Boots’ Jen Ainsworth thrives on helping customers and is making a positive difference to them and to her pharmacy

Jen Ainsworth only recently became part of the Boots pharmacy team, but is already making an impact at the Crown Walk branch in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire. And her hard work was rewarded with a Highly Commended in the Infant Care category, sponsored by SMA Nutrition.

Although new to pharmacy, Jen is well versed in healthcare, having completed two years of a midwifery degree and another two years working as a dental nurse. She draws on this experience on a daily basis and it undoubtedly played a part when she referred a feverish and restless toddler to A&E for suspected meningitis rather than just selling the parent the paracetamol suspension they had requested.

As APTUK secretary and Awards judge Joanne Taylor said: “This illustrated how quick action in the pharmacy and the knowledge of the pharmacy team is imperative to patient care.” Fellow judge and National Pharmacy Association chief pharmacist Leyla Hannbeck agreed, saying: “If this was meningitis, it could have been fatal.”

Jen is building on her expertise by working towards her dispensing assistant qualification. Working between the healthcare and pharmacy teams, she sees this additional learning as vital to increasing her involvement in campaigns and initiatives in the future.

The Awards honour bestowed on Jen is the icing on the cake. “Joining the pharmacy team was the best decision I ever made and I thoroughly enjoy every day,” she says. “Helping different people and knowing I make a difference to them by making sure they get the right medication and advice for their condition, I thrive on that.”