Issues and concerns on utilization of the pharmacy workforce in the Philippines
Author: Monet M. Loquias and Yolanda R. Robles
Category: Pharmacy
Abstract:
The increasing demand for pharmacists worldwide provides a basis for evaluating the status of the national pharmacy workforce for the purpose of developing strategies to address emerging issues and concerns. This study determined trends of national and international demand for Filipino pharmacists and identified issues affecting pharmacy workforce in the country. An extensive review of records obtained from various government agencies and a combination of qualitative methods were utilized. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were performed for quantitative and qualitative data, respectively. Approximately 70% of pharmacists were in the community practice and less than 1% in the academic. Academic institutions, community pharmacies, pharmaceutical establishments and hospitals included in the study were affected by fast turnover among their pharmacists and the difficulty of hiring replacements. A ten-year data on Filipino pharmacists working overseas showed the Middle East countries as among the major countries of destination while data on (permanent) migration disclosed Canada and United States of America as preferred countries of destination. Low remuneration rates, heavy workload, poor stature of the profession in the Philippines are some of the issues on demand that need to be addressed.
Keywords: migrant pharmacist pharmacy workforce community practice community pharmacy prescription
