In today’s episode Danielle Hunt, chief executive of Pharmacist Support, an independent charity which supports pharmacists and their families, discusses her career and offers some insight into the challenges women in pharmacy may face.

The CEO tells C+D that “not all women are the same”, but taking the charity’s workforce wellbeing service into consideration, 88% of women are at higher risk of burnout compared to 80% of men, with 76% of those who seek counselling also women.

“I suppose the whole profession is at risk of burnout and that’s something to keep in mind,” Hunt says. “But there are those differences between women and men within the profession.”

Hunt, who was always career driven, joined Pharmacist Support in January 2019 after some extensive experience within the charity sector – which she “fell into” after having some “personal interest around mental health and wellbeing” and seeking a “greater sense of purpose” in what she was doing.

“I think I always wanted to do something that made the world better in some way or helped people,” she explains. “But I think you end up where you’re destined to be.”

Read more: Podcast: What female pharmacists of the past can teach the industry today

She also talks about some of the challenges women may face in their careers, including:

• Caring responsibilities (and her personal experience of balancing being a mother and a professional)
• Mental load (which is not exclusive to women, but many studies show that women primarily take up household routines and other responsibilities)
• Confidence

She added that mentorship, support networks and a flexible and supportive environment helped her and could support other women navigate leadership roles – citing that the latter two have become easier to access online, especially following lockdown.

“Even the pandemic, I think, has really changed the way we work,” she adds. “There’s a lot more flexible work in practice and I think that has opened up some opportunities.”

Read more: Podcast: Inspiring the next generation of female leaders in pharmacy

Hunt also told C+D that she prides the pharmacy sector for being more inclusive.

“I think pharmacy as a whole is a very interesting sector to work with,” she says. “There are a lot of positive female role models and its quite inclusive – more inclusive than other areas I have worked in before”.

Listen to the podcast to learn about:

• Pharmacist Support CEO Danielle Hunt’s career
• Some of the challenges women face and how to overcome them
• Her hopes for the future

You can listen to the podcast above. Alternatively, follow C+D’s podcasts by searching “Chemist+Druggist podcast” on your preferred app or on Soundcloud

Join C+D's Women in Pharmacy group for free by registering for free on the C+D Community