Four out of five pharmacists say workplace stress has made them consider leaving the profession in the past year, a C+D poll has suggested.

Numark pharmacy services director Mimi Lau said the poll, which found that 81 per cent of the 150 C+D readers who responded had thought of resigning, was a "serious indication" of the rising pressures facing pharmacy and "a sign they don't think things will improve".

The poll, which ran from September 2-5, suggested pharmacists were even more likely than nurses to quit on stress grounds. Preliminary findings from a Royal College of Nursing survey, released last week, found 62 per cent of the 10,000 respondents had considered quitting because of workplace pressures.

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	RPS English Pharmacy Board member and contractor Sid Dajani said he was not surprised at the reported levels of stress in pharmacy. Pharmacists had to deal with more red tape than nurses, he argued, and also battled with a "dysfunctional" medicines supply chain.

But the government was unlikely to be sympathetic, because the influx of pharmacists from the EU meant it would be easy to replace any pharmacists unable to deal with the increased pressure, Mr Dajani told C+D.

Dispensing duties meant many pharmacists did not have time to perform their clinical role properly, argued Sandra Gidley, a locum and former Liberal Democrat MP who left her role at a multiple due to workplace pressures and to gain more independence.

"I've worked in places where people have clearly been under considerable pressure just to keep things going. You would not be human if you didn't go home after a day like that and say ‘I've got to do something else'," she told C+D.

The annual C+D Salary Survey has uncovered increased levels of stress among pharmacists in the past two years. The highest rise was among contractors, with 75 per cent suffering from work-related stress in 2012 compared with just over 50 per cent in 2011.

Is stress making you regret your career choice? Take the C+D Salary Survey 2013 today to tell us about your pay and working conditions and be in with a chance to win a Kindle Fire.