Douglas Nee, PharmD, MS
Consultant Pharmacist
As a consultant pharmacist, Doug is involved in a variety of activities, with an emphasis in pain management and palliative care. In several settings including hospice, he is directly involved in the patients’ medication management through collaborative agreements with the medical director and community physicians. Some of Doug’s other consulting activities include:
- Patient medication management and facility review for skilled nursing, assisted living, and mental health facilities,
- Investigational drug studies
- Expert witness activities
- Chairman, Investigational Review Board
How They Got There
When Doug was in pharmacy school, consultant pharmacists were identified predominantly through activities in long term care facilities. Doug initially set his career goal in hospital pharmacy and completed a residency in hospital pharmacy after graduation. Throughout his 14-year hospital pharmacy career, Doug worked predominantly in management positions. As a result of short staffing during his tenure as director of pharmacy, Doug found himself having to cover the pharmacokinetics service as well. This ultimately changed his course of pharmacy practice back to patient care. Prior to establishing a practice as a pharmacy director within the hospice setting, Doug consulted to a community hospital as well as a homecare pharmacy. With a total of 23 years of diverse pharmacy experience, Doug established himself as a full time consultant in 2001.
Other Professional Activities
Throughout his career, Doug has been involved in the pharmacy profession at both the state and national level. He is published in pharmacy literature and provides ongoing presentations in the area of pain management and palliative care. He has served on and chaired the ASHP Council on Educational Affairs and is currently a member of the executive committee for the ASHP Section of Home, Ambulatory, and Chronic Care Practitioners. Doug has served on and chaired several committees of the Florida Society of Health-System Pharmacists, is presently an executive committee member of the Florida Pain Initiative, and serves as a Governor appointed member of the Florida Medicaid Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee.
Advanced Training
To practice as a consultant, the pharmacist must have a good understanding of pharmacy systems and how they affect patients and other health-system areas. It is imperative to have a Doctor of Pharmacy degree and a specialty practice residency/fellowship. Board certification and traineeships are not imperative, however, they will serve to enhance practice knowledge. Experience is the key ingredient in preparing for and maintaining a successful consulting practice.
Advice
Network, network, network. I believe everyone is connected by the theory of “six degrees of separation”. Word of mouth travels very fast, and who you know is often as important as what you know. Establishing yourself as a consultant requires practical experience beyond school and other courses. Working with or for someone who is a good role model will get you to your goal faster. Be open to the idea of shadowing or providing pro-bono activities as part of the learning experience. As a consultant, you must have an overall business plan and establish objectives and activities to achieve your consulting goals. At the same time, you must understand that you have to be flexible enough to change and prioritize those goals.
