Secrets from a pharmacist on the front line

Robert Liddington was kind enough to join us on the podcast to talk about his extremely interesting career so far. Robert spent almost 18 years in the army as a pharmacist and more recently has taken roles in the MHRA and also the Care Quality Commission. He took us through his experience in the army and he shared his insights about how pharmacists can have a very interesting and fulfilling career in the army or the army reserve. How does a pharmacist get into the army? What has your role involved over the years and what positions have you held? Are the pharmaceutical issues that you encounter in the army similar to those that you come across in civilian life? Your role has placed you in some very difficult situations abroad. Have you ever felt fear when in a war zone? What is the difference between the regular army and the reserves? How did you coming back into civilian life after serving time in the army? Can you you think of a situation when you were really under pressure to find a solution to a problem fast? What happened and how did your army training help you cope? You have been deployed abroad on a number of occasions. Where was the nicest place you were deployed to? What could community pharmacy learn from the military? What is your advice to newly qualified pharmacists?