My mum was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011 when I was in my final year of university and I immediately felt overwhelmed. I was training to be a pharmacist, so I understood all the drugs and side-effects she was facing and I was incredibly worried about immunosuppression and that if my mum got sick, she could get really sick.
During this time, I used a lot of Macmillan resources to help give feel more in control during a very scary situation. They helped me understand what was happening and how I could support my mum and I decided that I wanted to help people in the same way they'd helped me, so after graduating, and once my mum had made a full recovery, I trained as a Boots Macmillan Information Pharmacist (BMIP).
I felt so incredibly fortunate to be able to access the training, because I could really empathise with patients and their families, having been in their shoes just a couple of years before.
As a BMIP, I offer post-treatment support. After breast cancer treatment, patients can experience ongoing side effects such as hot flushes, tiredness and vaginal dryness. These are side effects we can counsel on and find solutions to as pharmacists.
Lifestyle advice is also a big part of BMIP role, advising patients on how to stop smoking, maintain an active lifestyle and general wellbeing are all aspects of recovery we can support with.
Patients may also not feel like themselves post-treatment, as BMIPs we offer emotional support and signposting. BMIPs work closely with Boots Macmillan Beauty Advisors, who are trained to help people manage the visible side effects of cancer.
I have been lucky enough to build links and help many patients over the years by using my Macmillan training, but there is one woman in particular, who stands out to me.
She was a patient I had seen every so often during my time as base pharmacist at Boots in Silverburn, however one day she asked to speak to me in private. She was close to tears as she explained that she had just received a breast cancer diagnosis and had been advised by her consultant to get a flu vaccine before starting chemotherapy.
She told me that she had been trying for days to book an appointment, but everywhere she tried was fully booked for weeks and no one could take any walk-ins. She was becoming incredibly worried that if she did not have a flu jab she would become ill.
I knew that this was just a worry that she didn’t need, so I was able to move a few things around and have her vaccinated the same day.
This built a connection between us and she contacted me whenever she was having concerns. She was suffering a lot from nausea during her treatment, so I ordered her a Macmillan cookbook for cancer side effects and a meditation CD through beMac.
I checked in on her every time she was in the store and I know she was grateful for the care and support. It was a really great feeling to be able to use my training and experience to go the extra mile for this patient when she was going through such a difficult time.
Being kind to others is the ultimate feel-good act. We have a picture up in my pharmacy which was handed in by a young boy who was poorly over the Christmas period. He wanted to thank our team for making him feel better.
His artwork has pride of place on the wall at the healthcare counter because it was such a thoughtful gesture, and it reminds the team that what we do does make a difference.
Kindness is a big part of every pharmacy team’s day. Working in healthcare can be a very demanding and pressured job, but at the root of it, we do it because we care, and this is where a big part of our job satisfaction comes from.
I know that when I get home, I reflect on the day and I can always pinpoint some interaction where I’ve felt, 'That’s made a difference,' and even if it’s really small, it’s still an impact.