In May, National CooperativeRx welcomed its first clinical intern, Jacky Yu, to the team for a six-week period. Jacky is a fourth-year pharmacy student at UW-Madison, currently with us for his first of six rotations required to become a licensed pharmacist.
From Green Bay, Wis., Jacky received his undergraduate degree in biochemistry from UW-Madison, then decided to stay there for pharmacy school.
“Although it sounds cliché, I took a career aptitude test in high school and when the result said ‘pharmacist,’ I based the next eight years of my life on it,” Jacky says. “I always knew I would be in some realm of health care but wanted something less mechanical, not like a dentist or doctor.”
Jacky discovered the opportunity at National CooperativeRx through a roundtable presentation at UW-Madison given by Jocelyn Kerl, our clinical services manager, and thought the position description looked intriguing. “There are so many different career paths to go down as a pharmacist and working here is a completely different atmosphere than what I’m used to,” Jacky explains. Coming from a college world ruled by deadlines, Jacky likes the autonomy of the office setting and the ability to set your own deadlines and manage time wisely.
During his six weeks with the Cooperative, Jacky has most enjoyed learning our high-dollar claims process, which involves reviewing expensive prescription drug claims and removing questionable, fraudulent pharmacies from network. “This experience taught me to translate my clinical knowledge in a different way and gave me insight into how insurance companies work,” Jacky says. “I’ve also valued being able to sit in on client meetings to see the other side of the spectrum and learn what’s truly important to our members.”
As his internship ends, Jacky is grateful for the opportunity and guidance from Cooperative staff, especially Jocelyn, who is Jacky’s preceptor. “I have learned many life skills from my time at the Cooperative, the most valuable being what goes on behind the scenes when someone picks up a prescription,” Jacky states. “I also know what I have to look forward to after graduation — working eight hours a day!”
The one thing Jacky would like to do before he leaves our team? “Before I leave National CooperativeRx, I want to perform a high-dollar claim review by myself and have it checked for accuracy, as well as run a complete Rx Insight report to make sure I understand everything,” Jacky states.
When Jacky isn’t at his internship or studying for his board exams, he likes to be active by hiking and running, traveling and attending concerts. Jacky also likes to read and is currently indulging in Enlightenment Now. Click here to see more of what Jacky does in his free time!
