The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 279 No 7479 p590
24 November 2007

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• Abortion
• NPA PMI bid
• Retention fees (5)
• The Society (2)
• The Council
• Community pharmacy
• Health care regulations
• Medicines distribution
• Ethics
• Locum pharmacy (3)
• Remuneration

Letters to the Editor

Locum pharmacy

Can “Spanish practice” survive influx of practising Spaniards?

From Mr M. J. Tobyn, MRPharmS

David Sevage (PJ, 10 November 2007, p531 (PDF 50K)) suggests that pharmacists set a rate of locum pay based on a notional sense of “worth”, rather than what the market will bear in their area. Of course, if this sense of worth is more than a couple of pounds greater than the local going rate Mr Sevage will have all the time outside school holidays and influenza epidemics to ponder his economic importance.

It would be interesting to see if this particular “Spanish practice” survives a new influx of practising Spaniards (and Poles, Portuguese and Greeks) who discharge their responsibilities with competence, but more cheaply.

Mike Tobyn
Wirral, Merseyside

Locums provide a valuable service

From Mr S. Elliott, MRPharmS

I can empathise with almost all of the financial and administrative pressures Harnek Singh Chera describes (PJ, 20 October 2007, p438) since I, too, am a director of an independent pharmacy. However, as a self-employed locum pharmacist I would like to refute his assertion that locums are “holding contractors to ransom”.

Market forces and competition will naturally influence the fees that locum pharmacists are able to charge, but I consider that the fee which Mr Chera mentioned of £23 per hour is certainly not excessive, especially when taking into account the lack of paid holidays and responsibility for one’s own retention fees, indemnity insurance, pensions, injury/illness-type insurance etc.

Assuming an average 40-hour week for 48 weeks per year (most employee pharmacists would receive at least four weeks’ paid holiday entitlement), £23 per hour would equate to just over £44,000 per annum, which I think would be comparable to, or less than, the salary of experienced pharmacist managers (who may also receive bonuses, profit sharing schemes etc from their employers).

It must also be kept in mind that a locum is not “guaranteed” work for a set number of hours or weeks per year and may have to make considerable effort to obtain sufficient work to earn a reasonable wage, or may need the help of a locum agency, adding an additional cost to the contractor and possible losing some of the freedom and flexibility offered when dealing direct with clients.

During “quiet” periods of the year locums may also have to travel greater distances than usual, adding extra time to their working day and a financial penalty if travelling expenses are not fully reimbursed.

As mentioned previously in a Broad spectrum article (PJ, 29 September 2007, p348) and Letters (PJ, 13 October 2007, p401), there is an increasing necessity for locums to become accredited for various enhanced and advanced services offered by their numerous places of work in order to attract premium rates of pay and possibly, in the future, to obtain sufficient work as contractors may become less willing to use locums who cannot maintain the pharmacy’s usual range of services.

The locum must be able to adapt to each pharmacy’s standard operating procedures and working style and can pass on examples of good practice from one to another, if appropriate.

The growing number of multiple and supermarket pharmacies may impact upon locum fees as they could gain the upper hand in negotiations with self-employed locums if there are fewer opportunities to work in the decreasing number of independently owned pharmacies. I currently provide services to both independent and multiple pharmacies and I think it is fair to charge a consistent fee across the board for offering the same level of service to all of my clients.

In short, I believe that locums provide a valuable service to contractors and deserve fair remuneration to reflect this. I feel sure that many contractors would agree with this sentiment and appreciate the “peace of mind” of leaving their businesses in the care of a trusted and reliable colleague.

Simon Elliott
Bishop Auckland, County Durham

Locum rates in Northern Ireland

From Dr I. ab I. Davies, MRPharmS

David Sevage (PJ, 10 November 2007, p531 (PDF 50K)) should move to Northern Ireland where he would find that the going rate for locum fees is less than £20 per hour.

Iolo Davies
Ballygowan, County Down

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