Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 5 May 2022
242. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Health his views on the position regarding the shortage of retail pharmacists in Ireland; if he has heard reports that some pharmacies face closure and reduced services as a result; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22520/22]
View answerPharmacists wishing to practise in Ireland must be registered with the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI – the Pharmacy Regulator). The number of registered pharmacists on the Register of Pharmacists held and maintained by the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI), the pharmacy regulator has continued to grow steadily, with an average increase of 187 registrants each year over the past five years. 6846 pharmacists are currently registered with the PSI, under established processes based in Irish and EU law, with 4371 of these registrants declaring their principal area of practice as community and a further 1250 not providing this information. ( www.thepsi.ie/Libraries/Monthly_Statistics/Pharmacists_-_Website_Statistics.sflb.ashx) .
The PSI is also the registering authority for pharmacies in Ireland in order that they may open and operate, and the number of Registered Retail Pharmacy Businesses currently stands at 1980.
The Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU) has drawn to my attention concerns it holds around shortage of pharmacists citing that Pharmacy employers are reporting that vacant permanent pharmacist positions are going unfilled for long periods and that short term locum relief pharmacists are increasingly difficult to source. The Department understands that the PSI, although not having a direct role in the recruitment of pharmacist are also aware of reports from stakeholders, of an increasing risk to the continued availability of a pharmacist workforce, with the concern being that the issue may be exacerbated into the future.
It is understood that the reports to the PSI of a current acute workforce issue, particularly in relation to community pharmacy, indicate that this is being driven in part by an increasing number of pharmacists choosing to work in a locum capacity. This has a knock-on impact on pharmacist vacancies, and potentially on continuity and consistency of service. The PSI has been liaising with stakeholders, including the IPU on efforts being taken within the sector to understand and address the issue. ?In February 2022, PSI met with a number of superintendent pharmacists and the IPU. The PSI also circulated a survey on behalf of the IPU to all registrants to support in efforts in understanding and addressing the issue in the short term, the results of which are pending. ?PSI has indicated its willingness to participate in a stakeholder group being established by the IPU, and the Department understands PSI and IPU are due to meet about this in early May.?
The PSI is also undertaking a project, due to run across 2022-’23, ‘Emerging Risks to the Future Pharmacy Workforce’. In 2022, this project is set to “assess emerging risks to the continued availability of a professional pharmacy workforce within community and hospital pharmacy in Ireland”.
This is a complex problem with many contributing factors and multiple stakeholders. Workforce challenges are being experienced in other sectors nationally, and in the pharmacy sector in a range of other countries. However, robust data for Ireland is needed to be able to determine the current landscape, assess future health system needs and understand existing sectoral challenges now and into the future. It will be on the basis of gathering and analysing this up-to-date, robust and relevant data, that recommendations can be proposed to address Ireland’s needs for a pharmacist workforce in the future, as Ireland’s healthcare system evolves, and in the context of Sláintecare implementation. The European commission is currently supporting a health and social care workforce planning strategy and action plan, a health and social care workforce planning model, health and social care workforce projections and gap analysis project. Support includes recommendations for health and social care workforce reforms.
