"Nearly 80%" of the first wave of pharmacists recruited into GP surgeries come from community pharmacy, Sandra Gidley told C+D last month (February 27). 

“The community sector needs to ask itself why those pharmacists wanted a different job,” she said.

Ms Gidley suggested that poor working conditions at "some" companies could be a contributing factor to pharmacists looking for a change in career.

"Very large response" to recruitment drive

Ms Gidley said there has already been a "very large response" to pharmacy minister David Mowat's call to recruit a second wave of pharmacists into GP surgeries by 2021.

"We all thought they'd come from hospital [pharmacy]," she said. "But that hasn't been the case."

While "there are huge opportunities for community pharmacy", Ms Gidley said, "there's a serious question to be asked about why so many community pharmacists are seeing [GP pharmacy] as a really attractive job option". 

Ms Gidley spoke to C+D after the RPS organised a visit by David Mowat to a GP surgery in west London, where GPs told the pharmacy minister community pharmacists “could manage selected long-term conditions”.