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Career paths and personality in pharmacy

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Abstract

Background Pharmacists choose different career paths which may have different requirements in terms of demands and environments, irrespective of knowledge and intellectual capability. A contributing factor could be personality whereby pharmacists seek to work in an environment which is compatible with their personality. Objective To explore the relationship between personality and career paths taken by pharmacists. Methods Data regarding pharmacists’ personality profile as determined by The Gordon Personal Profile Inventory (GPPI) were gathered using an anonymous survey. The inventory booklet was mailed to all pharmacists registered to practice in Malta who were at the time residing in the country. Demographic data and information regarding areas of practice was also gathered. Analysis was carried out using variety of statistical tests including t-test, Manova and Multiple Correspondence Analysis. Results Most of the types of pharmacists considered, lie somewhat close to the average categories of the GPPI attributes, with those who work in importation and wholesale being the ones who stand out most from the rest by scoring high on self esteem, ascendency, original thinking, vigour, sociability. Those who work in industry and, especially, in hospitals are the two categories of pharmacists who seem to score low on the GPPI traits in general, while those who work in the Community scored high in personal relations and are a little more likely to score higher in cautiousness and responsibility. Conclusion Pharmacists are not a homogeneous group of individuals. It is evident that their personality is a significant factor in the career path that they have chosen. Not all pharmacists possess personalities that are conducive to patient-oriented practice. Those that do not primarily possess the latter personality traits, appear to have chosen to practice in non-traditional areas where, possibly, they have found a good fit with their personality and other factors.

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Acknowledgments

Mr. Joseph Busuttil, Registrar, Pharmacy Council, Malta for his assistance in interpreting the data gathered by Pharmacy Council relating to pharmacist employment patterns.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Malta, Msida, MSD, 2080, Malta

    Maria Cordina

  2. Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Pro-Rector, University of Malta, Msida, Malta

    Mary-Anne Lauri

  3. Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, University of Malta, Msida, Malta

    Josef Lauri

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  1. Maria Cordina
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  2. Mary-Anne Lauri
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  3. Josef Lauri
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Correspondence to Maria Cordina.

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Cordina, M., Lauri, MA. & Lauri, J. Career paths and personality in pharmacy. Int J Clin Pharm 34, 876–884 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-012-9686-3

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