Pharmacists
Job description
These individuals evaluate drug therapy and ensure the appropriate use of medications in order to detect and prevent medication-related problems. They prepare, store, and dispense medication to maintain health, restore health, or provide appropriate symptom relief. They are self-employed or self-employed in:
- Retail and hospital pharmacies
- Pharmaceutical companies
- Government agencies and services
- Government business
- Regulatory matters
Environment
- Controlled ambient temperature
- Hazardous chemical
Main tasks
Community and Institutional Pharmacists
- Fill prescriptions and ensure that drug therapy meets the health needs of patients.
- Extend or adjust doctor’s prescriptions.
- Analyze patient records to ensure that the medications chosen are suitable and adequate for their condition (right dose, right product, drug interactions, etc.).
- Educating patients and other health care professionals about dosage, contraindications, adverse reactions, etc.
- Provide a pharmaceutical opinion.
- Ensure the packaging, distribution, and storage of drugs and pharmaceutical products.
- Initiate, monitor, and adjust patients’ drug therapy.
- Counsel patients on the use of non-prescription drugs and prescribe them when clinically or otherwise appropriate.
- Monitor and coordinate the activities of other pharmacists and staff.
- Administer a medication by different routes of administration to demonstrate appropriate use for vaccination or in an emergency.
- Prescribe medications for certain health conditions:
- Minor health conditions (allergic conjunctivitis, eczema, allergic rhinitis, etc.)
- Preventive treatments (smoking cessation, emergency oral contraception, antibiotic prevention in people exposed to a tick bite [Lyme disease], etc.)
- Treatment of influenza or shingles.
Industrial Pharmacists
- Participate in research for the development of new drugs.
- Formulate, test, and verify the stability, absorption, and elimination of new drugs.
- Coordinate clinical investigations of new drugs.
- Control the quality of drugs during production to ensure compliance with applicable standards.
- Develop informative material concerning the uses, therapeutic effects, and risks of certain drugs.
- Evaluate drug labelling, packaging, and advertising.
- Promote pharmaceuticals to health professionals.
- Participate in pharmacovigilance functions (document and evaluate adverse reaction cases, assess product risks, etc.).
Hourly wage
The hourly wage is calculated by averaging wages from 2020 to 2022.- Minimum
- $50.00
- Median
- $58.45
- Maximum
- $70.00
Job prospects for 2023-2027
sr.comparaison-region.titre
Job prospects for 2023-2027
Job prospects
All of Québec
All of Québec
Total jobs for 2022
All of Québec
All of Québec
Gender distribution
All of Québec
- 68% Female
- 32% Male
- 68% Female
- 32% Male
Job types
All of Québec
- Full time
- Part time
- Full time
- Part time
Yearly wage on 2020
All of Québec
All of Québec
Other characteristics
All of Québec
- Non traditional for men
- None
All of Québec
- Non traditional for men
- None
Sectors of activity
All of Québec
-
NAICS 44, 4577% of jobs
-
NAICS 621, 622, 62318% of jobs
-
NAICS 411% of jobs
-
NAICS 324, 3251% of jobs
-
NAICS 5416, 54171% of jobs
-
Others2% of jobs
All of Québec
-
NAICS 44, 4577% of jobs
-
NAICS 621, 622, 62318% of jobs
-
NAICS 411% of jobs
-
NAICS 324, 3251% of jobs
-
NAICS 5416, 54171% of jobs
-
Others2% of jobs
Training and requirements
Formation
University
Pharmacology or pharmaceutical science
Bachelor’s degree
Placement rate: 63.9%
26.5% of graduates pursue further studies
Master’s degree
Placement rate: 81.9%
13.3% of graduates pursue further studies
Also required
- Membership in the Ordre des pharmaciens du Québec (OPQ [Quebec Order of Pharmacists]).
Sometimes required
- Knowledge of the existing IT system may be required or an asset.
- A Master’s degree in advanced drug therapy may be required to practice in a health care facility.
Main skills and characteristics
Skills
- Data collection
- Information processing
- Judgment and decision-making
- Reading comprehension
- Active listening
- Teaching
- Result evaluation
- Written expression
- Oral expression
- Service oriented
- Critical thought
- Science
- Active learning
- Time management
- Human resource management
- Social perception
- Solving complex problems
- Coordination
- Mathematics
- System analysis
- Negotiation
- Persuasion
- Learning strategies
Abilities
- Written comprehension
- Oral comprehension
- Verbal skills
- Awareness of issues
- Near vision
- Speech clarity
- Written expression
- Deductive reasoning
- Inductive reasoning
- Classification
- Information organization
- Speech recognition
- Selective attention
- Mathematical reasoning
- Basic numeracy
- Perception speed
- Digital dexterity
- Idea generation
- Time sharing
- Colour perception and distinction
- Distance vision
Knowledge and attributes
- Capacity to work under pressure
- Autonomy
- Sense of responsibility
- Capacity to influence and mobilize
- Capacity to work in a team
- Capacity to delegate
- Commitment
- Capacity to be discrete
- Respect standards and regulations
- Knowledge of medicine or dentistry
Interests
- Direct, organize, and manage
- Draft, communicate, and inform
- Watch, defend, and secure
- Carry out research
- Assist and advise
- Teach or educate
- Assist or care for people
Personality profiles (RIASEC)
- Investigative
- People with this profile prefer relying on theoretical knowledge before acting. They like observation, analysis and problem solving.
- Enterprising
- People with this profile prefer having responsibilities, influencing others and responding to challenges.
- Social
- People with this profile prefer to be in contact with others, in particular to entertain, help or teach them.
Official name of the NOC 31120
Pharmacists
Job titles
- Druggist
- Clinical pharmacist
- Community pharmacist
- Industrial pharmacist
- Health care institution pharmacist
- Pharmacist consultant
- Intern pharmacist
- Pharmacy officer - canadian armed forces
- Drug information pharmacist
- Hospital druggist
- Retail pharmacist
Skill type
Health
Last update: February 14, 2024