Preparing for Your First Travel Pharmacy Job
Congratulations! You’ve just landed your first job as a travel pharmacist! You’ve received your assignment in an exciting new location and you’re ready to pack your bags and hit the road. Right? Not so fast! Preparing for your first travel pharmacy job takes a little bit of work. You’ll want to be sure that you have everything in order before you head out on your first assignment.
Double Check Your Credentials
One of the first things that you should do after accepting a travel pharmacist position is to ensure that you have the right licensing and credentials for the job. Ideally, you’ll have taken care of this before being hired, but nothing would be worse than arriving for your first day only to find out that your license is expired or invalid for the job you have accepted.
Make Arrangements for Household Needs
Be sure to make all necessary arrangements to take care of your responsibilities at home while you are away. This may include finding someone to housesit or having your pets boarded. Be sure to remember to have someone take care of regular maintenance around the house and simply to check up on things from time to time while you’re away.
Take Care of the Mail
An overflowing mailbox is simply asking for trouble. Not only might you forget an important bill or obligation that comes in while you’re gone, but it is also a flashing neon sign for any ne’er-do-well that your home is not currently occupied. Have someone pick up your mail and packages regularly or arrange to have them forwarded to you at your new location.
Learn Your New City
Get to know the area where you’ll be working. Find out about public transportation, local stores, nearby restaurants, and look up local attractions so you’ll have ideas of things to do during your time off. Don’t forget to check into climate and weather information so that you’ll know how to pack for your stay. Bookmark any useful websites you find and purchase a city guide that has information for you to read on your downtime as you’re preparing to leave.
Set Your Travel and Accommodation Plans
Make your travel and accommodation plans as early as possible in the process. Plan to arrive a few days before your first day of work to become acclimated to your new surroundings. This will give you a bit of time to explore and rest up before the work begins and also provides a little safety cushion in case of any travel delays or hiccups along the way.
Pack Carefully
Be thoughtful when packing to leave for your travel pharmacist job. Make sure that you have anything you’ll need for work, the proper clothing for the environment, and any other necessities of life. While you can always purchase things that you forgot once you arrive, there isn’t always time and budget to start completely from scratch in your host city.
There is a lot to be done in the exciting days leading up to your first job as a travel pharmacist! Do your best to take your time and ensure that you’ve covered all the bases at home and at your assignment location and everything will go smoothly.