Cairns pharmacy WholeLife reporting industry shortfall of qualified pharmacists
A healthcare worker forced to work six to seven days a week due to short staffing has revealed the extraordinary steps his business has taken to find qualified professionals.
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IT might be hard to believe but despite the profits the pandemic may have returned for healthcare businesses, the industry is facing a lengthy rebuild with an unfortunate reputational damage.
Hospitals and general practitioner clinics have felt the stress of understaffing for the best part of two years, and now one of Cairns’ largest locally-owned pharmacies is reporting difficulties in recruiting experienced and qualified staff.
WholeLife Pharmacy and Healthfoods, Pease St store pharmacist manager Brett Christoffelsz said the chemist was forced to source qualified professionals from England to cover the shortfall.
“Because of the Covid situation, frontline workers have borne the brunt of abuse, impatience and frustrated patients,” he said.
“Not blaming anyone, but everyone has just been stressed and needs their healthcare looked after and because resources have been stretched so much, there has been a tipping point. It’s had a flow-on effect to where we’re losing people to the industry because they don’t want to put up with that.
“It’s really been our more resilient workers who’ve stayed on, but (the Covid) situation has made it less attractive to new people.”
Mr Christoffelsz has been with the pharmacy for 10 years and said for the past six months he had been working six to seven day weeks to cover the shortfall.
“Hopefully with JCU offering pharmacy in Cairns we’ll get some more graduates, but that’s a couple of years away.
“It would definitely ease the pressure, especially when someone goes on leave or they’re sick.”
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Originally published as Cairns pharmacy WholeLife reporting industry shortfall of qualified pharmacists
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