Syafiq Kay MPharm GDL MRCPharm

I solve problems using analytical thinking and drawing insights from various perspectives.

Pharmacist working in London with over 8 years of experience across community, hospital, and mental health settings. I am currently conducting working identity tests — structured experiments with defined aims, hypotheses, and methods — across pharmacy, actuarial science, cybersecurity, and law.

I write about past experiences — reflecting and learning from them. I also write essays on topics I am currently exploring: healthcare, ethics, law, and technology. I am positive that I can develop a career that builds upon my multiple interests and solves complex problems.

Credentials

  1. IFoA CS1 — Actuarial Statistics
    Institute and Faculty of Actuaries · Sat April 2026, results pending; CM1 next
    ongoing
  2. AZ-900: Microsoft Azure Fundamentals
    Microsoft
    2025
  3. SC-900: Microsoft Security, Compliance and Identity Fundamentals
    Microsoft
    2025
  4. Financial Modeling & Valuation Analyst (FMVA)
    Corporate Finance Institute
    2020
  5. Member of the Royal College of Pharmacy (MRCPharm)
    Royal College of Pharmacy
    2019
  6. GPhC Registered Pharmacist
    General Pharmaceutical Council · Registration no. 2223051
    2019

Experience

  1. Pharmacist — Hospital Outpatient
    Boots UK
    • Delivering hospital outpatient pharmacy services.
    2026–
  2. Pharmacist — Community
    Boots UK
    • Led full pharmacy operations at Boots Piccadilly Circus: vaccinations (flu, shingles, chickenpox, travel, pneumonia), NHS Pharmacy First clinical pathway, minor illness, urgent supply, contraception service and One You Stop Smoking services.
    • Managed and trained dispensers and pharmacy technicians; handled complex clinical queries escalated from the team.
    • Administered adrenaline to a member of the public experiencing anaphylaxis outside the pharmacy; monitored until handover to paramedics.
    • Built working relationships with local GP surgeries, private clinics, and substance dependency treatment clinics.
    2019–2026
  3. Locum Pharmacist
    Self-employed
    • Providing locum cover across community and other pharmacy settings across England.
    • Adapted rapidly to different dispensing systems, team structures, and SOPs across multiple employers.
    • Maintained full clinical and legal responsibility as the responsible pharmacist at each site.
    2021–2025
  4. Pharmacist — Clinical, Mental Health
    South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
    • Delivered clinical pharmacy services to a psychiatric intensive care unit and forensic rehabilitation units, optimising treatment plans for patients with complex mental health conditions including psychosis, depression, and comorbid ADHD.
    • Conducted in-depth medication history reviews through case notes review, patient interview, collateral history taking, and interviewing other related professionals.
    2023–2024
  5. Multidisciplinary Advocate
    Rethink Mental Illness
    • Acted as Relevant Person's Representative (RPR), Care Act Advocate, and Independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA).
    • Supported individuals subject to Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS); represented clients at Court of Protection proceedings.
    • Provided non-instructed advocacy using rights-based and watching brief models for clients who lacked capacity.
    2022–2023
  6. Scientist
    Femtogenix
    • Developed methods to evaluate the efficacy of Femtogenix patent estates, in collaboration with Prof. David Thurston (Chief Scientific Officer), King's College London.
    • Enrolled as a part-time pharmaceutical research student at King's College London as part of the role.
    • Contributed to published research on ADC payloads, including pyrrolobenzodiazepine-based and tubulin-targeting compounds.
    2018–2019
  7. Operations Administrator
    Femtogenix
    • Managed all company administration: accounts, board meetings, supplier relationships, invoice reconciliation.
    • Maintained the chemical database and compiled clinical trials intelligence across the antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) market.
    • Supported IP and regulatory documentation; liaised with external legal and scientific advisors on behalf of the company.
    2017–2020
  8. Pre-registration Pharmacist
    Crystal Pharmacy
    • Completed GPhC pre-registration training; dispensing, OTC advice, patient referrals, and methadone dispensing.
    • Appointed Privacy Officer for NHS Summary Care Record compliance during the same period.
    • Developed clinical knowledge and patient counselling skills across a high-volume community pharmacy setting.
    2016–2017
  9. Student Researcher
    King's College London
    • With Dr David Barlow: developed a computational method for predicting amino acid sequences forming protein hydrophobic cores; taught myself programming to accelerate data collection. Work self-published on ResearchGate.
    • With Dr Paul Jackson: modelled binding of anti-cancer ADC payloads to DNA. This work led to a job offer at Femtogenix post-qualification.
    • Gained early experience in independent scientific research, literature review, and presenting findings to academic supervisors.
    2014–2015

Education

  1. PgCert, Pharmacist Independent Prescribing
    King's College London
    2025–2027
  2. MSc, Mental Health Ethics and Law
    King's College London
    2023–2027
  3. Graduate Diploma in Law
    The University of Law
    2020–2023
  4. MPharm (Master of Pharmacy)
    King's College London
    2012–2016

Publications

  1. Colchicine-, Vinblastine-, Taxol- and Eribulin-based Payloads for Antibody–Drug Conjugates (ADCs)
    Velani A, Kay S, Albone EF, Thurston DE · Book chapter in RSC Drug Discovery · DOI: 10.1039/9781788012898-00117
    2019
  2. Use of pyrrolobenzodiazepines and related covalent-binding DNA-interactive molecules as ADC payloads: Is mechanism related to systemic toxicity?
    Jackson PJM, Kay S, Pysz I, Thurston DE · Drug Discovery Today: Technologies · DOI: 10.1016/j.ddtec.2018.10.004
    2018
  3. Development of the Method for Amino Acid Sequence Based Predictions of Residues Comprising Protein's Hydrophobic Core
    Kay S, Barlow DJ · DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.21010.45760
    2016

Recognition

  1. Quarterfinalist & semi-finalist — Commercial Awareness Competition
    Aspiring Solicitors
    2017–2018
  2. Ones to Watch List
    Aspiring Solicitors
    2017
  3. National Scholarships
    2010

Languages

  1. Malay
    Native
  2. English
    Fluent
  3. Arabic
    Basic · actively learning
  4. Mandarin Chinese
    Basic · actively learning
  5. Japanese
    Basic · actively learning

Active experiments

Structured career exploration. Each experiment has a defined aim, hypothesis, and method — run in parallel with clinical practice.

  1. Actuarial science
    Testing whether my quantitative background and clinical data experience translate to actuarial work. IFoA CS1 sat April 2026, results pending. Exploring actuarial trainee route.
    2025–
  2. Cybersecurity
    Testing fit via hands-on SOC lab work (ELK stack, Cowrie honeypot) and Network+ certification track. Focus on healthcare security contexts.
    2025–
  3. Clinical pharmacy specialising in mental health
    Building deeper expertise in psychopharmacology, mental health law, and medicines optimisation within psychiatric settings — drawing on experience at SLaM and ongoing MSc study in Mental Health Ethics and Law.
    2023–
  4. Law
    Completed GDL. Currently weighing the bar route against the utility of legal knowledge already gained through advocacy and clinical pharmacy practice.
    2020–