Stacey Price

Stacey joined WVT pharmacy at the start of the first lockdown, back in April 2020 as an ATO and came to this role with no previous experience in a pharmacy setting.

Stacey Price - Lead ATO (Assistant Technical Officer) for Patient Services

My name is Stacey and I work in pharmacy, with my current role being Lead ATO (Assistant Technical Officer) for Patient Services. I joined WVT pharmacy at the start of the first lockdown, back in April 2020 as an ATO and came to this role with no previous experience in a pharmacy setting – I actually came from a well-known coffee shop.

I was initially attracted to the job that brought me to WVT because I was interested in playing a part to help people have a better quality of life and I thought that the idea of working with different kinds of medication that can have such an important part in someone’s life was really fascinating. I then applied for my current role as a natural progression when the vacancy became available.

Day to day I mainly work in the dispensary and being a Lead ATO now means that I do have some managerial duties. I still dispense medications against prescriptions that come to dispensary – including outpatients, inpatients and discharges.

I love the fact that there is always something to learn with this type of work

There are so many resources to expand your knowledge and help to understand why you are giving a particular medication in a particular way – for me, this is how I learn best.

In my role now, part of that includes supporting people with coaching and support within the dispensary and this is something I feel very passionate about. I am fully supported in this by my management and that is a great feeling. I also love to maintain something called an ‘Appreciation Station’ which contributes towards a positive work environment – which is always fabulous! I have also been given opportunities to implement training materials to help with new starters or continued development within my team.

Skills that I believe are needed for this role include having attention to detail but I think the most important skill to bring would be being able to communicate effectively – even if it means having to ask for help sometimes. I wouldn’t necessarily say someone would need to have a background in medicine or healthcare because I definitely didn’t and I feel that I have been empowered to flourish within this department and role.

My future aspirations are definitely within this department, I feel that I would be very supported in any progression opportunities that came my way because this is how I felt when I was deciding whether to apply for the role I am in now. 

Joining the WVT pharmacy team was the best decision I ever made, I find that now I have a great work/life balance and for me, that is something that is really important.