% of that number are working in emergency rooms. This post, albeit very long winded, is a more detailed way to explain what a day is like as a hospital pharmacist, one specifically working in the emergency room. Not every emergency room has one, but more and more each day are placing a pharmacist in the environment, not only for potential cost savings, but also for enhanced drug information and optimized patient care. You may not realize it, but it is not just techs, nurses and doctors taking care of patients. I fully admit my position is a unique one. I was lucky enough to stumble into this position a decade ago. The days can have some monotony with respect to patient presentation, but when there is action, it is that organized chaos which makes my job unlike many others in this world. There are not many who can say he or she educated a patient on a new blood thinner before being discharged, then went to another patient and gave a thrombolytic (clot busting drug), moved to another room to an unresponsive person in cardiac arrest who did not survive despite our best efforts and then went to the trauma bay for an incoming trauma all within 60 minutes of a day. A person's life can change in the blink of an eye. Long days are a reality, but being in this type of environment, I am more appreciative of my health and status in life as I walk out the exit door each day.

#career #job #pharmacy

For some, music might be background noise while they work on another task. For others, music is much more; it is integrated into the soul of a person such that it evokes an emotional response, whether it be good or bad or some other feeling. Recently, I was asked what three songs I would choose as having the most meaning, per se impact, in my life. Three songs, just three songs to sum up a life not yet fully lived and matured. It is hard to narrow down the choices to three; there are hundreds of songs I can intertwine into my life. While this was a hard question, it was nonetheless, one I wanted to answer. After consideration, I have selected those three songs.

Early Years

The first song is “Blackbird” by The Beatles from the album The White Album. This group, arguably to me, is the most iconic collection of four random people to be given instruments and a microphone. Technically, only one of the four wrote this song, but collectively, through the years as a group, they created melodies that have and will last generations. They were the one of original teeny-booopers, whom the world was enamored with and in a rarefied way, are on another echelon other bands cannot claim: shaped subsequent music and bands, sold out concerts for years, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, but most importantly, imprinted upon generations music which will last a lifetime. Why this song out of an expansive catalog of music is important to me? It is a very simple answer: as a young child I can vividly recall sitting in our den, with headphones on, absorbing the quintessential sound through a revolving piece of plastic on a slow moving turntable. When thinking of this song, I can close my eyes and still picture the strumming guitar and chirping birds in each ear as the song progressed in time. On some occasions, I was treated to a “live” version, where my dad would get out his guitar and play the melody right there in front of me as though I was one of those lucky kids attending a live Beatles concert. Sadly, unlike my mother and given my age, I was never lucky enough to see them live in concert, but the headphones and my dad gave me the closest opportunity to that unbelievable experience.

Teenage Years

My second song, “Jeremy” by Pearl Jam from the album Ten, was released around my “coming of age” transition from that happy go lucky primary school pupil to the awkward, weird yet learning about who you are stage of early teenage years. It is a song that has a rather sad background in its origins, how life continues through its normal progression even in spite of personal tragedies. Pearl Jam, and the musical acts associated with them, were considered “grunge” music and frowned upon by many in society because they were seen as “not normal” and “weird” to the likes of many parents, including my own. The irony is, their parents believed the same when the likes of The Beatles and others came onto the scene of music. But I digress, as during a shopping trip to Walmart with my mom, I clandestinely purchased their cassette and snuck it home to listen to their alternative, yet melodramatic tones as I lay awake in bed at night. It was not that I was particularly engrossed in Pearl Jam, it was that it was unique, something upon my ears and mind which allowed me more deeply think about music and explore new genres. “Jeremy” was also unique in that I remember seeing the music video of the song, when MTV actually played videos, and the horrible fallout that followed. Part of the problem was a CENSORED version of the video was shown, leaving viewers confused as to WHAT actually happened. Due to the controversies of the music video, Pearl Jam took a nearly half decade hiatus with respect to their music videos. But the controversy was not limited to just the music video; parents were outraged that it was something shown on TV and many believed the video, and especially other “grunge” music bands were contributing to the imminent decline of society and morality.

Later Years

I am going to save this last slot for the future. While this is cliche and a cop-out, my third song is, as of now, unknown. Once you become a father, everything about your life changes: what you do, some of your interests, but most important is being a part of your child’s life. With that, I share my musical interest with him, but one day, that role will reverse. He will carve his own path in life and with it, possibly will have songs he associates with unique moments. One day he may share one of those songs with me and tell me the reason(s) why he chose that song. And, if able, one of those bands will come to town and we can celebrate by partaking in a live show and forming a lasting memory between the two of us of spending time together over something so simple as a song.

#music