Why Reduce Pharmacy Hours

The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) today announced its perspective regarding the recent news that some pharmacies are reducing operating hours.

'Like other health care professionals, pharmacy teams across the country have been stressed and stretched delivering patient care that they are educated and trained to provide while being inadequately staffed or supported in some cases.

During the pandemic, the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program for COVID-19 Vaccination, a collaboration between the federal government, states, and territories, and 21 national pharmacy partners and independent pharmacies, increased access to COVID-19 vaccines for millions of people. 

Appropriate staffing and workplace conditions are essential for a pharmacy to deliver quality patient care safely.

Time will tell how reduced operating hours will impact patients and pharmacy teams.

For patients, reducing pharmacy operating hours will impact when they can pick-up prescriptions, get vaccines, and receive other pharmacist services.

For pharmacists, because prescribers must continue to write prescriptions, the workload remains unchanged ... while pharmacy personnel will now have less time to do the work.

Many pharmacists already work after closing to keep up with prescription volume.

It is essential that appropriate pharmacy staffing is addressed, and employers and the public recognize pharmacy personnel's well-being as an essential component for safe and effective patient care.

"Some are blaming reduced hours on a pharmacist shortage. It is incorrect that there is a shortage of pharmacists or pharmacy technicians. More accurately, there is a shortage of pharmacists and technicians willing to work under the current conditions. Pharmacy is a rewarding profession, and pharmacists are experts in medication use."

"Therefore, we need to stop conflating and blaming the current conditions on pharmacist or technician shortages when it's due to short-staffing and health care system faults," said Ilisa BG Bernstein, PharmD, JD, FAPhA, interim executive vice president and CEO of APhA, in a press release on January 30, 2023.

"APhA has been on the frontlines of this issue and is driving the urgent and critical change that is needed in the current pharmacy workplace model," she said.

"For pharmacy teams, APhA offers resources and tools to support pharmacy personnel and provide data to improve pharmacy team well-being across the country."

"APhA and NASPA's PWWR tool is first of its kind; it allows pharmacists and pharmacy personnel to anonymously and confidentially share positive and negative workplace and well-being issues as we work to make necessary changes."

For example, Texas-based pharmacies affiliated with the Texas Department of State Health Services are actively administering COVID-19 boosters and oral therapeutics. Use Vaccines.gov to search for vaccination sites by zip code.