As a pharmacist, I care about the profession. A college of pharmacy is closing and this is a good time to reassess the status of the profession of pharmacy. I do not know much about the University of Charleston School of Pharmacy but reports indicate that it is closing. From previous NAPLEX numbers, it appears that they graduated approximately 35 students over the last few years. I have followed NAPLEX trends very closely and noticed that they were very low on NAPLEX pass rates. The reason cited for the closure is the lack of interest from students. Current students will be able to finish their degree, so that is a bit of positive news and obviously the right thing to do.
Pharmacy school is very rigorous. Combine that with large loans, negative reports on working conditions, and alternative career options, you might understand why application numbers are declining. First attempts of the NAPLEX have fallen dramatically. In just 2 years, NAPLEX first attempts dropped from over 14,000 (2021) to approximately 11,500 (2023). Indeed, there are fewer students in pharmacy school and pursuing a career in pharmacy.
Change Continues
I’m so torn by the issue of having a lower number of pharmacists in the United States. We can provide tremendous value and education about medications. There are more medications to know and learn every year. Continuity of care seems to get worse over time with more and more specialization as well as more healthcare workforce turnover. It feels like no one is looking at the entire patient medication picture anymore. The demand for pharmacists should go up in the long run.
On the flipside, retail/community pharmacies have been closing at rapid rates. This understandably reduces the demand for pharmacists. Factory-like and corporate conditions steal the joy from many pharmacists that I’ve talked to. The majority of pharmacists get satisfaction from helping people, educating patients, and being a trusted resource for drug knowledge.
With the dramatic closing of retail/community pharmacies across the country, the profession of pharmacy will continue to change. Pharmacy schools will continue to be impacted by this trend. I hope the fewer and fewer of us that remain can retool and reshape it into something amazing.
I continue to work as a geriatric consultant pharmacist and enjoy my work. There are options within the profession that are desirable and obviously, that message isn’t getting the students who may consider a PharmD degree.
What do you think? Is closing a college of pharmacy helpful? Are fewer colleges of pharmacy better in the long run? Does this hurt patients if there are fewer pharmacists? What should we change within the profession?
Thank you all for your continued support of my blog!
Eric Christianson, PharmD, BCPS, BCGP
Yes, profession of pharmacy needs to be reviewed globally, should be more closely to the patient centered, from the first year of starting degree.
I am not surprised with the potential for pharmacy school closures. Having gone from 80 pharmacy schools in 2000 to 143 schools as of December 2023 (1), it seems that the key incentive was to put “more bums on seats”, despite the quality of student filling those seats. Such explosive growth and the attraction for universities to capitalize on that growth, in my opinion, signaled the beginning of the end for the profession. Having recently retired from a faculty position, and as you say, with the number of new drugs coming onto the market every year, I cannot imagine being a pharmacy student today with all that they are expected to learn and then somehow apply. I, too, heard many concerns from students about unfavorable working conditions, particularly in retail settings. Many years ago, I coined the phrase, “Pharmacy is a profession in search of itself.” Having gone from a 5-year program, then requiring a general residency, then a specialty residency, then board certification, and now a 6-year program with the same expectations, I can see why there are now fewer and fewer students wanting to make that journey. With declining enrollment, it is sad but understandable why pharmacy schools might be starting to close their doors.
1. https://www.pharmacytimes.com/view/despite-rapid-growth-of-institutions-pharmacy-school-applications-decline
Thanks for the comment! Totally agree that the expansion was dramatic and lead to a situation where schools got to pick from the cream of the crop to a situation where now they are trying to just fill seats. I’m overall bullish on the profession if the students are willing to be continuous learners and can get through school without substantial debt.
The shortage of pharmacists resulted in the opening of too many pharmacy school. I expect more to close. It is incumbent upon us to support schools that we attended. We must also engage in the political process on a state and national level. Legislators and Public officials come into our pharmacies. Our interactions with them can made a difference. Please stop saying I’m doing fine when you are ready to explode. When patients are upset with the service at the pharmacy, our saying we are doing fine makes it seem like we don’t care.
Interesting take, thanks for the comment!
The trend is happening here in Canada interm of student interest in pharmacy profession and lack the desire to pursuit such profession.
It’s wide world issue ,not in north America only , the profession is dying ,wages still low compared to other profession,rigorous study, expensive study and journey.
All these factors contribute to the trend .
Interesting take from our neighbors to the north. The pharmacists’ role is definitely a moving target depending upon the state/country and that presents a challenge as well! In addition to the work to become a pharmacist, maybe there is a lack of clarity for students when they are looking at pharmacy as an option?
Interesting, I would think it would be that more students would go into pharmacy since healthcare’s primary intervention in the prescription of medications. But it could very well be a consequence of our fragmented healthcare model that rewards specialization over primary and preventive care. A local pharmacist, familiar with patients, seems such a beneficial and positive asset for a community.
Couldn’t agree more that having someone who knows the patients’ medications would be/is a tremendous asset given how fragmented everything else is!
Pharmacy used to be 100% about taking care of the local community , which is what fed my soul in this profession. Over 25 years in, the decline has been dramatic, trying to do more with less resources and peak stress for 10-12 hour shifts. I’m left trying to hold on to those few, precious meaningful interactions in a day to make it feel worth it.
My heart has always been with community pharmacy, until I made the change to long-term care pharmacy about 6 years ago. I miss the patient interaction… the generations of families that you know by name. So many of us were good at what we as pharmacists do, until the workplace dug us into a deep hole. Big companies kept wanting more and more but giving you less and less. I blame the decline in the profession on these big box retailers who were more interested in filling their pockets than taking care of patients. At the same time, we as pharmacists need to take responsibility for not fighting for provider status. We were too busy arguing about what type of pharmacist we were that we missed the boat. I hope we can learn from this, and the pharmacist can return to the #1 most trusted profession in the world.
Hi MedEd community!
I got my degree in Eastern Europe, but have been practicing in Australia for the past 12 years and got BCPS credentials a couple of years ago.
I can say that I have seen more evolution in the profession here over the last 2 years, than I have over the preceding decade.
I guess there are a few critical points of difference between Australia and USA. We have no corporate ownership of the retail pharmacies, and we have way less specialisation. Politically, there is a shared realisation that only strengthening of the primary healthcare can prevent a large-scale healthcare system crisis triggered by the rapidly ageing population and increasing hospital costs.
We have barriers, too. Pharmacists are the only healthcare profession which can’t access Medicare rebates for their services. Pharmacists mostly get paid by being tied to the drug supply chain.
I’m currently working on a project at a general practice, both me and doctors (and the patients) are enjoying the experience. However, when the project funding is finished, I’m not sure they can afford to keep me on, I can’t see patients and bill Medicare for my services, so we are making estimations of indirect financial benefits (saving doctors time, increasing GP visits, QI incentive payments from the government, etc). Pharmacists have been siloed in the retail pharmacies for too long here. It’s only shifting now, but it’s going to take time.
Profession in a search of itself – is a very accurate representation of what we are going through.
I hope things improve for the US pharmacists, we add value and save money in healthcare when our knowledge and skills are utilised. A lot of the change needs to happen systemically, and this takes years, unfortunately.
I noticed that the number of pharmacy schools has nearly tripled since I started my BS in Pharmacy in 1991. One of my techs, who got a D in organic chemistry, was accepted to a school in 2018. That same tech later told me she saw an applicant left the school interview wearing a hoodie and sandals. Now, the PCAT has been retired. It’s insane to see how the quality of candidates has declined; admissions are no longer merit-based. The NAPLEX pass rates at some schools are below 50%, and the job market is saturated, which is driving down pay. Some companies are offering pay rates as low as $45 to $50 per hour. More pharmacy schools need to shut down in order to save this profession
The pharmacy profession has burnt me out. I have 15 years of experience and 9 of those are as a pharmacist. I loved retail and long term care. It was a huge passion of mine because I loved the idea of learning and helping people, even if the pay increase never followed. It has been one year since I have left the profession and, I just wish something would change. Although I’m not sure, I remember retail pharmacy going downhill the moment CVS and Caremark merged (maybe 2006?). Maybe it has something to do with the ACA. I’m sure the harsh conditions all boil down to money but, this can’t continue. Pharmacists will continue to quit all together, or go down to part-time. I’ve been a huge fan of your blogs and appreciate all the time you take into writing them. This is certainly a very important topic. Thank you for addressing the elephant in the room.
Thank you so much for the kind words! Greatly appreciated 🙂 I love pharmacy! I wish the retail/community side of things was in a better place.
Actually it was the passing of Medicare Part D under the Bush administration. It gave the PBM’s so many patients, they could do as they pleased. I worked with my congressman for prompt payment. That took a year even after the bill was passed. Some of the changes being proposed now will not go Ito effect until 2026
This is heart-breaking to hear and read but expected. With the explosion of pharmacy schools together with the vast closures that was a definitive consequence. I expect more to close. I have advised all my nieces and nephews not to go into pharmacy school. Yes, pharmacy profession is going downhill
Thank you for an informative channel. I love reading your clinical posts as well as trend such as this one. I’ve always felt sad whenever encountering cases where a patient takes way too many unnecessary medications, rely heavily on them, instead of doing the hard work themselves, such as building good routines, nutrition, sleep, and exercises. I read about your article on polypharmacy and they are on the point. In my opinions., the news of closing a pharmacy school, is actually a small step towards and enouraging people taking less medications.
Before you transfer to an unknown pharmacy school, get more verifiable data on that school’s recent NAPLEX passing rate, quality of faculty (are they actively doing research. Please verify the credentials of faculty with faculty from reputable universities.
Also, check if social life is good or not. Learn from other students. If the school is isolated from cosmopolitan culture, you get depressed.