by Richard Prior
Staff Writer
If there is a shortage of pharmacists in Florida, they’re being felt where and when you might expect.
Midnight in the crossroads community of Sandspur.
“There could be shortages in areas where the hours are not the greatest,” said Michael Jackson, executive vice president of the Florida Pharmacy Association in Tallahassee. “Some pharmacies have to be open 12, 18, 24 hours a day. It’s difficult to find pharmacists to staff those late-night shifts and also work holidays.”
If a pharmacist is going to work those erratic, late or holiday hours, he wants to be near the amenities and amusements he’s used to.
“The challenge is to get pharmacists to move to some of the smaller towns,” Jackson said. “The conveniences they would like aren’t there.”
According to industry reports, there are almost 5,500 jobs waiting for pharmacists nationwide.
Shortages come and go, but this episode has been especially persistent, said John Sensabaugh, Eckerd Drugs’ vice president of Strategic Communications in Clearwater.
“It is a national shortage, and it affects all drug chains — all pharmacies, for that matter,” he said.
Eckerd tries to stay fully staffed “by making our company attractive to pharmacists by offering a very competitive pay and benefits package,” said Sensabaugh. “We’re concerned about giving the pharmacist a good quality of life experience.”
Until several years ago, a single pharmacist on duty at a store had to eat his lunch “on the run” without a break.
“We were the first store to allow a 30-minute break for its pharmacists,” said Sensabaugh. “The drug technician is still there to answer questions and take prescriptions, but the pharmacist is allowed to shut down for a 30-minute break.
“Other stores now do the same thing. But we try to stay on the cutting edge with things like that.”
Eckerd makes adjustments to attract pharmacists to more out-of-the-way locales.
“Typically, you look for a pharmacist from that area,” said Sensabaugh. “You’ll also see pay rates fluctuate a little. The salary levels may be a little higher in the more rural areas of the country or in the state.
“Again, we’re trying to give the pharmacist a better experience with us.”
PharMerica in Jacksonville provides pharmacy services to nursing homes, retirement communities and other inpatient facilities that don’t have their own pharmacist.
Meeting the need for staff seems to be stable for now, at least in this part of the state, said General Manager Ron Salem, whose company operates in more than 40 states.
“I would say we do struggle with pharmacists’ staffing,” he said. “However, it appears we’re in a very good situation today in our particular operation.
“The most serious shortage is in the retail arena, where they’re seeing a lot of growth.”
Jackson suggested there are “several schools of thought about what is triggering this shortage problem.”
“You’ve got a higher demand for prescription drug services,” he said. “There are far more people turning to prescription drugs as a way of receiving health care.
“There are also new drugs available to treat disease that were not available before. There are new uses being developed for older drugs. New pharmacies are opening all across Florida, and the state has a fairly high senior population.”
To meet that increased demand, Florida’s four colleges of pharmacy are expanding.
The oldest is the University of Florida; one of the largest — its in the top five nationwide — is Florida A&M in Tallahassee. The other two schools are Nova Southeastern University in Dania and Palm Beach Atlantic University.
The first three of those schools have added a nontraditional pharmacy program in which students don’t have to be at the main campus to take the courses.
Nova Southeastern opened a West Palm Beach location for the Pharm.D. program in the fall of 2000.
Students in West Palm and Dania receive the same handouts, texts and tests. Both locations have teams of site coordinators, administration, faculty and staff.
Through video technology, lectures are shown simultaneously at both sites and allows students and lecturers to interact wherever they are.
“In general, I think it is true that — around the country, Florida included — there is a shortage of pharmacists,” said Dr. Robert L. Thomas, associate dean in the College of Pharmacy at Florida A&M. “I believe most retail entities would agree.”
One reason for the increased demand, Thomas said, is the growing number of older residents.
The other is the proliferation of retail stores and community pharmacies that are absorbing all the new graduates.
While other schools maintain levels of no more than 100 pharmacy students, Florida A&M is meeting the shortage by expanding enrollment. The university recently made a commitment to enroll 150 students in its professional year program, Thomas said.
There are 158 students signed up for the courses that start next week.
During their six years of study, students have to take two years of pre-pharmacy courses. In the third year, they enter the professional program.
“Due to the nature of the training, it’s very intense, very resource-driven,” said Thomas. “Many of the schools are limiting their enrollment. We are committed to filling that void.”