What is an Intern Pharmacist
An intern pharmacist is a BPharm graduate that holds an annual practising certificate issued by the Pharmacy Council of New Zealand. As a registered health professional, an intern pharmacist works under the Health Practitioners Competency Assurance Act 2003. An intern pharmacist must complete their internship within 2 years of graduation from university.
The EVOLVE Intern Programme is the next step for an intern pharmacist to become a registered pharmacist in New Zealand. To become an intern pharmacist and join the programme, you must either be:
Interns undertake supervised practice under an approved preceptor in an approved site. The site requires approval by the Pharmaceutical Society. The preceptor is a registered pharmacist who is trained and approved by the Pharmaceutical Society.
The purposes of the intern programme is to learn to apply the academic knowledge gained at Pharmacy School, to develop confidence in communicating with the public and other health professionals, and to gain experience in the situations and events that occur in the pharmacy workplace.
Experience tells us that interns who are eager to learn, have a professional attitude, make teamwork a priority and take on responsibility willingly get the most out of the intern programme and make excellent pharmacists. The more the intern puts in, the more they will benefit and achieve. Every intern is responsible for their own learning and achievement, with the aim of being eligible to apply for Registration as a Pharmacist on completion of their practical training.