New pharmacist registrations have been rising by around 2 per cent year on year since 19911 and there were 46,987 pharmacists on the RPSGB’s register on 1 August 20062. Over recent years, this figure has been boosted by an increased number of pharmacy schools in the UK resulting in more preregistration students coming through, not to mention the influx of pharmacists from overseas, particularly since the labour market has opened up to Central Europeans. However, recruiting pharmacists into the community setting and, once there, retaining them is an ongoing challenge as the demand for pharmacists is greater than the actual number available.

The latest census figures, profiled at the recent British Pharmaceutical Conference, suggest that while community pharmacy still commands the majority share of pharmacists (70.1 per cent), the proportion choosing to work in this sector is falling. An increased number are being lured into other roles within the industry. With more than 1,500 pharmacies, Lloydspharmacy is keenly aware that this is an employees’ market.

Ailsa Emerson, HR Director, comments: “For anyone who wants to make a real difference to the health and wellbeing of society, community pharmacy is a natural choice. The introduction of the new patient services such as medicines use reviews (MURs) and minor ailment schemes are bringing pharmacists closer to people. “The changing public health agenda means the need to attract and retain the very best people is an ongoing challenge. As such we make a conscious decision to try to secure them from the very start: offering summer vacation training and then an increasing number of prereg places each year. But we know it’s also vital to sustain the training and support to generate loyalty in the longer-run.”

Sheila White from Warrington had no pharmacy experience when she joined Lloydspharmacy as a counter assistant on a part-time basis after her children started secondary school. But she quickly found she loved the combination of working in a healthcare environment and dealing with the public. Keen to capture her enthusiasm, the company encouraged and trained her to become a dispenser when an opportunity came up three years later. From there she has been promoted to pharmacy supervisor and is now pharmacy manager of a busy pharmacy.

Ailsa Emerson’s hints for retaining the best staff include:

• Job satisfaction is vital. With the introduction of the new pharmacy contract, pharmacists are spending more time than ever on patient services, which naturally results in some of their other responsibilities being spread out across the rest of the pharmacy team. Support your staff in taking on these additional responsibilities.
• By investing time and energy into training, you can find that not only do you retain your best staff but they can also start to play more pivotal roles within the business. While conventional training, such as structured courses, clearly has its place, there are other ways to aid staff improvement. For example, one of the company’s regions has recently been piloting a ‘buddy system’ whereby trained technicians mentor those studying for their NVQs. The feedback from those taking part has been positive, while the figures speak for themselves. In the first area to trial this approach, the pass rate has hit 100 per cent while the number of people applying for NVQ courses has gone up 65 per cent this year.
• Try to be as flexible as possible with pharmacists and tailor employment according to their individual needs. One-fifth of Lloydspharmacy’s pharmacists work part-time (i.e. fewer than 30 hours a week) and many have flexible working arrangements such as term time only or finishing in time for the school run.
• Allow employees to buy and sell holiday days or take advantage of car lease schemes.
• Move away from the traditional business model, seeking to meet both the commercial needs of the company and the personal preferences of your employees. This builds loyalty while making good business sense.

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