Pharmacists are experiencing 'moral injury' with more than half of pharmacy professionals reporting that medicines shortages have impacted their mental health and wellbeing, according to the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS).

Its most recent workforce wellbeing survey also found that inadequate staffing was affecting wellbeing for 70% of pharmacy professionals, with just 35% of pharmacists able to take their breaks.

And just 34% of pharmacists reported enjoying their work - down from 52% last year.

The most recent survey, conducted in October and November 2024 and completed by more than 6,000 professionals, included both pharmacists and pharmacy technicians for the first time.

And it was distributed by the RPS, the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and wellbeing charity Pharmacist Support, reaching the largest and broadest sample of the RPS wellbeing surveys to date.

But the RPS noted that this most recent survey is 'likely to be more representative of the GB pharmacy workforce' than previous years, but was still 'not likely to represent all pharmacy professionals'.

RPS wellbeing survey highlights impact of medicines shortages for first time

For the first year, the RPS workforce wellbeing survey asked respondents about the impact of medicine shortages.

Some 56% of respondents across all pharmacy settings said that their mental health and wellbeing has been impacted by medication shortages within the past 12 months.

And around half (52% and 47% respectively) of those working in community pharmacy and general practice said their patients had been put at risk as a result of medication shortages, compared to 34% of those working in hospitals.

Some 42% said they had experienced verbal abuse within the workplace within the last six months, with 49% citing medicine shortages as a reason.

And 11% of those who had experienced verbal abuse said this had come from a colleague and/or manager.

RPS president professor Claire Anderson commented: 'Pharmacy teams want to do everything possible to provide the medicines their patients need, and it’s deeply distressing when they can’t. This sense of "moral injury" – of knowing what patients need but being unable to deliver it due to circumstances beyond their control – is taking a heavy toll on their wellbeing.

'Medicine shortages are not just a supply chain issue; they are a human issue, with real impacts on pharmacy teams working tirelessly to support the patients who rely on them. Finding solutions are essential not only for the wellbeing of the workforce but for ensuring safe and effective patient care.'

And she said the survey results 'demonstrate the human cost of coping with the relentless workplace pressures'.

'We need collaborative efforts from governments, employers and the NHS to tackle the pressures on frontline pharmacy teams and create more supportive work environments,' she added.

The Company Chemists' Association (CCA) also responded to the 'concerning' survey findings which a spokesperson said 'demonstrate the continued detrimental impact of an underfunded sector'.

'Community pharmacy urgently needs a funding uplift so pharmacy businesses can invest further in their staff and premises.

'As part of this, "retained margin", which has remained flat since 2014 despite increases in the volume and cost of medicines, must be reviewed. Medicine shortages, unfortunately, are becoming more and more common, and pharmacy teams are bearing the brunt.

'Workload is increasing, yet funding is not. The community pharmacy sector cannot be left to deteriorate further. We need action now to protect the network,' they said.

And the Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) said it was 'not surprised by the results shared by the RPS around medicines shortages'.

'We hear this from listening to our members, for example a survey of PDA members around medicines shortages found that 83% were worried about the impact on their patients and their health, over 75% were worried about the impact on the pharmacy team, and over 72% find the pressure of trying to source medicines stressful and impacts on their mental health and well-being. 81% of pharmacists completing the survey had also experienced patients taking their frustration about medicines availability out on them,' a spokesperson said.

Inadequate staffing top reason for poor mental health and wellbeing

A higher proportion of pharmacists as compared to pharmacy technicians were unable to take their rest breaks - at 47% of pharmacists compared to 35% of pharmacy technicians.

And just 35% of respondents working in community pharmacy said they were offered sufficient protected learning time, compared to 68% in general practice and 44% in hospital pharmacy.

The most common reasons given for negative impacts on mental health and wellbeing were:

  • inadequate staffing, (70%),
  • lack of work-life balance (49%),
  • increased financial pressures (47%),
  • lack of protected learning time (47%),
  • lack of colleague or senior support (47%),
  • long working hours (34%).

The RPS, Pharmacist Support and the Association of Pharmacy Technicians UK (APTUK) said they would convene a roundtable in mid-March to review these findings with the NHS, professional bodies, employers, trade unions, and regulators.

The PDA said its own recent Pharmacy First survey had also highlighted concerns from pharmacists relating to a lack of protected learning time for training, inadequate staffing levels, and being required to meet targets.

How representative was the 2024 RPS wellbeing survey?

Two-thirds of, or 4,342 respondents were pharmacists, while 30%, or 1,962 were pharmacy technicians. The remainder were foundation or trainee pharmacists, MPharm students, or others.

The majority (82%) of respondents were based in England, with 11% in Scotland and 6% in Wales.

Community pharmacists and pharmacy technicians working in community pharmacy made up 46% of respondents, while 12% worked in general practice, 26% in hospital pharmacy, and 3% in academia or education. A further 11% worked in other settings such as care homes, NHS 111, or mental health services.

Some 40% of all respondents were RPS members.

And of those that answered optional inclusion and diversity questions on ethnicity, 73% of respondents were White (of which 95% were English/Scottish/Welsh/Northern Irish/ British), 14% Asian or British Asian (of which 50% were Indian and 20% were Chinese), and 4% Black/African/ Caribbean/Black British (of which 85% were African and 13% were Caribbean).