Pharmacy Daily | Pharmacists on the brink of burnout

AFTER more than 18 months on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic, pharmacists around the world are being pushed to breaking-point, Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) National President, Associate Professor Chris Freemen, warns.

Speaking during a webinar hosted by the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) last night, Freeman warned that "one of the legacies of this pandemic will be some of the mental health issues that we see amongst our health professional colleagues".

"Moving forward we must reflect on how we can preserve the mental and physical health of our healthcare professionals, including pharmacists," he said.

"Around the world pharmacists are on the brink of burnout, because of how long they've been involved in this pandemic, the long hours that they work and the care that they provide for their communities."

Freeman told Pharmacy Daily that many pharmacists in Australia - particularly in areas ravaged by bushfires in late 2019 and early 2020 - have been feeling the strain.

"I've had reports from the Pharmacists' Support Service (PSS) that they've had increased call volumes over the duration of the pandemic," he said.

"But I think that's probably just the tip of the iceberg to be honest.

"Many pharmacists that I speak to regardless of where they've been working are fatigued.

"There's no discernible end point [to the pandemic], so when you're fatigued over a long period of time and you're unclear about when the issue is going to stop, that creates a situation where people's mental health starts to suffer."

Freeman urged pharmacy workers who are not in lockdown areas to take a break if possible and "disconnect from the day-to-day media grind of reporting on COVID numbers, outbreaks and actually having some time to refresh".

He added that it was "probably incumbent on colleagues to reach out to each other and make sure we're all doing okay".

"Sometimes it's hard for people to take that initial step and ask for help when they're struggling to take the initiative [to reach out for support]," Freeman said.

"It may just require for someone to take the initiative and as a colleague, someone they know, to ask how they're travelling at the moment."