Andrea Martins
Portugal
Andrea Martins was born in the US but moved to Portugal when she was four-years-old. She studied pharmacy in college. “I had no idea what pharmacy was,” laughed Martins. “In Portugal, we have a different system of schoolings and I had good grades so my father told me to go to pharmacy school. Once I was there, I realized that I liked it. I loved the rotations and I loved being able to talk with patients.”
When she moved back to the United States, Martins looked into becoming a pharmacist in the United States and found TCOP. “My main reason for choosing TCOP was that the school offers more than one year in rotation,” said Martins. “I’m already familiar with the material and the foundations of pharmacy, but I’m not as familiar as to how pharmacy is practiced in the United States. TCOP offers us great rotations.”
Martins also says she’s happy with the role pharmacists have in the United States. “In Portugal, the doctor is in the highest position and pharmacists aren’t given a chance to speak. In the US, pharmacists have a greater role in medical teams.”
Heavy Metal Fanatic: Martins loves Heavy Metal and for a while she wanted to be a singer, but she realized that she didn’t have the voice for it.
