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Letters to the Editor
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The profession
Women in pharmacy
From Miss T. M. Gaughan, MRPharmS
Some areas of pharmacy appear to be stuck in the last millennium. I
quote Asda’s superintendent pharmacist John Evans (PJ, 15
December 2007, p689): “With 54 per cent of pharmacists [being]
women, it offers flexible working — when their partner comes home
in the evening it means he can look after the children and she can go
off to
work.”
What a wonderful family picture that creates, with the man
being the breadwinner and the woman having a supplementary job. I am
certainly not saying people should not do that, but in 2008 I certainly
do not think it is the norm and nor should it have to be.
I thought I
had hit a “high” for sexist comments when my careers tutor
told me that pharmacy was a good job for a woman.
On a similar point, how 100-hour pharmacies can be family friendly is
unknown to me. Surely it just means that the family is separated for
more hours a week as companies put increasing pressure on part-time staff
to take the shifts during unsociable hours?
Tracey Gaughan
Glasgow
Flexible working
From Mr W. Wright
John Evans, Asda’s superintendent pharmacist, has succinctly identified
some of the flexible working opportunities that 100-hour pharmacies will
offer pharmacists, giving child care as a particular example (PJ, 15
December 2007, p689).
More specifically, he made it clear that these
benefits would be particularly relevant to a group of pharmacists who
make up approximately half (54 per cent) of the workforce.
Would Mr
Evans care to elaborate on how the relevance of these opportunities
differs in any way with regard to the remaining (male) 46 per cent? Wesley Wright
Dumbarton
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JOHN EVANS, superintendent pharmacist, Asda Stores,
responds:
May I apologise to any reader who thought that my comments
were sexist or
stereotypical,
as they certainly were not meant to be. Asda is an equal opportunities
employer and we do not discriminate against any individual or treat
them less favourably on the grounds of their sex, marital status, sexual
orientation,
disability, race, religion, colour, nationality, ethnic origin or age.
The article referred to opportunities in working as a pharmacist and
in particular, extended opening and 100-hour pharmacies.
I talk to many pharmacists in my role, both ones that work with us and ones
that do not. The issue that we have in the UK is not that there are an insufficient
number of pharmacists on the Register, but that too many are leaving the practising
profession either because it does not excite them anymore, or because it is
too
difficult to fit in work with their busy lives.
Yes, there are more “househusbands” than
ever before, but the reality is that there are more female than male pharmacists,
and they will, rightly so, start families. Many of these mothers will then
either choose to, or have to, look after the children during the day, even
in this century.
Many community pharmacies tend to be closed after 6pm, while Asda pharmacies
are open much later, and this clearly gives pharmacist “househusbands” or “housewives” the
chance to work and keep their hand in. Pharmacists do not have to work at these
times — it just gives them more choice to do so, when and where it suits
them best.
In reference to the question “are 100-hour pharmacies family friendly?”,
well I have two young children and I have often used late night pharmacies to
get advice and medicines when others have been closed and, looking at our business
trends, I am not the only one.
As long as applicants are professional pharmacists who can easily share what
they know with their pharmacy colleagues and their customers and are willing
to be innovative and take the profession forward, we do not mind if they
are mothers or fathers, male or female, or any variation on the theme. We
would
love to hear from them. |
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The
Pharmaceutical Journal