When thinking of pharmacists, one might not think of putting a syringe into a chicken wing. Senior Kendall Gleason, who spends parts of her day in the pharmacy program at Kent Career Tech Center (KCTC), thinks exactly of that.
“Usually we sort pills,” Kendall said, “or sometimes we do labs where we make suppositories and medications. We’re doing a chicken lab and dissecting the chicken wing and looking at all of the muscles. We do it so when we’re giving people shots, we will know what muscle to put it in.”
Though dissecting a chicken is an interesting way to spend her day, Kendall loves her experiences at KCTC.
Kendall’s experiences at KCTC, both with and without chickens, have never scared her from her dream of becoming a pharmacist. Her draw to the medical field is not one that can be shaken after years of feeling it.
“I knew since an early age that I wanted to be a pharmacist,” Kendall said. “It was my dream job in elementary school too. It’s always been pharmacy. [As a kid], I looked up salaries, and I was like, ‘Oh, they make a lot of money,’ so I haven’t really changed [my dream].”
Kendall’s love for the pharmaceutical world may have been kickstarted by her future salary, but it’s not what keeps her motivated. Through her time at KCTC this year, Kendall has learned more in her future field that excites her.
“I like working with drugs—not in that way—but I think drugs are interesting,” Kendall said. “They’re all different and unique in their own ways, with side effects and how they help people. I thought it was pretty interesting. I like learning about it and helping people with prescriptions. So that drew me to the pharmaceutical side of [the medical field] rather than something hands-on.”
Learning about different medications enthralls Kendall to no end. While she has to memorize lots of drugs, the facts behind all of them keep her engaged.
“At KCTC, we’re going to learn 200 drugs, both brand and generic names,” Kendall said. “It’s a lot to memorize, and you have to have a good memory for that. [The knowledge] helps me help my friends if they have a headache or something.”
Loads of medication have yet to scare Kendall from her dream. Though memorizing so many medications is difficult, Kendall is still excited to learn more.
Outside of memorizing medications, KCTC will provide Kendall with critical knowledge and advancement for the years to come.
“At the end of the year, we’re going to take a big exam, and if I pass it, I’ll get a Pharmacy Technician Certification,” Kendall said. “Then, I can work at a pharmacy as a technician, which is cool. It doesn’t speed up college, but it helps me because I’ll know about more drugs, and it’ll prepare me to be a pharmacist with some prior knowledge.”
While Kendall still plans to go to college, her current pharmaceutical program will allow her to get hands-on experience in a real pharmacy while attending classes at college.
Kendall is excited for the opportunity to follow her childhood dream. Though, as an introvert, she doesn’t like the super-social aspect of pharmacies, she is thrilled to be able to spend her life helping people behind the scenes.
“If you have a good memory and you’re interested in medications, and if you’re introverted, a pharmacist is a good job,” Kendall said. “There are different types of pharmacies, and if you’re in a compounding pharmacy, you don’t do retail, where you talk to customers. In compounding, you make the drugs yourself. I probably will do compounding because I’m more introverted and don’t really like talking to customers, but I can still help people.”
