Greetings from the Isle of Islay!
In my 30th year as a pharmacist, I find myself on the isle of Islay in the southern Inner Hebrides. Islay is known as the friendly isle but is more well known for its whisky. Anyone who has ever browsed the alcohol aisle of their local supermarket will know the names Lagavulin, Bowmore, Laphroaig and the Botanist gin. These are all distilled on Islay – one of them about fifty metres away from where I am sitting as I type this.
Because of the distilleries, the beautiful scenery, breathtaking views and unique wildlife, Islay has become a mecca for tourists from all over the world who come to sample the whisky and take photos of the stunning locations.
This has brought up some unique challenges that I never thought I would see as a pharmacist, including making use of my GCSE French … 37 years after I sat the exam!
I’ve had to start using Google translate to read prescriptions and to communicate with tourists. We have had customers from Japan, China, Italy, South Africa and Greece to name a few. We’ve even had pharmacists from these countries who have popped in for a look around to see what the differences and similarities are in our working practices. These quick drop ins for a look naturally turn into a conversation about practicing in Scotland as opposed to their country.
How I ended up in the Inner Hebrides
I was working for a small chain as a pharmacist and superintendent when in March 2020 covid happened. I went from being a fit and active person who loved to work out and run, to working 7-day weeks to keep on top of the increased workload and dealing with the day-to-day problems of lockdown, staff contracting covid, being understaffed, abusive and threatening patients and being constantly tired, stressed and angry – issues I know will resonate with a lot of pharmacists.
Fortunately, there were lots of people who were so supportive of me; my husband who started to help voluntarily for the pharmacies by building screens for the shops and helping with deliveries, patients bringing in shopping for us (despite the restrictions) and pharmacists and staff keeping in touch for mutual support or just a chat and a grumble.
Despite being careful for over 2 years, in September 2022 I eventually contracted covid along with my husband. We decided enough was enough and put our house up for sale focussing our efforts to buying our own pharmacy. It wasn’t an easy process for many reasons beyond our control and added to an already difficult life.
However, the old story of wanting to be able to set our own workload and pace and to achieve a work / life balance that had been sorely lacking for a few years was a huge pull factor.
On February 6th 2024, all the hard work paid off and my husband and I became the very proud owners of our own pharmacy on the beautiful Isle of Islay. Fast forward 7 months and we are now fully settled in. I have started training physically again and getting my work life balance under control. The pharmacy is doing great, we’ve made quite a few changes and have lots of plans for future years.
Managing feelings of isolation
Early in my career as a newly qualified pharmacist in charge of a pharmacy in the northeast of England, I felt isolated and unsure. The lack of instant communication didn’t help – back then it was limited to snail mail, phone calls or face-to-face contact. I knew I needed to be proactive, so I started to attend meetings, training events and making connections which have kept me in good stead even to this day. I have been fortunate enough over the last three decades to build up a network of friends, colleagues and mentors who can answer a query or just be there for a chat or be a sounding board. In this day and age, it is much easier to keep in touch with people via social media and WhatsApp (especially living and working in such a remote location). It’s important to me to stay connected with the people who helped shape me become the pharmacist I am today!
I am a firm believer in paying it forward and thus frequently am the person that people who have trained and worked under me -whether it be as a pharmacy student, trainee, second pharmacist or dispenser, they still know that they can contact me for advice.
What my experience has taught me
After 30 years in pharmacy my main takeaway is that life is too short to waste it. No matter what you do, take care of your own mental health and wellbeing first. Surround yourself with people who lift you up not weigh you down, and always remember to reach out to offer and receive support.
