Pharmacists in Focus

HealthWorkforce Australia (HWA) has released a report which examines pharmacist training, their various roles, issues,  projects and workforce viability in Australia and New Zealand.  The report, titled ‘Pharmacists in Focus’, compares the  pharmacist role to that of other registered health care professionals.

In 2012, there were 27,025 pharmacy registrations, 22,676 (83.9%) of whom were in the workforce and 21,331 (94.1%) of whom were employed. There were 2.3% more males in pharmacy roles in 2012 than in 2011, and 4.6% more females who comprised 58% of the total work force. Average age was approximately 40 years with females having a much younger  profile, implying their future dominance of the pharmacy role.

Average working hours were similar for 2012 and 2011 at 38.8 hours for males and 33.7 hours for females, the majority  working 35-39 hours per week.

Issues raised by the various peak bodies representing pharmacies and pharmacists highlighted government funding policies around medication reviews and hospitals supplying PBS drugs.  They also emphasised the changing role of the hospital pharmacists from mainly a ‘supply service’ to a consultative member of a healthcare team, as well as the increasing  numbers of non-community pharmacists into specialised roles with specific subgroups in society.  In addition, a future supply issue cited was the potential for expanded scopes of practice, such as those raised in the recent Grattan Institute report, including pharmacists as immunisers and pharmacist repeat prescribing.

Click here to access the full Health Workforce report.

Source:pharmacydaily.com.au, Tuesday 22 April 2014