From wards to warzones: A pharmacist’s unconventional career journey

About this event

This session will provide a brief overview of Ellie’s varied career journey, beginning with seven years as a hospital based clinical pharmacist, followed by a 26 year tenure in the Army, and culminating in a transition to community pharmacy.

Ellie will reflect on the generalist nature of her career, highlighting both the professional and cultural challenges she faced when switching sectors. From navigating the male-dominated environment of the military, keeping up with clinical knowledge while changing roles every two years, to being the only pharmacy advisor in high stakes situations, her story offers a rare insight into pharmacy beyond traditional settings.

Particular emphasis will be placed on the importance of adaptability, maintaining professional networks, and how a solid NHS foundation helped her thrive in unfamiliar environments. Ellie will also share how the challenges she encountered, especially outside the mainstream pharmacy world, helped her grow in confidence, develop strong leadership skills, and find her voice.

Ellie will conclude by discussing her most recent transition into community pharmacy, which has presented new professional challenges and a steep learning curve.

The session will end with an open Q&A segment, offering attendees the opportunity to engage directly.

Target audience

This session is ideal for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians working across a range of settings, including primary and secondary care, academia, general practice, and community pharmacy.  Other healthcare professionals will also benefit from attending.

Booking information

Registration will close at midnight on Sunday 12 October 2025 or earlier if maximum capacity is reached. Should this event not reach its minimum number, the UKCPA reserves the right to cancel the webinar.

If you are not a member of UKCPA but wish to attend this event either as a guest or by applying for UKCPA membership in order to attend this webinar as part of your membership package, your guest account or membership application must be completed by 28 September 2025.  Please note that the administration and activation of membership or guest accounts can take up to 7 working days.

Access to the recording of this webinar and any slides made available by the speaker are released as a member benefit.  Guest account attendees are not eligible to access or receive the post event resources.  If you are a guest account holder and wish to access the recording and any resources, please upgrade to full UKCPA membership.