Eden Holdaway-Young
Technical Services Officer, Douglas Pharmaceuticals
Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Science and Chemistry
The variety of her work is what she loves most about working at Douglas Pharmaceuticals, says Eden Holdaway-Young who completed a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Science and Chemistry.
“I work in the Technical Services department at Douglas Pharmaceuticals, where we have five streams; four validation streams and one process engineering stream. As a technical services officer, I get the opportunity to move around the streams each financial year to gain more exposure to the intricacies of each stream. I’ve spent time in technical process engineering, process validation and am now in the Cleaning Process Development team.
“Currently, my main role is around cross-contamination monitoring and prevention. This role exists to ensure no traces of active pharmaceutical ingredients can contaminate another product, which is obviously vital for patient safety. My team does this by taking samples, assessing the results and making recommendations to ensure absolute quality of product. Some of my work is computer based, but I also spend a lot of time physically sampling in different areas of our production facilities. I love seeing the manufacturing plant running; watching raw materials become medications that are going to help people all over the world is a real highlight.”
Eden initially joined Douglas Pharmaceuticals for a 12-week internship, which has since turned into a permanent role, and says she loves the many opportunities to get involved at Douglas.
“I’ve organised a number of fun things for events like Māori Language Week, Diwali, Lunar New Year and Mental Health Awareness Week. I love being so involved in these events and bringing something extra to the workplace.”
Finding her path
For Eden, the first step towards the career she has today was enrolling in AUT’s Bachelor of Science; a qualification she completed in 2022.
“I chose to study at AUT because it felt like a more practical degree, offered at a more innovative and future-focused university. I liked the campus, the labs and the community feel. Unfortunately, I ended up studying through COVID-19 and missed a lot of on-campus studies. I loved how adaptable and supportive the teaching staff were through this. I really appreciated the time I did get on campus – it was a great place to study and the social aspect was great too.”
There was one particular course that inspired her passion for pharmacology.
“I took the course Pharmacology for Professional Practice in my second year. I absolutely loved this course and all of the teaching staff were truly inspirational. This course felt like a real pivotal point. I was fascinated by the content because to me pharmacology feels like theoretical chemistry coming to life in a very real way. Understanding how medicines work from a biochemistry point of view sparked my passion to move into pharmaceuticals. I took a part-time job at a community pharmacy in my third year at AUT, and then applied at Douglas.”
Advice for other students
Eden has some great advice for other students who are only at the start of their university journey.
“Don’t try to have it all figured out. If you don’t go in with an open mind, you might be closing doors. Try things out; the worst that will happen is that you learn something.”
Don’t forget to make connections, she adds.
“Chat to people, make use of your teaching staff, ask questions and be kind to yourself.”
