While keeping up with the constant influx of new medications can be a challenge, Ben finds pharmacy an incredibly rewarding field; he helps patients manage their medications and conditions, ultimately improving their health. From interacting with patients and other health professionals to handling the business side of pharmacy, the diversity of the work keeps it interesting.
Ben credits the Health Studies program at Waterloo for helping him see the bigger picture in health care.
Medications tend to be reactive in nature. Conversely, Health Studies teaches you to think in a health promotion and prevention framework. Using what I learned in Health Studies helps me educate patients on how to help manage certain conditions and the use of medications.
Ben projects that, along with other health professions, the demand for pharmacists will vastly increase in the upcoming years due to the aging baby boomer population. As this cohort ages, the demand for medications will rise, and pharmacists working in all fields will be highly sought after. For students who are interested in pursuing a career in pharmacy, Ben suggests volunteering with or job-shadowing a pharmacist to see if the career is a right fit. According to Ben, individuals interested in both health care and entrepreneurship are a good fit for a career in pharmacy.
In his spare time, Ben enjoys spending time with his wife Stephanie Austin, a fellow Health Studies graduate who is now a medical student, and their young son Kenton.