The London Ambulance Service has praised its first pharmacy technician apprentice for the “vital role in the largest pharmaceutical team of any ambulance service in the country”. 

Mahrukh Jaffar started her apprenticeship two years ago and is “just days away” from completing her registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) which will allow her to apply to jobs across pharmacy. 

Read more: ‘You’re Hired!’: Can apprentices play a bigger role in pharmacy? 

She started working part-time in a community pharmacy while she completed her master’s degree in economics at the University of Greenwich and this sparked an interest in healthcare and pharmacy. 

“I applied for the apprenticeship because I wanted to learn more about medicines management, patient safety and healthcare,” she said. “It’s very rewarding to know my work is benefiting patients across London.  

“We have to be very careful when packing medicines for clinicians because they are working in a very fast paced environment, so they rely on us to get it right.” 

Read more: Skills4Pharmacy raises over £1m to fund 130 apprentices 

Jaffar was the first apprentice on the scheme which is run with Barts Health NHS Trust and two more pharmacy technician apprentices have been employed since. 

She works in the ambulance medicines packing unit and completes her study days at Barts Hospital learning about medicines distribution, stock control, clinical guidance and regulatory compliance. 

“You do need to be accurate and pay attention to details. Patients depend on me – my work makes a difference,” Mahrukh added. 

Read more: Asda calls for reform to the apprentice scheme 

Last month, C+D visited Lincoln Pharmacy to see how apprentices are benefitting their community, and the finances of its owner. 

In January, Numark, Buttercups Training and PHOENIX UK announced that all 62 places on their new pharmacy technician apprenticeship programme were fully subscribed within just one day. 

And the GPhC has announced that it is “co-hosting a national pharmacy technician fellowship” with NHS England “for the first time”.