Pharmacy Perspectives - Graduation 2017 - 5

G R A D UAT I O N 2 0 1 7

hospitalized. "I wasn't taking care of
myself. I couldn't function. And the
doctors couldn't break the migraine
cycle," Bishop recounts. Exhausting
all available options, she was released
from the hospital and sent home. But
the migraine remained.
During that time she kept in close
contact with the school. "They left the
decision up to me to either defer and
come back the following year or finish

Jillian Bishop today - fast approaching the finish
line for pharmacy school

the year out," says Bishop. By that time
she had been out of the program for
nearly a month. "I knew I couldn't get
caught up. So decided to take the year
over again."
The stress was palpable. "It was
a big setback. One year of tuition,
student loans and all the work I had
completed - gone," says Bishop. "But
it was the right thing to do."
She came back the following year
stronger, with a determination to see
the program through. And her commitment and determination paid off.
During her final year of the program,
Jillian (together with fellow classmate
Chelsea Mitchell) showed the pharmacy profession that she was the best
of the best. They clinched the 2016
ASHP Clinical Skills Competition,
besting teams from 134 other schools
of pharmacy. "It was a great feeling.
And it helped take the pressure off of
residency matching," says Bishop who
recently matched to the University of
Kansas Health System.

Listening More
Important than Talking
for Podcast Host

C

reator and host of the Talk Pharmacy
podcast, Ahsun Babalmorad is a natural
when it comes to interviewing his
subjects. The program, which airs on
iTunes, provides listeners with interviews
of students and faculty, offering insights
into the world of pharmacy and school.

Of Iranian heritage,
Babalmorad comes by his
ability to talk - and more
importantly to listen - naturally. His father worked for an
American oil company prior to
the Iranian revolution in the
1970s and was sent to study
engineering in the U.S. While
here, the revolution broke out
back home, so his father and
mother decided to stay and
raise a family. "At that time, my
parents saw more opportunity
in the U.S. than in their home
country," says Babalmorad, a
first generation American and
Colorado native.
His laid back vibe allows
him to draw interviewees out.
He doesn't talk over them,
but listens. A skill that will be
invaluable as a pharmacist.
"Listening is a really important skill for pharmacists.
We are schooled on how to
counsel - which is great - but
you can't counsel unless you
can hear what your patient is
saying," says Babalmorad.
Interning with Walgreens
since his undergrad days,
Babalmorad says his "retail
experience has allowed him

to see how much patients
depend on pharmacists."
Post-graduation, Babalmorad
has a position as a floater
with Walgreens already lined
up. "It's cool being a medications expert. I love being
considered one of the most
accessible of all the health
care professions, and being
a part of a major change in
retail pharmacy - allowing
pharmacists to come out
from behind the counter and
really have a clinical role with
patients. It's exciting."

Ahsun Babalmorad is excited for his next stage of his
career as he begins a floater position with Walgreens soon

www.ucdenver.edu/pharmacy

5
http://www.ucdenver.edu/pharmacy
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pharmacy Perspectives - Graduation 2017
