When Dad is a sales rep, school holidays are spent tagging along on trips to pharmacies across remote Queensland. This was UNE Alumni, Kerri Barwick's introduction into the world of pharmacy.
"I remember cleaning out the tester shed after school, lining up all the fragrance bottles neatening the shelves - even though only the (sale) reps saw it!
As soon as she was old enough, Kerri got a job in a local pharmacy cleaning hundreds of glass shelves ready for the grand opening.
"It was a Don Gardiner Store - a great place to start my pharmacy career. They were really progressive as a group with marketing but also had high professional practice standards. I remember not being allowed to serve at the back counter because I wasn't adequately trained, I respect that discipline. I enjoyed chemistry at high school and even competed in a national titrating competition - yes, that is a thing!"
I remember not being allowed to serve at the back counter because I wasn't adequately trained, I respect that discipline.
After high school, Kerri continued to work in community pharmacy but decided to study Business as she feared the profession may become stale. However, the pharmacy world kept drawing her back in.
"I did roles in buying, QCPP (Quality Care Pharmacy Program), training and managed the retail section of a hospital pharmacy. Then I had some time off work to have my three babies - in four years, crazy I know - and was working casually in a community pharmacy to get some time away from nursery rhymes!
"My manager there asked why I wasn't a pharmacist and it made me think that it was something I could do. Having three kids under five meant that attending full-time classes wasn't an option for me, so UNE was the perfect choice.
Having three kids under five meant that attending full-time classes wasn't an option for me, so UNE was the perfect choice
"I wouldn't be where I am now if UNE hadn't been an option. I continued to work in pharmacy while I was studying and also ran the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden program teaching gardening classes at the kids' school - my 'farmacy'!
