Welcome to this special recap of Your Pharmacy Career podcast, proudly produced by Raven’s Recruitment - Australia’s experts in pharmacy career and locum services for over 30 years.
This week, Krysti-Lee Patterson interviews the remarkable Jala Moushi - pharmacist, educator, wellness writer, and creative leader.
Episode Summary
In this powerful and heartfelt episode of Your Pharmacy Career Podcast, host Krysti-Lee Patterson sits down with pharmacist, writer, and wellness advocate Jala Moushi, whose journey from uncertain pharmacy student to creative leader and mentor has been anything but conventional.
Set against the chaotic backdrop of COVID-19, Jala candidly shares the inner tension she faced during her early career — from leading a pharmacy through a pandemic to discovering a skin rash caused by stress that even she hadn’t noticed. But it’s not all pressure and pandemic. It’s also about chocolate— yes, the sweet kind — and how a spontaneous lockdown kitchen-table project with her sisters unlocked an unexpected creative spark that led her to become a published wellness writer and an intern program leader at Chemist Warehouse.
This isn’t just a story of pharmacy. It’s a story of resilience, reinvention, and redefining what it means to be a pharmacist in today’s evolving healthcare landscape.
Key Takeaways from the Episode
Uncertainty is normal — Even Jala didn’t have a clear path post-internship, and that’s okay. What mattered more was staying open to opportunities and grounded in values.
Early leadership during a pandemic — Starting her pharmacy career during COVID-19 forced Jala to step up fast. The stress was real, but it shaped her resilience and deepened her leadership skills.
The body keeps the score — A red rash on her chest, unnoticed by Jala but spotted by a colleague, served as a wake-up call about the impact of internalised stress — a vital reminder for all pharmacists to prioritise their own wellbeing.
From pharmacy to chocolate — A creative lockdown venture with her sisters led to the creation of a real chocolate brand, helping Jala unlock a previously untapped side of her professional identity.
The pharmacist-writer identity — Jala’s writing journey, including her column in House of Wellness, proves that pharmacy can extend into media, communication and creative health education — not just traditional roles.
Mentoring 700+ interns annually — Now an education pharmacist, Jala leads the Chemist Warehouse national intern program. Her ability to empathise with interns stems from her own lived experience of early-career uncertainty.
Saying "no" can be as important as saying "yes" — Jala stresses that not every opportunity is the right one, and turning down roles or projects that don’t align with your values is a sign of professional maturity.
Keeping a finger on the pulse — Despite her non-dispensing role, Jala still works in community pharmacy weekly to stay connected to frontline practice and evolving challenges.
Creative pharmacy is real pharmacy — Whether through health writing or retail innovation, Jala is proof that the pharmacy profession has a creative and flexible future — one that young pharmacists can actively shape.
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Full Episode Transcript
Welcome to Your Pharmacy Career Podcast, proudly produced by Raven's Recruitment, the experts in pharmacy career and locum services for over 30 years. Every episode is your gateway to new opportunities in the pharmacy profession. From expert advice to inspiring success stories, we're here to spark ideas, guide your career and help you achieve your goals. Stay tuned. The next step in your pharmacy journey starts here.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (00:14.528)
Welcome to another episode of Your Pharmacy Career podcast. Today I'm joined by a very special pharmacist, Jala, who has gone from mentoring hundreds of interns to becoming a voice in wellness writing and creative pharmacy leadership. I'm so excited to welcome her to the show. Jala, thank you so much for joining us today.
Jala Moushi (00:41.223)
Thank you so much for having me, Krysti Lee. This is definitely not a usual kind of day for me, recording a podcast with you, but I'm so excited to be here.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (00:54.776)
Thank you so much. And thank you for your patience with the technical issues beforehand. So you can always play in these things, but sometimes it just doesn't go right. Now, Jala, I always ask everyone the same question in the beginning of our chat. And that's, why did you become a pharmacist?
Jala Moushi (01:04.581)
Absolutely.
Jala Moushi (01:16.145)
and I love this question because you definitely always get asked it right after you become a pharmacist. To be honest, I actually wasn't really sure what I wanted to do, which I know is super common at the end of high school. Naturally, I've always been drawn towards
Krysti-Lee Patterson (01:22.999)
Yes.
Jala Moushi (01:34.857)
science, you know, the human body. I found that very interesting. And then as I got into my later years in high school, I started to understand what commerce was and that started to pique my interest. So by the end of year 12, I kind of thought of something between health or finance. But then my older sister and cousins, it started to encourage me to consider pharmacy because they found being a pharmacist so rewarding.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (02:03.607)
Mm-hmm.
Jala Moushi (02:03.833)
So the day before preferences were due, as you do, I took the plunge and pharmacy and commerce, which was being offered by Monash University at the time, which doesn't exist anymore, won the bet and the rest is history. Now here I am. I'm in a really fulfilling career that I initially never really envisioned.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (02:28.418)
I love that they did a combined degree with commerce. I'm actually a huge advocate for pharmacists having some form of business kind of experience or education. So it's a shame that degree doesn't exist anymore.
Jala Moushi (02:46.373)
Yeah, I actually really agree with you. I think business forms part of just fundamental knowledge that anyone in absolutely any field needs to understand the key principles of. And within pharmacy, whether you work in a hospital or whether you work in community, there needs to be, I think, a baseline understanding of business principles because money makes the world go round, right?
Krysti-Lee Patterson (03:09.944)
Mm.
Exactly, it's one of those things, isn't it, that it's just a part of life. And yeah, you kind of have to embrace it.
Jala Moushi (03:21.883)
Yeah, absolutely. Whether it's, you know, your funding services or your, you know, budgeting for rosters, it all comes into play.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (03:32.78)
or even just budgeting for life, like life skills. So once you finish your degree and did your internship, what did your, the early days of your career look like?
Jala Moushi (03:34.941)
It's true! Yes!
Jala Moushi (03:49.533)
look, it was, I look at it, you know, I look at it so fondly, but it was really definitely unsettling at times, particularly when I definitely didn't know what I wanted to do next. I interned at a large hospital here in Melbourne. And at the end of that internship, you know, you're meant to definitely know where you want to be. for myself, I found myself back at Crossroads.
I didn't really want to continue on in the hospital part, but part of me didn't want to go back to community either. In the end, I landed myself back in community managing a community pharmacy and going from there. But all of that happened at the start of COVID. So my first year as a registered pharmacist,
Krysti-Lee Patterson (04:41.48)
my gosh, okay.
Jala Moushi (04:47.429)
was during COVID-19 and that was definitely interesting.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (04:52.456)
Yeah, wow. Like I remember that time, like as a pharmacist, I was working at a head office for a better group, but I did still work as a locum during that time as well. And I did that on purpose because I wanted to really experience what everyone was experiencing because like we were supporting the pharmacists on the ground. And when I could say to them, well actually on Sunday when I worked, they're like, you get it.
So yeah, was, I wouldn't even know what that would have felt like though as a first year registered pharmacist.
Jala Moushi (05:29.347)
Yeah, look, was, I would say it was invigorating at first. mean, everything was new, whether it was the new protocols that we had to adhere to every day or those evolving guidelines. So there was that constant sense of urgency and the pharmacy honestly felt dynamic and it was buzzing with energy all the time. I guess for me,
Krysti-Lee Patterson (05:35.075)
Good.
Jala Moushi (05:55.133)
it ended up being the place where I put everything I'd learned in my hospital internship into action. But this time it was in a fast paced setting of community pharmacy. And I've personally always worked well under pressure. I find that it sharpens me. So in many ways I thrive. But after a while that invigoration definitely started to shift. I remember taking my white coat off
Krysti-Lee Patterson (06:02.808)
Mm-hmm.
Jala Moushi (06:23.869)
at the end of a shift one day and my pharmacy assistant said to me, what is that red rash all over your chest? And it wasn't until I looked down that I didn't actually realise how much tension I'd been carrying inside of me. Because on the outside, I'll continue smiling, I'll continue managing everything in the midst of the busyness and that's how I work this. But the body definitely keeps the score.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (06:31.618)
Hmm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (06:38.658)
Hmm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (06:44.225)
Yep.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (06:50.878)
Yeah, wow. And so, like, what did you do at that point? Like, was that a bit of a, like a maybe, I don't want to say wake up call, but maybe a point of realisation?
Jala Moushi (07:02.171)
Yeah, look, look, that whole experience, tested me in every way. And don't forget, because I was still so early in my career, I was finding my feet as a pharmacist at the same time, building my confidence in the advice I was giving, managing the team, because I went straight into management and it was navigating that unknown. But it was everyone else was kind of in that same boat too, not to the same extent. And as a pharmacist,
Krysti-Lee Patterson (07:10.21)
Mm.
Jala Moushi (07:30.941)
there is that expectation to lead. You're the leader of the pharmacy. You need to have the answers. You need to stay calm. You need to keep things moving. yes, it was a lot for me to carry so early on in my career. And looking back now, you know, everything's great when you look back. It made me stronger and more resilient. It's taught me the importance of trusting myself. And for me, it's defined
Krysti-Lee Patterson (07:38.616)
Hmm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (07:50.465)
Yeah.
Jala Moushi (08:00.571)
what pillars I kind of fall on to help me back my decisions. And most importantly, it's taught me how to take care of my wellbeing, not just for my sake either, but for the people that rely on me at work. So whilst it was one of the most challenging times of my professional life, it was also one of the most defining moments. and
Krysti-Lee Patterson (08:03.31)
Mm-hmm. Yep.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (08:11.758)
Mm.
Jala Moushi (08:24.859)
you you pull through at the end. And I think the biggest part is that I've come out of that and I've learned the importance of that balance and that taking a step back to to check in with myself as well as checking with everyone else around me.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (08:33.432)
Hmm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (08:42.624)
Yeah, that's so important. And yeah, you're completely right. Well, the importance of your own well-being and not just so that you can perform at your best, but for those around you as well, especially in healthcare, like we want to be at our best so that we can give the best advice, the best recommendations, especially because the people coming into the pharmacy are not at their best.
Jala Moushi (09:09.201)
Yeah.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (09:09.87)
And so it's kind of like, yeah, you need to be able to like pick up the difference if they're not feeling well. And if you're not feeling 100%, that can be really difficult to do.
Jala Moushi (09:21.605)
Absolutely, no, you're so right. And I think that also comes with that emotional maturity that develops as you develop both in your age, but also with your clinical experience and with all of your professional experiences as well.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (09:31.758)
Mm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (09:40.414)
Yeah and so during, I don't know if it was during this time or just after, but I believe that around the COVID time you did something completely random with your sister. Could you tell us a little bit about what you did with your sister?
Jala Moushi (09:58.861)
Absolutely, absolutely. normally we would, I've got two sisters, we would all go to work, we were all frontline healthcare professionals. So we'd all go to work, we'd come home and we'd be sitting around the kitchen bench as we normally would having dinner. But now we've...
all had this ample extra time available to us and we were in the middle of really tough lockdown in Victoria. So we already worked through all the usual pandemic hobbies, right? Painting, baking banana bread, hiking, you know, the list goes on. So we actually started to get a little bit forward now and we wanted something more. So we tapped into that entrepreneurial side of us and chocolate it was. We started by playing to our strengths
weaknesses, we assigned each other roles, we got our cousin involved as well and all of a sudden we were assigning branding and production and finance and social media amongst ourselves and amazingly within three weeks that one conversation had actually turned into a real product and brand. We built everything ourselves from the brand
Krysti-Lee Patterson (11:15.713)
Wow.
Jala Moushi (11:20.401)
to barcodes, to marketing. I was involved with the brand design and packaging and through that I discovered I have a whole creative side of me that I'd never known about. And seeing that whole process unfold, you know, from that idea around the kitchen bench to the product sitting on the shelf at our local family grocer, that was honestly life changing.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (11:23.36)
Yeah.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (11:48.718)
Mm.
Jala Moushi (11:49.373)
completely shifted how I view business, branding, and even retail. And I don't think I can look at a product on a store shelf the same way since. But that experience really taught me that if you have an idea and the drive to see it through, you really can build anything from nothing.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (12:01.399)
Yep.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (12:11.886)
I love that. was just from sitting around at the kitchen table with your sisters thinking, what will we do? And yeah, you found something that was a passion. I'm assuming eating chocolate is maybe your passion.
Jala Moushi (12:25.701)
That's exactly how it started. We eating chocolate.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (12:30.062)
I love it, I love it. And you mentioned that like it made you realize that there was this creative side in you. Is that something that those experiences from, I guess, doing the chocolate project or business, I should say, has those skills translated into pharmacy?
Jala Moushi (12:53.841)
Yeah, well absolutely. I always describe it as a side thing but I don't think it's a side thing because I love doing this so much but I am also a pharmacist writer. I write for a few pharmacy journals and publications.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (13:09.186)
Mm-hmm.
Jala Moushi (13:16.593)
particularly have my own column in the House of Wellness magazine. So I started writing for the House of Wellness long before I moved into the education space. And funnily enough, I think once you tap into that creative side that exists within all of us, you start to realize that boundaries don't exist so much and you really can move something as traditional as pharmacy. And in my mind, I'd always confined pharmacy to
a hospital or a community setting, you really can start to see it filter through in so many other areas. And for me, that came when I was reading a beauty magazine and I saw an article written by a pharmacist in there. And beauty, wellness and health, they're all areas I've always been drawn to. And from that, I went up to one of my senior managers at work and I asked, could this be a thing? Could I?
become a pharmacist writer, you know, I did a couple of courses to help refine my skills, but a column was established for a pharmacist writer and that was for myself. So I guess that was where I got to merge my enjoyment for writing and that for me, that creative expression, okay, with my passion for health communication and that translation of
Krysti-Lee Patterson (14:20.792)
Mm-hmm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (14:36.75)
Mm.
Jala Moushi (14:42.993)
really complex ideas into digestible information. And even though with my writing, I write to two separate audiences, I write to the pharmacy community, so pharmacists, students, interns, and then on the other side, I write to the general public. But I think the bottom line of it is that it reflects the same passion that I have for teaching and it's empowering people through knowledge. It's empowering people through speaking in a language that resonates with them.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (14:54.413)
Mm-hmm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (15:04.109)
Mm-hmm.
Jala Moushi (15:12.567)
and for me that's a form of my creativity.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (15:17.282)
I love the fact that you just asked a question. So you had this idea and thought, how can I contribute this? How can I have a go? And yeah, was brave enough to reach out to someone in your team and say, hey. And the fact that they believed in you and gave you that opportunity as well, that's really amazing. That's really, really good.
Jala Moushi (15:44.871)
There's a beautiful quote that I live life by. The worst answer you're ever going to get if you ask is no.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (15:54.542)
Yes, it's so obvious, isn't it? But it's hard to remember.
Jala Moushi (15:56.093)
If you don't ask, it's a guaranteed no. So I guess this is where I am creating my own path in pharmacy and finding what resonates with me between all of my interests and my passions within the field.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (16:00.526)
Mm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (16:14.254)
That's so exciting. And you mentioned like part of the role you have at like writing and translating complex information to more digestible chunks in your column and the writing that you do. I guess that is also a big part of the role that you have at Chemisway House leading the intern program, because essentially you're having to mentor a lot of interns and
There's a lot of information that you have to learn in your internship. I always say to people if I had to do my internship again, like I don't think I could get through it. Like, my gosh, no, thank you. I do not ever want to have to my written oral exam ever again.
Jala Moushi (16:59.035)
Yes, those fans were brutal, definitely.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (17:03.63)
So how did this role come about for you being able to actually lead the intern program? That's a really, really great opportunity.
Jala Moushi (17:10.941)
Yeah.
Jala Moushi (17:15.773)
Thanks so much. And look, funnily enough, I hadn't actually seen the job ad for the education pharmacist role myself. It was my mentor who flagged it to me. They said to me, this sounds like you. And they encouraged me to apply for it. So I actually didn't even know that such a role existed. And I vividly remember.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (17:30.434)
I love it.
Jala Moushi (17:41.373)
looking into my interview and at the end, you know, you get asked, do you have any other questions? And my only question was, so how will I keep up my registration as a pharmacist if all I do is education? I really truly had naively thought that you had to dispense medicines to maintain your registration as a pharmacist. So I guess this for me was also that turning point of realizing that
Krysti-Lee Patterson (17:52.94)
Mmm.
Jala Moushi (18:08.029)
pharmacy is not just confined to the boundary of community pharmacy in the sense that we know it or in hospital pharmacy in the sense that we know it here in Australia. But yes, no, once I started in the role, I got to intimately know the many education programs across Chemist's warehouse. But it was the intern training program that I had the greatest affinity for, which I think was because, is really until now because
I am still in that early career pharmacist phase of my life. And so I resonate with the internship experience significantly. I've been through it in the last seven, six years now, and I know what the intern struggles are. And I think that that is where I have the greatest value in contributing back to the future generation of pharmacy.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (18:42.626)
Mm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (19:02.19)
Hmm.
Jala Moushi (19:06.685)
But look, coordinating a program that's been developed and refined for over 45 years definitely carries significant responsibility. In addition to that, we've got a really strong national presence where we support over 700 interns nationwide every single year. And I think for me, the part of the program which resonates with me and I find truly
Krysti-Lee Patterson (19:15.694)
Mmm.
Jala Moushi (19:36.463)
incredible is how we continue to evolve alongside the pharmacy profession, ensuring that it remains current, it maintains that responsiveness to industry needs at the same time. And I think that is how we deliver that consistently high quality training and education year on year.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (19:43.022)
Hmm.
Jala Moushi (20:03.293)
It's not the same program that's plugged and repeated every year. We go through such extensive evaluation and measurement across what's actually happening in the pharmacy industry. Where do we see it going in the next five years? How do we prepare our interns of today to be pharmacists of tomorrow? And I think that for me makes me feel like it's the biggest privilege to
Krysti-Lee Patterson (20:14.99)
Mm.
Jala Moushi (20:33.084)
to have this role but also, you know, support so many pharmacists during that.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (20:38.862)
Yeah, absolutely. think the fact that there's 700 interns, like that is massive to be leading a program with that many interns. And like you said, the program has been around for what, like 40, 45 years. Like it's been established for such a long time. And I know I've had
friends that have gone through the program and they always speak very highly of it and I think that's a testament to it's not just repeating the same thing each year.
Jala Moushi (21:17.777)
think that those are the sort of values that every single pharmacist should be embodying for themselves professionally and personally. It's not the same skills and knowledge that we want to plug year on year in everything that we do. It's that constant...
evolution and refining what we know and how we do it, especially in light of all of these expanded scope of practice protocols that are coming out nationwide. think it's a very exciting time and it's a testing time for our industry.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (21:56.448)
it absolutely is a very testing time, but it's very exciting time. think like I know when I first was a registered pharmacist. So in 2014, that year when I graduated was the year that pharmacists were first allowed to give the flu vaccine. So that was like such a big shift and change. And now
I hate to say that it's like 10 years later, because I don't feel like it was that long. But now vaccinations is just commonplace. And so I feel like we're almost at that same place with the stuff will go and the services and not even just the full scope, but there's so many services that so many different pharmacies are doing now within their pharmacies that, yeah, they're just kind of finding a niche in the market or
Jala Moushi (22:27.142)
Yeah.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (22:53.218)
finding something that is going to impact their customers, all their patients that they're coming in. So I really think it's a very exciting time for young pharmacists and what they're going to see in the change they're going to see in the next 10 years.
Jala Moushi (22:58.481)
Yeah. Yeah.
Jala Moushi (23:10.435)
Absolutely, absolutely.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (23:14.072)
So with your role as a education pharmacist, you mentioned that one of the first questions you asked was like, how do I maintain my registration? And that's funny because like when I've been in similar roles and that's first thing a lot of people say, so do you still work in pharmacy so you can maintain your registration? So I think there's still a lot of, guess maybe this belief that people have that you've got to be physically
Jala Moushi (23:24.811)
No.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (23:44.11)
yet behind the dispensary desk to be a pharmacist or for it to be valid, whether that's in a community pharmacy or a hospital pharmacy. But I think, yeah, the knowledge that we have can be used in so many different ways. And yeah, the fact that what you are doing is, in fact, the role of a pharmacist.
Jala Moushi (24:04.909)
Absolutely, absolutely. And look, I still keep up my community pharmacy role one or two days a week. And we I do that as part of my role, because for us to provide education on such a large scale, I need to still have my finger on the pulse.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (24:24.607)
Mm-hmm.
Jala Moushi (24:25.533)
still need to understand those common grievances that community pharmacists, particularly within our network of pharmacies, still experience. Because what I might have experienced five years ago working full-time in the pharmacy may be quite different to what are the grievances now or what the practice is like now. And I'll be honest, it absolutely has changed. I find it harder to actually work in the pharmacy
Krysti-Lee Patterson (24:51.662)
Mm.
Jala Moushi (24:56.219)
those one or two days a week. And I guess that's, you the change in my skill set happening. But at the same time, our practice as pharmacists is evolving significantly. Once upon a time, we didn't have a consult room. We had our dentistry and we had our scripts out counter where we'd have our conversations.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (25:06.328)
Mm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (25:11.939)
Yeah.
Jala Moushi (25:17.649)
It wasn't until I took my, maybe it was my third or fourth patient for, you know, travel health consultants, I took them into the room, that I realized what I learned in a guideline and to then implement it and to keep a conversation flowing, like doctors do, who do it so well because that's the bread and butter of how they practice. But even something as simple as that, that's where, you you see your skill set changing. So I think it's...
For me, I find it very useful and vital for my role to still practice as a traditional pharmacist, in addition to my non-traditional pharmacist role.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (25:53.623)
Yes.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (25:58.442)
Yeah, absolutely. But I think that makes a lot of sense, especially for your role as well to, as you say, keep your finger on the pulse to understand what's happening. And the exact same reason why I still occasionally work in community pharmacy as well, because it is changing so quickly. And yeah, even just working FUDs here and there, like so much changes in such a short period of time.
Jala Moushi (26:23.287)
absolutely.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (26:25.15)
Yeah, even if it's like a new product or something like that or a customer seeing something on TV and like, saw this on TV and do you have this product and I've never heard of this.
So yeah, it's quite fun, but I still enjoy it, which is really good. So Jala, throughout your career so far, like you've still got so much of your career to go, and it sounds like you've always had some really great experiences and positive experiences, but has there been any times so far that's kind of been maybe a struggle for you, like you mentioned, like in your, when you first year registered?
But has there been any other times where you've thought, is this actually something that I should keep doing? maybe is there something maybe after doing the chocolate business, it's like, do I do this full time? Has there been anything like that happen to you?
Jala Moushi (27:26.449)
Yeah, absolutely. And look, I always describe that as being the part where I haven't known the right next step in my early career. And it's definitely, it's been unsettling at times and not knowing what's next can make you question everything, whether it's your direction, your decisions, even your choice of profession. And I think that it's okay to explore your options.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (27:35.884)
Hmm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (27:50.412)
Yes.
Jala Moushi (27:55.087)
Or else you might look back and kick yourself one day. Cause you might, you know, you might find that dipping your toe into that pool that's always seemed very intriguing might actually be really cold and icy and completely not for you. But if you didn't do that, then you wouldn't have known. And that pool would continue to look intriguing from a different, from a distance, right? But I guess through that uncertainty, one thing I have been
Krysti-Lee Patterson (28:18.018)
Mm.
Jala Moushi (28:24.419)
always very clear on is knowing when to say no. If an opportunity that has come my way hasn't aligned with my values or what I envision for my future path, saying no has actually been one of my easiest decisions. And I guess I may not have always known what I exactly wanted, but I've been pretty clear on what I haven't wanted.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (28:28.813)
Mm-hmm.
Jala Moushi (28:53.469)
And that's how it will guide me even when the bigger picture has felt unclear for me. And I guess over time, all of these small decisions have helped me carve out a path that feels right for me. But I think that, you know, going through that uncertainty about my own pharmacy path has allowed me to actually create the path that I'm on right now.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (28:53.549)
Mm.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (29:20.91)
Hmm.
Jala Moushi (29:22.269)
And I guess it's that mindset that I had to change where it's a clear cut path and you graduate uni, you become an intern and then you're meant to do X, Y, Z because I've watched other people do X, Y, Z. But then you wake up one day and you realize actually I get to carve out my own path on this journey. And I think that's my biggest advice to...
Krysti-Lee Patterson (29:45.441)
Hmm.
Jala Moushi (29:49.245)
interns and early career pharmacists that at the end of the day it's your journey. So you take on the opportunities that align with you and you get to carve out your own path. It's not the same for everybody.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (30:05.386)
I think that is such good advice and especially when you're early in your career because you can feel a lot of pressure from other people and even people that actually don't really matter to you, to be honest. And you can feel that pressure and think, am I going down the right path or what I...
you know, what should I do? But I think you're right and sometimes saying no to things like there's a lot of advice out there about like you should always say yes to opportunities, which I do agree with. But at the same time, you don't have to say yes to everything just because something presents itself and trusting, I guess, that gut feeling like as I move through my career, I guess that that little feeling in your gut, do you listen to it if something doesn't feel right?
And I think if you trust that, that's really important. and then, yeah, when you look back, you're like, oh, okay, this all makes sense. And there was actually maybe a higher purpose or plan. Maybe you didn't realize it at the time. Um, cause I've certainly felt that. And sometimes I've thought, oh, maybe I should have done this or maybe I should have done that. And, oh, or maybe I shouldn't do this because people were saying that I shouldn't. Um, but yeah, at the end of the day, it's, it's your.
It's your life, really.
Jala Moushi (31:29.085)
Yep.
I totally agree with that. And I think one trap that is so easy to fall into, particularly when you're so early in your career, it's a trap, but it's also, I think, a blessing because we're so lucky to have incredible pharmacists mentors around us who have achieved so much success over the years. sometimes it might be either speaking to them about their path or hearing about their successes and I guess measuring yourself as to
where they are compared to where you are and where they might have been at your age. And I think sometimes it's just taking a step back and recognising that they would have probably definitely gone through uncertainty exactly the same way, you know, I might be right now. it's everything's beautiful in hindsight, right? Everything can be a really lovely story to share in hindsight. But once you're going through the motion,
Krysti-Lee Patterson (32:22.722)
Mmm.
Jala Moushi (32:29.375)
of working hard and finding your path in your career, it can be unsettling. You might lose direction. But I think that working alongside your core values and what you envision as successful for you, I think that will determine where you go.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (32:51.63)
I think that is great advice and a great way to wrap up this conversation, think. I know, I know could as well. I hope you don't mind me sharing this, but just kind of what you were saying about comparing yourself to other people is before we started recording the podcast, you mentioned that you didn't feel that
Jala Moushi (32:58.909)
Ow is Christie Lee.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (33:21.17)
I guess you were worthy of being on a podcast and your career so far, but I think you definitely are very worthy. Your story has been, yeah, a delight to listen to and to hear, yeah, what you've gone through and understand, yeah, how you've forged your own path. And I think as I've listened to you chat today, that's definitely something that's shone through is
yeah, that you've stuck true to what your values are and just kind of led with that. So I think that, yeah, is how I want to end on that note. And yeah, thank you again for saying yes.
Jala Moushi (34:05.757)
Thank you for that, Kristy Lee. Now, I really appreciate it. And I think where my surprise came from when I was invited to this podcast was that...
I guess my head is so down in nutting out, you know, um, what I'm doing, where I'm going and how I'm refining my skills and my knowledge within, within the field. And I guess I'm just so focused that sometimes you don't actually take a moment to look up and smell the flowers and look around and see where you're at. And I, guess the moment that I was invited for the podcast, that was that moment for me, where I actually took a step, looked up.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (34:38.702)
Mm.
Jala Moushi (34:46.691)
looked around and now I realize that you know I'm in a very privileged position to be able to influence such a large number of pharmacists across their careers and to contribute to that development as well and to be joined with you on this podcast today so thank you so much.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (35:08.546)
Thank you. Well, on that note, thank you so much for joining us today on your Pharmacy Career Podcast. Do you have any final words or anything else you'd like to share before we wrap up?
Jala Moushi (35:21.563)
I think the biggest thing I just want to say would be to any student or intern or early career pharmacist who's listening who might feel completely lost is put your head down, keep nutting it out, say yes to opportunities that come your way, especially when you don't know where you're going, but know when to say no to the opportunities that don't align.
with you and just keep going. One day you'll stop, you'll look up and you'll look around you and you'll see how far you've come. But just keep nutting it out.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (35:56.45)
Yeah.
Krysti-Lee Patterson (36:02.772)
Amazing. Well, thank you so much, Jala, for joining us and I hope to speak to you soon.
Jala Moushi (36:07.355)
amazing. Thanks so much, Krysti Lee.
Thanks for tuning in to Your Pharmacy Career Podcast, proudly sponsored by the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia. The PSA is committed to empowering pharmacists through advocacy, innovation and industry-leading professional development. To become a member or learn more about how the PSA can support your career, visit www.psa.org.au. Don't forget to subscribe, share this podcast with your colleagues and join us next time as we continue to explore your pharmacy career journey.
Final Thoughts
Jala Moushi’s story speaks directly to the heart of the modern Australian community pharmacist: caught between growing clinical expectations, evolving roles, and the unspoken pressure to always “know the next step.” Her advice?You don’t need to have it all figured out. Stay curious, get creative, say yes to aligned opportunities — and say no without guilt when they’re not.
AtRaven’s Recruitment, we hear these stories every day. That feeling of being at a crossroads, especially early in your career, is more common than you think. That’s why we’re here — to help you find a pharmacy job you love, whether you’re fresh out of uni, stepping into leadership, or pivoting into something uniquely yours.
As Jala reminds us —“Just keep nutting it out.” And who knows what path you’ll carve when you give yourself the space to explore?
So, what creative spark is waiting for you to notice it?
