Community pharmacist

Community pharmacists play a vital role in ensuring the safe and legal supply of medicines to the public

You'll be responsible for dispensing and supplying prescription medicines and will also sell over-the-counter medicines and medical appliances. As part of your role, you'll also give advice on how to take medicines and any possible side-effects.

Your responsibilities go beyond dispensing prescriptions, and you'll also offer advice on general health and wellbeing, as well as illnesses such as colds, coughs, ear infections and sore throats.

Most community pharmacists work in high street pharmacies, which can be part of a chain, a smaller group or independent. Some also work at GP practices or health centres.

Responsibilities

As a community pharmacist, you'll need to:

• dispense prescription medicines safely and accurately
• ensure treatments are compatible and suitable for individual patients
• check dosage and ensure that medicines are correctly and safely supplied, labelled and stored
• supervise the preparation of medicines, particularly those not pre-prepared by manufacturers
• keep a register of controlled drugs for legal compliance and stock control purposes
• liaise with doctors about prescriptions
• sell over-the-counter medicines and advise on their appropriate use
• offer advice on the treatment of minor ailments such as aches and pains, colds, coughs, ear infections and sore throats
• inform patients about possible side effects and interactions with other medicines or treatments
• prepare dosette boxes (where tablets are placed in compartments for specified days of the week) to help patients, particularly the elderly, those with memory or learning difficulties, or individuals managing multiple medicines
• conduct Medicine Use Reviews (MURs) to help patients understand how their medications work and ensure proper use
• provide support through the NHS New Medicine Service (NMS) for patients prescribed eligible new medicines as treatment for certain long-term conditions (England only)
• manage needle and syringe exchange services
• dispose of out-of-date medicines
• organise and administer vaccinations, such as flu jabs
• offer specialist health checks, such as blood pressure checks, cholesterol monitoring and diabetes assessments
• run health promotion services such as stop-smoking clinics and weight management programmes
• arrange the delivery of prescription medicines to patients
• manage, supervise and train pharmacy support staff
• manage finance and budgets
• keep up to date with current pharmacy practice, new medications and their uses.

See the list of services provided by pharmacies.

Salary

• Salaries for trainee pharmacists on their foundation year typically range from £22,000 to £26,000 in England and Wales. In Scotland, salaries are £31,892.
• Typical starting salaries for qualified community pharmacists are in the region of £30,000 to £35,000, depending on the size of your employer, location and conditions of employment. Small chains and independent pharmacies may pay less.
• With experience, your salary can rise to £45,000, and at a specialist or management level it can reach £50,000 to £70,000. Salaries for superintendent pharmacists can be in excess of this amount.

Employers that take on a foundation year trainee pharmacist (England and Wales) receive a grant of £26,500 to help pay for the costs of training. However, it's up to employers to decide what salary to offer and you won't necessarily receive all of the grant. You must, though, receive at least the national minimum wage. Some employers may pay more than £26,500.

Locum pharmacists are usually paid by the hour. Locums can negotiate rates, including higher pay for weekend and holiday work.

Additional benefits may include a pension, private medical insurance, discounts and bonus payments linked to performance.

Figures are intended as a guide only.

Working hours

Community pharmacists typically work around 37.5 to 40 hours per week. Many pharmacies operate late into the evening and on weekends. In larger pharmacy chains and some independent pharmacies, you may work on a rota system.

There may be opportunities for part-time work, job-share and locum work.

What to expect

• If you're based in a large pharmacy, you'll work as part of a team alongside pharmacy technicians, dispensers and sales assistants.
• You'll have frequent contact with the public, offering advice on medicines and healthcare. Some roles may involve visiting housebound patients.
• Jobs are widely available in towns and cities. There are fewer opportunities in rural locations.
• The role carries a high level of responsibility, and you'll need to ensure a professional approach at all times.
• You won't usually need to travel or spend time away overnight unless you’re attending a conference or other event.

Qualifications

To qualify as a pharmacist, you must:

• complete a Master of Pharmacy (MPharm) degree accredited by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC)
• complete a one-year paid work placement, called a foundation training year, as a trainee pharmacist in a GPhC-approved community pharmacy, under supervision
• pass the GPhC registration assessment
• meet the GPhC fitness to practise requirements for registration as a pharmacist.

You'll then be eligible to apply for registration with the GPhC, which is essential to practise as a pharmacist in England, Wales and Scotland. Pharmacists who want to practise in Northern Ireland must register with the Pharmaceutical Society NI.

MPharm degree courses are full time and usually take four years to complete. Some universities, however, offer a five-year integrated MPharm degree that includes the year of foundation training.

Course entry requirements vary, but you'll usually need three A-levels (or equivalent), including chemistry and two further A-levels in biology, physics or mathematics. Offers typically range from AAB to BBB but check with individual course providers.

Some course providers offer a five-year programme that includes a preparatory year for those who don't have the necessary entry requirements for the four-year MPharm. This foundation year focuses on science and also prepares you for degree-level study.

See the full list of GPhC-accredited MPharm courses.

You must apply for a foundation trainee pharmacist role via Oriel. Applications usually open in June and there is a short window to apply. For more information, see the Foundation Trainee Pharmacist National Recruitment Scheme.

For information on applying in Scotland, see NHS Education for Scotland.

The foundation training year gives you the opportunity to put your academic knowledge into practice. You'll spend 52 weeks at an approved community pharmacy working under the supervision of a designated GPhC-approved supervisor. During your time as a trainee pharmacist, you must build up a portfolio of evidence to show that you have the required skills and knowledge to work as a pharmacist.

Consider becoming a student member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. This provides access to resources, networking opportunities and support throughout your studies. You can move to foundation year trainee membership after your degree.

Skills

You'll need to have:

• excellent communication skills to explain complex and sometimes sensitive information to the public and other healthcare professionals
• active listening skills
• the ability to develop a rapport and inspire trust with patients, colleagues and other healthcare professionals
• strong team work and leadership abilities
• commitment to patient welfare
• attention to detail and accuracy to prevent dispensing errors and ensure patient safety
• an organised and methodical approach to work to manage your workload efficiently
• commercial and business management awareness
• exceptional customer service skills to provide a friendly, approachable and professional service
• a responsible and ethical approach to work, ensuring compliance with industry standards and regulations
• a thorough knowledge of pharmacy law and regulations
• confident decision-making skills and the willingness to take responsibility and manage risks.

Work experience

Course providers look for evidence that you're committed to becoming a pharmacist. You can show this by job shadowing a community pharmacist or talking to your local pharmacist about the role. It may also be possible to get part-time work at a pharmacy as a sales assistant to get a feel for the working environment.

Work experience that develops your skills in working with the public, particularly in a retail environment, is also useful.

In order to complete your year of foundation training in a community pharmacy, you'll need to spend at least 52 weeks in an approved training site under the guidance and supervision of a GPhC-approved designated supervisor. The GPhC website has a list of approved training premises.

Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

Employers

The majority of community pharmacists work in high street pharmacies, in large, multiple retail chains or supermarkets, or independent pharmacies of various sizes. The remainder are employed by small or medium-sized chain stores, GP surgeries or health centres.

Some pharmacists set up their own business. Find out more about self-employment.

Look for job vacancies at:

• C+D Jobs - pharmacist jobs and pre-registration trainee placements
• PJ Jobs - jobs board of The Pharmaceutical Journal
• careers service websites
• websites of major community pharmacies.

Specialist recruitment agencies also handle vacancies. These include:

• Flame Health
• Pulse
• Sterling Cross

Professional development

Once qualified, you'll need to renew your registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) annually. To remain registered, you must undertake regular continuing professional development (CPD) to show you're keeping your skills and knowledge up to date. You'll need to record your CPD and reflect on what you've learned and how you've incorporated it into your everyday work.

It's vital to keep abreast of developments in drug research including new drugs on the market, new ways of treating conditions with drugs and the government policy on drug treatment. This will involve reading professional journals and publications and attending courses and training sessions throughout your career.

Membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society provides access to relevant resources, events, mentoring services, professional networks, webinars and CPD support.

You can choose to undertake post-registration training, such as a PGCert, PGDip or MSc in clinical pharmacy, to further develop your knowledge and skills. It's also possible to do a PhD if you want to move into research. Search postgraduate courses in pharmacy.

If you want to work as a pharmacist independent subscriber, you need to take a GPhC-accredited course. Search the list of independent subscribing courses.

Career prospects

Promotion will usually involve management of specific service areas, such as managing the work of pharmacy technicians and sales staff.

If you're working for a major chain of pharmacies, there may be opportunities to progress to a branch and then district manager role. At the most senior level you could be working as a pharmacy superintendent, influencing business operations, regulatory compliance and overall strategy.

There may be strong competition for senior roles and additional qualifications or leadership experience may help your chances.

Some community pharmacists move into roles within GP surgeries, health centres or care homes, advising on the best use of medicines and working closely with other healthcare professionals to improve patient care.

Others get jobs with regulatory bodies or move into scientific writing, research and publishing. It's also possible to move into consultancy in areas such as recruitment, training and healthcare policy. Complementary medicine and animal medicine are other options.

Some experienced pharmacists choose to open their own independent pharmacy, offering greater autonomy and business control.