Back in the summer, I had written a post regarding my experience in musical theatre https://pharmaspire.wordpress.com/2019/06/11/i-am-fyedka/ and comparing that to how we introduce a narrative to the public with which they may not previously have been familiar. We are relied upon to guide those looking for our assistance, and to do so at their own pace.

Just as the pacing of movements and line delivery is important to the flow of a theatre production, it’s also crucial that body language and counseling are carefully practiced to be effective. I can recognize my own failings in both personal and professional settings. When explaining healthcare concepts to the public, my comfort in pharmacy has sometimes caused me to use medical terms at inappropriate times, or moved through topics too quickly for others to fully grasp.

My reasons for revisiting this topic is actually a combination of my last two posts: the reprisal of my role in Fiddler over a weekend in early November, and the inspiration of Behind the Post where we were orienting a number of new pharmacy team members to our company. Since my personal journey directly contributes to how I carry myself as a professional, my working life is influenced heavily by the relationships I’ve forged inside and outside the pharmacy world.

I was honoured to be recast as Fyedka in another run of Fiddler on the Roof, produced by the Stage Prophets, a theatre company affiliated by the St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church. During the initial run in Wolfville, a town about 45 minutes from where I live, we asked a Jewish Rabbi from Halifax to bless a production steeped with strong religious undertones. In doing so, it brought many people together of different faiths, to learn traditions and help understand love as a shared, underlying value. A partnership ensued with the Beth Israel Synagogue and the show was relaunched in Halifax with the help of a volunteer team of over 100 people. It was a marathon to prepare, but was worth every moment.

After almost 4 months, the cast was brought back together. We knew the show, but the stage had a totally different shape (proscenium vs thrust), meaning we had to rethink every entry, exit, body position and the direction of our actions when delivering dialogue. Some things worked well, maybe even better than the original venue, and some things didn’t. They needed to be modified or removed altogether. Putting some thought into many of these aspects, I attempted to apply some of what I’ve learned into improving our experience behind the pharmacy counter. For instance, if you are a relief pharmacist at a new location, there are plenty of similarities:

1. You know your professional responsibilities and the rules you are required to follow. There needs to be structure to ensure a consistent performance.
2. The layout of your work environment may seem familiar in some ways but require adjustment to your routine. Think pick-up and drop-off. Is there an island workstation? How is the staff positioning within the space?
3. Costumes and uniforms are the same, but some roles are modified, or those playing the roles have changed. For instance, some pharmacy sites have technicians, others have cashiers depending on staffing needs.
4. Using available props that have been tailored for the workspace. In theatre, the size and shape of canopies, background set pieces, doorways, etc. need to be customized for the best viewing experience. In pharmacy, this is akin to having different counters, balances, or various automation to perform the work. Some sites have basket systems for their clinic rooms, others have mounted drawers.
5. Expecting the unexpected – even with the best laid plans, in live theatre, or live pharmacy, there is always a chance of a mishap. Whether the sound system goes on the fritz, the timing of a musical cue is off, the third party communications go down, or the drug delivery is late, we need to have strategies in place to regroup and refocus for the next interaction and the next user experience.

At the end of the day, you are still expected to perform at a high level. After all, the audience member, or potential patient, may not know anything about what they will see prior to passing through the doorway.

The impressions we leave are the difference between a simple transaction and the start of a life-long relationship.

 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.