National Pharmacies Intern Program
National Pharmacies is a mutual organisation, which means we have no individual Pharmacist owners, and operate as a united, single entity. We have 45 community Pharmacies across South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales and have been caring for the communities we serve since 1911.
We are a high service-oriented organisation, and combine Pharmacy with other health disciplines – Optical, Naturopathy, Podiatry – alongside a suite of community Pharmacy based services.
Our 230,000 members are the lifeblood of the organisation, as are our 800+ team members serving them.
We are a trusted healthcare provider and pride ourselves on our knowledge, empathy and well-trained professionals.
We are a diverse company, and provide a safe, friendly and supportive environment for all our team members and customers.
Advantages of being part of National Pharmacies
- National Pharmacies has 45 community Pharmacies across South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales with plenty of opportunity to move within our network.
- We offer a wide array of services to members. You will get to observe and practice services such as; vaccinations, medschecks, medication counselling and safety, dose administration aids, sleep apnoea, medication adherence, and more.
- Exciting career path opportunities, including opportunities to work within the support office, as they appear from time-to-time. Our support office functions include: operations, professional services, procurement, IT, finance & property, merchandising, marketing, membership, customer service, people & culture, and more.
- Employee discounts
- Regional experience opportunities
- Community participation events such as the National Pharmacies Christmas Pageant
What does a National Pharmacies Internship offer?
- On a daily basis, you will work under the close supervision of an experienced pharmacist preceptor who will support and mentor you to becoming a well-rounded confident Pharmacist
- Outside of your daily interactions with team and customers, National Pharmacies support office will provide a comprehensive annual program to run parallel to your store based, and individual development learning plan (via industry partner)
- Our Interns are empowered to become the best Pharmacist they can be through industry-leading educational programs, mentoring and networking opportunities
What your Intern year will look like.
In addition to the daily learning and development opportunities between intern, preceptor and Pharmacy team, the National Pharmacies Intern program features;
- Induction event – Meet other interns, preceptors, support office staff and suppliers.
- Two store rotations – Interns will complete two, four week blocks in different operating environments.
- Two full day offsite workshops – Day one features four blocks of exam preparation, and day two covers multiple sessions in key areas and guest speakers as requested by interns.
- Exam preparation – Full day exam preparation workshop, plus subsequent interactive online preparation sessions.
- Intern-lead focus area workshops – Focus areas are; Woundcare, Practitioner Vitamins, Ethics, Mental Health Training, MATOD Programs.
- OTC intern virtual workshops – Regular peer to peer learning opportunities for common OTC topics.
- Celebration event – To be held after exams.
- Innovation Committee – Opportunity for one intern to join our Innovation Committee for a twelve month period.
- Plus more to come.
Who are we looking for to be our next Intern?
A Pharmacy Intern with National Pharmacies will be a team player and be willing to learn. You will have a growth mindset!
- You will (personally) align strongly to our corporate purpose, vision, mission and values.
- Provide patient centred care to our members.
- You will be willing to work under the supervision of an experienced registered Pharmacist.
Our Purpose
Our Values
Testimonials
“With the help of the amazing support I received during my internship at National Pharmacies,
I have achieved one of my career goals. By expanding my leadership and communication skills, I was presented and accepted the PIC position at the Semaphore branch.”
John Cao
Intern 2020 and now Pharmacist-In-Charge
“The National Pharmacies intern program has provided me with the consistent and reliable guidance necessary to be successful in my intern year and subsequent career. Through National Pharmacies clear career progression, coupled with valuable preceptor mentorship and intern workshops, I have had the opportunity to develop the essential skills required to further my professional career to now be a Pharmacist In Charge and a member of the Leadership Team. I would without hesitation recommend National Pharmacies as a first preference for a rewarding and supported internship and career.”
Stephen Connelly
Intern 2020 and Now Pharmacist-In-Charge
“The intern program has been a great opportunity to continue my learning after graduation. The program gives us many opportunities to keep connected with our intern colleagues and has provided us with resources to guide our exam prep study.”
Aaron Xie
2022 Intern
“My internship at National Pharmacies has been one of the hardest yet most rewarding years of my life. The team has helped me develop skills that not only help me be a better pharmacist, but a better co-worker and member of the community.”
Hayley Sisson
2022 Intern
“As a preceptor, I actively expose interns to all facets of pharmacist life, from the very basics
of learning how to dispense accurately and concisely, to more complicated counselling, vaccinations, dose administration aid (DAA) preparations, collaboration with other health professionals, medschecks, and other services. But it’s never a one way street! I really enjoy the enthusiasm interns provide back to my team, and they often are in a position to discuss newer and more up to date knowledge they’ve obtained through university. It is an incredible feeling seeing the interns develop into registered pharmacists, knowing my team and I have played a key role in the journey.”
Laura Inat
National Pharmacies Mitcham, Pharmacist-In-Charge
Platinum Sponsor