Mental Health and Well-Being For Pharmacy Staff
Understanding the Issue
The recent uptick in resignations among pharmacy staff at all levels and a drop in enrollment at schools and colleges signify an alarming trend – a shrinking pool of qualified pharmacy personnel that promises to continue. Coupled with a growing list of responsibilities and increased demand, it is no wonder that pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are burning out.
Why Mental Health Matters
These conditions can lead to mistakes that can have potentially life-altering consequences for pharmacy staff and patients. According to data from the Well-being Index for Pharmacy Personnel (WBI), 31% of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians who used the self-assessment tool are at risk of experiencing high distress. And those who risk experiencing high distress also have a twofold risk of making a medication error. Since the WBI was launched in 2019, more than 10,000 pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and student pharmacists have assessed and reassessed their well-being and stress.
Our Position
We believe that addressing mental health and well-being is a shared responsibility that requires the collective effort of the entire pharmacy community. Working with our member boards of pharmacy and pharmacy associations to promote a healthier pharmacy environment and combat unsafe working conditions, we continue the work of former NABP President Lenora S. Newsome, PD, to create a more resilient and healthier pharmacy workforce.
Stay Informed
To support pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, we have compiled tools and information that can be used to find help or assist others.
Self-Evaluation Tools
- Assess your well-being with the Well-Being Index for Pharmacy Personnel. Developed by the Mayo Clinic and offered by APhA, the index is an anonymous, research-validated online tool.
- Measure your compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress with this self-assessment tool. This tool is designed for medical health professionals, including pharmacy personnel.
- Submit your workplace experiences – positive and negative – to Pharmacy Workplace and Well-being Reporting (PWWR). This anonymous and confidential reporting tool was developed to help enhance and safeguard the pharmacy workplace. Information collected through the PWWR reports will help to tell a collective story that can lead to change and improvement in well-being and patient safety.
Courses
Pharmacy Personnel Burnout – Examining Causes and Prevention Strategies for Improving Well-Being – National Association of Boards of Pharmacy
Explore our home study to learn more about what causes burnout in pharmacy staff and what individuals and organizations can do to prevent it.
From Awareness to Action: Embedding Mental Wellness in Pharmacy Practice
Discover how to foster a healthy pharmacy environment through the NCPA webinar. This webinar provides practical tools to help weave mental wellness into everyday pharmacy practice.
Beyond Burnout: Mastering Self-Care and Stress Resilience Within Your Pharmacy Team
Learn the effects of stress on decision-making and workplace performance, strategies for pharmacy owners, and techniques for supporting staff mental health through the NCPA webinar.
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Provider
Health care providers working with individuals affected by mental illness can gain insights about the importance of mental health and treatment models prioritizing collaboration and compassion among clients, families, and providers. Through this 15-hour program, the instructors guide participants by sharing lived experience in combination with an evidence-based curriculum.
Mental Health First Aid in Pharmacy
Improve the understanding of the presentation and pervasiveness of mental illness, challenge myths and misconceptions regarding individuals with mental illness, and share effective engagement strategies. The training will help you to identify mental health disorders as well as individuals with mental illnesses.
Trauma and Healing Courses
Further your understanding and support of trauma in the workforce and enhance healing strategies through courses and certification programs offered by Dr Helen Sairany.
Understanding and Preventing Burnout among Public Health Workers: Guidance for Public Health Leaders
Working in a distressing environment can strain a person’s physical, emotional, and psychological well-being. In this online training, public health supervisors can learn strategies to prioritize employee health and well-being and prevent burnout.
Patient Resources
Patient and Caregiver Insights
Explore a variety of resources, including information about psych pharmacists and educational articles authored for NAMI to address common questions pharmacists receive and questions NAMI receives on their help line. Plus, find over 40 medication fact sheets with detailed information on medications used to treat psychiatric and neurologic conditions.
Brochures and Fact Sheets – National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Browse free brochures and fact sheets provided by NIMH on anxiety disorders, depression, burnout, and other mental health topics.
SAMHSA: Find Support for Mental Health and Substance Use
Explore treatment options for substance misuse, coping strategies, and how to talk about mental health through SAMHSA’s website.
Pharmacy Personnel Resources
Tips for Pharmacy Staff Wellness
Discover practical tips for stress and anxiety, self-compassion, staying connected, and recognizing burnout symptoms.
Pharmacy Wellness Toolkit
CPhA offers a wellness toolkit for stress management, workload, and team dynamics for pharmacy professionals.
Mental Health Resource Card
This card provides national resources for mental health assistance that can be shared with pharmacy colleagues. Boards of pharmacy who are interested in creating state-specific resource cards may contact us at marketing@nabp.pharmacy for assistance with creating designs or templates.
Community Pharmacy Education and Resources
This resource page is intended for community, retail, and ambulatory care pharmacists and provides quick links to many resources a pharmacist seeking information on mental health might find valuable.
Resources for Hospital Leaders
The NIOSH Impact Wellbeing page offers hospital resources such as surveys and a toolkit for hospital leadership to help build a system where workers can thrive based on evidence-informed solutions.
Comprehensive Support Guide
For Health Care professionals, NAMI offers a guide addressing the unique challenges of stress, trauma, and emotional responses for health care professionals, providing actionable tips, peer support, confidential mental health services, resilience building, wellness strategies, and family support, all underscored by the crucial message of prioritizing self-care.
Stress First Aid for Health Care Professionals: Recognize and Respond Early to Stress Injuries
This module guides health care professionals in identifying and addressing stress injuries through the Stress Continuum Model and Stress First Aid framework, emphasizing early recognition, safety, and ongoing support for recovery.
Burnout and Moral Injury Framework
The National Framework for Addressing Burnout and Moral Injury in the Health and Public Safety Workforce explores the drivers and process of burnout and moral injury and identifies practical strategies and tools to improve worker and learner well-being in health and public safety settings.
Start Your Recovery
Explore a variety of resources, including recovery plans, therapy, and rehab options, as well as substance misuse information to share with colleagues or patients. Plus, hear the stories of others who have battled substance misuse.
Strategies for Workers and Learners
This resource empowers health care workers and learners to address burnout and moral distress by recognizing signs of distress, seeking help, advocating for change, promoting supportive language, participating in well-being solutions, and accessing resources, including the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, SAMHSA resources, and organizations like NAMI, AMA, and professional associations offering training and support.
Implementing Solutions 2.0: Building a Sustainable Pharmacy Workforce
“Implementing Solutions Summit 2.0: Building a Sustainable, Healthy Pharmacy Workforce and Workplace,” includes actions in key areas to improve pharmacy workplace conditions and an overall call to action for the profession. The report is the culmination of a recent event convened by APhA, ASHP, and NABP to target the ongoing concerns of workplace conditions, burnout, and mental health.