An exploration of the diversity and complexity of the pharmacy locum workforce
In the 2002 pharmacy workforce census just over 8000 pharmacists reported working as a locum. They constitute 23% of the ‘home register’ (i.e., England, Scotland & Wales), 27%, of the ‘active’ workforce, or 38% of those who work in the community pharmacy sector. The locum workforce however, is by no means homogenous. There is for example, a vast diversity in the number of hours they work, and key demographics such as age and working patterns.
As a consequence of the extent and diversity of the locum workforce, the research team was commissioned to undertake a qualitative investigation to explore why pharmacists chose to work as locums, and to examine the nature of their work patterns over and above the hours they work. In-depth interviews formed part of the qualitative work, as well as focus groups. A literature review was included, which explored not only the pharmacy literature on locums but the sociological literature around flexible and non-standard patterns of work. The research team have also tested the use of a standardised ‘quality of work-life’ (QWL) questionnaire, originally designed for use with GPs, and devised to explore job satisfaction and other work-related concepts. A copy of the full report will soon be made available here.
| Sponsor | RPSGB |
| Duration | 9 months |
| Start and end dates | August 2003 to April 2004 |
| Funding | £54k |
| Principal Investigator | Karen Hassell |
| Researcher | Phillip Shann |