Workforce summit plans
July 3, 2015
The Pharmacist Workforce
Summit (PD 10 Jun) held last
week at Monash University has
highlighted a number of key issues
relating to “enhanced utilisation of
the pharmacist workforce”.
The summit aimed to seek
consensus on major areas affecting
“pharmacists having sustainable
and rewarding professional roles
which contribute to the health of
the Australian population”.
It also sought to determine the
data that needs to be gathered and
maintained to enable pharmacist
workforce issues to be monitored
and addressed for the future.
Restraints and barriers to demand
for pharmacists in health care
identified included uncertainty
regarding the future, levels of
remuneration, limited career
development prospects and a “lack
of acknowledgment of expertise as
part of the healthcare team”.
The summit also cited the issue of
sustaining the quality of graduates
with a balanced and sustainable
supply of pharmacists training for
future evolving roles.
The main elements of a
pharmacist workforce data set
were identified - tracking early
career employment pathways as
well as the number and distribution
of vacancies - and it became
apparent during the summit that
much of the relevant data is already
available from AIHW, AHPRA and
the Department of Health.
“The next step is for the
profession to work together, along
with government agencies, to
ensure that such data are available,
collated and analysed in a timely
manner,” the Summit resolved.
The Pharmaceutical Society of
Australia said in a statement that
the Summit underscores need for a
longer-term blueprint for the role
of pharmacists into the future.
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