BROADENING MY PHARMACY HORIZONS IN AUSTRALIA
Written By: Mudit Verma, Fourth-Year Student Pharmacist
Fourth-year rotations have been incredibly fulfilling, helping to prepare me to take on the role as one of the most trusted members of the health care team upon graduation this spring. I was even fortunate enough to complete an international rotation from Nov. 6 to Dec. 8, in a renal transplant ward at The Royal Melbourne Hospital in Melbourne, Australia. The Royal Melbourne Hospital is one of Australia’s leading public teaching hospitals and is heavily engaged in clinical research.
Diving In, Head First
As soon as I arrived in Australia, I delved into the professional responsibilities of a renal transplant pharmacist, who makes clinical recommendations for kidney transplant patients to an interprofessional team comprised of nurses, physicians, dietitians, social workers, and clinical assistants. My mentors provided me with hands-on experience in medication therapy management, patient education, and interprofessional teamwork. Adhering to renal transplant medications can be a daunting endeavor for patients due to the dramatic increase in new medications and subsequent array of adverse effects. I helped educate patients about their new medications by concisely verbalizing dosing instructions at a level that matched each patient’s understanding, while also employing images from the medication chart. I also periodically asked my patients questions to better engage with them.
Outside of direct patient care, I also helped manage immunosuppressant drug-drug interactions and monitored therapeutic medication levels, such as the concentration of tacrolimus (an immunosuppressant) in patients’ blood. My preceptor then adjusted each patient’s pharmacotherapy based on our analyses.
Gaining a New Perspective
One element of the experience that immediately stuck out to me was that none of the health care professionals wore white coats in the hospital. I eventually learned that white coats are not typically worn in hospitals throughout Australia, which is notably different from the United States. I appreciated this change because, from my view, normalizing white coats among a select few team members creates social barriers among both professionals and patients. Although I have participated in hospital rotations where nearly all health care professionals donned white coats, patients were still visibly distinguished as the only stakeholders not wearing white coats, which might hinder their propensity to build rapport with the professionals overseeing their care. I felt that the ubiquitous lack of white coats helped empower teammates, and most importantly, patients by mitigating social barriers to transparent communication.
The rotation also oriented me to the health care system of Australia. Australia provides universal access to a comprehensive range of clinical services, primarily funded through general taxation. “Medicare” is the term used when referring to the universal access to public hospitals and subsidized medical care. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, Australian life expectancy is ranked higher than that of the United States, which suggests that Australia’s health care indicators are robust.
Considering an International Rotation?
Students applying for international rotations should plan ahead to achieve a fulfilling experience. Applicants should highlight pertinent leadership, professional, and volunteer experiences in their application. Accepted students should complete site requirements, such as blood testing, immunization records, background check, VISA application, and housing plan, several weeks in advance, as instructed by the preceptor. Lastly, I recommend that you consult with the UMB Center for Global Education Initiatives for International SOS travel assistance registration and financial aid resources.
An Experience to Remember
I believe that all students can benefit from participating in an international rotation, as the experience will help you develop new, informed perspectives in global health. Through my experience, I learned a lot about how pharmacists can engage with both patients and other health care professionals as part of a specialized interprofessional renal transplant team. Ultimately, I am thankful that I had the opportunity to represent the School of Pharmacy on an international rotation.
Dear Mudit,
I am delighted with your continuing engagement with Interprofessional global health experiences. Keep up the good work 🙂
Dr. Rambob
Thank you so much Dr. Rambob, your mentorship will always motivate me to broaden my horizons and strive for excellence.
I will surely keep in touch and best wishes for the new year!
Mudit
Mudit, loved hearing about your rotation abroad. Particularly insightful comments regarding the role of the white coat and how, in the U.S., it may widen the gap between patients and health care providers. Never thought about it this way. Guess it takes going to another system and seeing how they do it to gain such insights. Your post was particularly effective in helping us at home learn!
Much love 🙂
Bilal
Thank you so much Bilal, that means a lot. I am always inspired to see the cool innovative things you do and I can’t wait to see what’s next. Keep on doing your thing!
Dear Mudit,
Very happy to hear about your achievements. It looks like you have gained an ensemble of various experiences during your trip. Keep up the strides. I look forward to reading about your future endeavors.
Good luck and best wishes for your bright future ahead,
Anu Puri
Thank you so much, this means a lot! I will surely stay in touch and I am always thankful for your blessings.
Great experience for sure. All the best and thank you for sharing
Thank you so much, I will surely stay in touch and I will also visit the pharmacy sometime!
Hi Mudit,
Thank you for sharing this with me. I am glad that you had a good opportunity to learn and practice pharmacy. It’s inspiring to learn about the different health care system in Australia. Keep up the good work!
Best,
Markos
Thank you so much Markos, I can’t wait to see all the cool things we will accomplish after graduation!
I’m jealous, should’ve went with you. Much love
It was an amazing experience! I highly recommend visiting Australia.
Great to read about your experience – and your encouragement of others to do the same! Stop in to the campus center sometime – I’d love to hear more about it!
Will do! Thank you so much again for all of your guidance!
Really well explained Mudit and it is really interesting that your profession doesn’t wear white coats in other countries; it makes totally sense! You’re going to do so well.
Thank you so much, I hope to visit Australia again! I will surely stay in touch.
Dear Mudit,
I’m glad to hear you that you had such an enriching experience in Australia. I wish you the best in your future endeavors. Your experiences abroad will be very beneficial for your career.
Pramod Srivastava
Thank you very much, I will surely reach out to gain your insight in identifying the best career for me.
<3
Best wishes for your remaining time in medical school and I look forward to seeing the great things you will do!
Hey Mudit, it sounds like you had a really awesome experience in Australia! Your insights on the health care system in Australia are really interesting–I had no idea health care professionals in other countries don’t wear white coats, and I never considered the communication barriers white coats create. Best of luck in your future endeavors!
Thank you! I look forward to hearing about your upcoming professional experiences as a medical student!
Mudit,
Thank you for sharing this! What a wonderful experience!!!!
Flav
Thank you so much, I will surely stay in touch!
Great to See your comments!!
It seems your visit to The Royal Melbourne Hospital was a wonderful experience and exposure.
Good luck in all your endeavors..
Thank you so much, it is indeed wonderful to have such amazing support. I will surely keep in touch!
Hi Mudit,
Congratulations for completing the international rotational successfully. It looks you have enjoyed the rotation overseas. Nicely written. The path will guide you for the completion of your pharmacy course.
Good luck
Naveen
Thank you so much, I truly enjoyed this rotation and I look forward to graduating!
Insightful post and congrats on your achievements! Learned quite a lot about Australian healthcare systems, and it is interesting no one wears white coats.
It was nice to meet you in person and good luck in your endeavors!
Thanks so much, Bharat! Keep in touch!
Hi Mudit,
Sounds like you had an awesome experience. I like your point about white coats. In fact, I was helping someone do research on white coat hypertension and I agree with what you said.
Manik
Thank you so much! I always like to find potential strategies to help empower patients. I will surely keep in touch!
Dear mudit
Congratulations for your accomplishments. International experience is always good and it expand horizon of the person.
Your nana is very proud of you.
Lot of love and blessings from us.
Nana from calif.
Come visit us some time.
Thank you so much, Nana Ji! Please send my hello to Nani Ji as well. I will surely visit soon.
Excellent piece! International rotations are few to start with and very difficult to get. Bodes well
for residency in transplantation! Moreover, you could share ideas from your rotation for a better
working environment!
Thank you so much! The rotation certainly opened many opportunistic doors for me and I will surely consider further training.
Congratulations and thanks Mudit for sharing your experiences. This should inspire and motivate other Pharmacy students to take up international rotations. This experience is precious and should shape your professional career. Good luck
Thank you very much! Agreed, I highly recommend pursuing international rotations to all pharmacy students!
Very good, Mudit! Congratulations! Thanks for sharing your wonderful experiences! I have seen you grow as a little boy and am so proud of you. Keep it up and my best wishes to you as a professional pharmacist.
Thank you so much, that means a lot!
Dear Mudit Verma
Greta job, great experience and great inspiration to others. We are very proud of you for your dedication, hard work, commitment, and generosity and a perfect example for others to follow. Keep going great job and God will always bless you with all your dreams come true.
Thank you so much, I will surely keep in touch! Best wishes for the new year.
Hi Mudit,
Great to hear about your experiences and very well written with lots of information. We wish you good luck with all your future plans.
Best wishes,
Smita Ashwin
Thank you very much! Best wishes for the new year and beyond!
Dear Mudit
Thanks for sharing your exciting experience in Australia and giving us an insight into the Australian healthcare system. It is interesting point about the white coats which I agree perhaps creates a social barrier for free communication. Wonderful of you to have considered a clinical internship abroad. I also suggest you try some experience in UK/Europe as well to the extent possible. Clinical Pharmacy practice has significant differences globally as you might be aware. Wishing you the very best.
Prasad
Thank you very much, I will surely consider going to UK/Europe as well. I will definitely keep in touch as I pursue various career paths.
Excellent Report,I enjoyed reading your experience in Australia!!Feeling very proud of the little kid that I knew from Germantown is now a professional Pharmacist!!Regarding white coats and scrubs that is a must in US is a practice not so popular in the British Commonwealth countries,while as a medical student in India we were required to wear white coats during rotations,none of our Professors both Surgeons and Internal Medicine doctors used to wear white coats,they were always neatly dressed up in suit and tie!!!best of luck in your future endeavors.
Thank you very much! This is very useful information. I will be sure to visit as many countries as I can to observe their norms in providing various health care services.
Hey Mudit
Interesting point about the non-white coat wearing practice and also good perspective of seeing patients as partners in their healthcare.
Thank you very much, I had an amazing time exploring Melbourne!
Interesting take on your international rotation! I’m sure your shared experiences not just about the professional side of your rotation but also the inter-personal experience you had will be helpful to those considering a rotation overseas.
Thank you so much! I agree, inter-personal experiences are key to shaping optimal patient care communication skills.
Very well written. You must be a really ambitious person – hope to meet you some day Mudit.
Thank you so much, Naiem! Feel free to reach out, best wishes for the new year and beyond!
Dear Mudit,
Very informative blog! Learned so much about Australian health care system especially about the white coats pattern over there. It seems that you had wonderful experience @ Melbourne. Surely and certainly, pharmacy plays a major role in patient’s treatment and you would be a good example, keep it up!
We are proud of you and your accomplishments …………
All the best for your future endeavors.
Rajeev Gautam
Thank you very much, it was an eye-opening experience. I will surely keep in touch!
Hi Mudit,
Great to hear about your experiences and I wish you good luck with all your future ventures.
I am sure it will help many candidates in their planning.
Best
Aarti
Thank you very much, I hope to help as many potential candidates as possible!
Hi Mudit,
Very educational and informative experience in charting pathway for academic and professional career development opportunities in biopharmaceutical sciences. It is very helpful in providing advice, guidance and step-wise manual in exploring international options and resources for the cadre of budding next generation biomedical scientists pursuing careers in pharmaceutical sciences. We wish you continued success in your career endeavors and sharing this invaluable information with your peers.
Thank you very much, I will surely keep in touch as I progress in my career. I am always seeking fulfilling opportunities!
Dear Mudit,
I am happy to learn that you had an excellent opportunity to work at a prestigious teaching hospital in Australia and am sure that you had an amazing experience. This is the one of the first learning step for you to the real world by meeting great mentors, nurses, physicians and most importantly the patients who will rely on you on a daily basis. Please remember that you have a moral responsibility to help your patients from diverse sections of society and they will count on you.
I wish you all the best for your future plans and hope to learn more about your experience in near future.
Good Luck and best wishes for your final year in School of Pharmacy!!
Thank you so much for your wisdom, I will surely keep in touch!
Looks like it is a rich experience, and him providing the ‘modus operandi’ for the international rotation – so that future students will have better appreciation and understanding about inner workings of the healthcare continuum- is very thoughtful.
Thank you so much, it was indeed an eye-opening experience. I will surely keep in touch as I embark on future pivotal endeavors!
Hi Mudit,
Thank you for sharing your blog with me. Very nice overview. I am very proud of you. Your inspiration and guidance will help my son.
All the best,
Rajeev
Thank you very much, I am grateful for your support. Best wishes for the new year and beyond!