PCE Winner Experience Sharing

1. Introduce yourself

My name is Azrina Tan, from Singapore! I was the overall winner for the patient counselling event in 2018. I recently graduated from the University, and have gotten my license to become a full-fledged pharmacist!

2. Why were you interested in attending the competition?

I was interested to test what I had learned through attachments and training while schooling in Singapore, and see if it was applicable and relevant on the international stage. In addition, I also wanted to learn from others participating, and challenge myself one last time, in my final year.

3. Do you think the event has helped you in real practice?

I think it has! For one, it has built my confidence in counselling patients. Secondly, through the competition, I got to put my thoughts down on paper, and record a video. Watching myself helped me to see what my own faults were, and how I could better improve. The feedback given during the finals was also useful and provided invaluable insight from the perspective of other foreign students.

4. Would you recommend the event to other pharmacy students?

Yes! Definitely. I would tell them to take the competition not so much as a way to earn accolades, but as a way for you to learn from others, outside of the classroom. It will provide you with a lot of time for reflection, and help you to see your own strengths and weaknesses.

5. What advice do you have for people who are just starting to learn patient counselling?

• Have your own good structure for counselling that you can fall back on
• Be patient with yourself!
• Have confidence!

Personally, I have a goal for every patient counselled - although many patients nowadays come armed with lots of knowledge from online resource and materials, I always aim to teach them at least one thing they didn’t know beforehand. I find that this really helps build trust with patients! And their surprise will definitely boost your confidence too.