I'm afraid that the 'golden' days for locums are coming to an end.
When I had to go back to community work in the eighties, I could only really get work for complete weeks to cover holidays or illness. With the rapid growth of multiples and decline of independents pharmacy changed from proprietor to employee profession. Whereas a proprietor was prepared to work 5-6 days a week, employees demanded 5 day weeks/holidays and thus demand grew for locums to cover these days. Also, as prices for pharmacies soared due to property values and multiple expansion, the opportunities for self ownership declined. If you wanted to be self employed, then locums provided that option with the bonus for the feminised workforce to have school holidays off from work.
Unfortunately, govnmt and RPSGB are still stuck in the idea that each pharmacy is self owned and locums are barely acknowledged.
This is why the PDA fulfills a pent up demand.
However, with the NPA in the pocket of the CCA and talking with govnmt, pressure is growing to withdraw the legal protection for a pharmacist to be present in every pharmacy. If that requirement goes then pharmacy as we know it will die and the gvnmt and multiples will rejoice at being able to employ cheap labour.
johnep  |