Workplace pressure

In January 2009 the Society launched a campaign aimed at helping pharmacists cope with pressures at work. Members were involved in the campaign - giving their views on the factors that contributed to stress levels.

In April a joint symposium on workplace pressure and the pharmacy workforce was held with the Pharmacy Practice Research Trust. Employers, policy makers, pharmacy academics and leaders of the profession attended the meeting, which included presentations from leading academics and pharmacy organisations reporting on research and evidence which illustrated the many factors contributing to workload pressure and its effects on pharmacists. At the two-day event delegates started to think about the findings from research and began to plan a programme of joint work to address the growing problem.

Feedback from members highlighted rest breaks as one of the key issues which affected workplace pressure, with many unable to take a break during the day. Following this in August the Council released a statement calling for adequate rest breaks for all pharmacists.

In September the Society produced two reports which focused on workplace pressures.

Running parallel and related to the workplace pressures was our campaign to stop the criminalisation of single dispensing errors.