2023 Ohio Pharmacy Workforce Consortium Study: Final Report

The National Pharmacy Workforce Study collects data from a sample of pharmacists in the United States every 3 to 5 years. These data reveal practice trends that help us understand the profession and provide insight into professional issues of the day. The relevance and impact of this data cannot be understated; it provides a vital mirror to see pharmacy practice as it evolves and meets new challenges. A few other Midwest states supplement the national survey with biennial surveys.

Other pharmacist workforce research is more isolated outside these states. For instance, the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy recently collected data from Ohio pharmacists to assess workload and working conditions. The Ohio Pharmacists Association historically administers a salary survey every two years. However, no formal group has existed to date to study the pharmacy workforce in Ohio systematically.

This gap in understanding the pharmacy workforce in Ohio more broadly has potential detriment. Said alternatively, armed with data, stakeholders in pharmacies around the state could be prepared, act, and advocate for the profession. These stakeholders include the Board, Ohio colleges of pharmacy, and state associations, including the Ohio Pharmacists Association, Ohio Society of Health-System Pharmacy, and the Ohio College of Clinical Pharmacy.

This project unites several stakeholders across Ohio to form the Ohio Pharmacist Workforce Consortium (OPWC) and launches a biennial data collection from Ohio pharmacists. The long-range goal of this line of research is to monitor trends in the profession over time and provide just-in-time data and analysis of contemporary issues among Ohio pharmacists to provide practice, policy, and educational insight to stakeholders in and outside the profession. This proposal aims to provide a first data point in the trend series and propose potential solutions to buffer negative job-related issues and stimulate positive outcomes.