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Evidence indicates major risks when 95% of pharmacies operate without a qualified pharmacist and when enforcement, roles, and awareness are limited. The paper synthesizes the FIP National Intelligence Report and a practitioner poll to diagnose barriers and propose reform priorities spanning legislation, governance, education, clinical placements, and continuous professional development.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":35,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/strengthening-pakistans-pharmaceutical-workforce-from-evidence-to-action-editorial/454969/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/strengthening-pakistans-pharmaceutical-workforce-from-evidence-to-action-editorial/454969.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Mimi","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-31","2026-09-30",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":39},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"Why are pharmacists considered important in healthcare systems globally?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"Pharmacists are increasingly recognised as key healthcare team members, supporting rational use of medicines, chronic disease management, and essential public health services.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"What major workforce problem exists in Pakistan according to the article?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"A large share of pharmacies operate without a qualified pharmacist, with 95% lacking a qualified pharmacist, which increases risks for medication safety and rational use.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"Which reforms does the article propose to strengthen the profession?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"Reform priorities include updating outdated legislation and strengthening governance, renewing curricula with clinical exposure, expanding structured placements, building competencies, and making continuous professional development more effective.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},454969,1791089804,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":39,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":24,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":143,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},2336477974920,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_155a257f0dc6eb9ab79c44ca47cae57d","JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL POLICY AND PRACTICE 2026, VOL. 19, NO. 1, 2600792 [https://doi.org/10.1080/20523211.2025.2600792](https://doi.org/10.1080/20523211.2025.2600792)  \nStrengthening Pakistan’s pharmaceutical workforce: from evidence to action  \nSetting the scene  \nGlobally, pharmacists are increasingly recognised as vital members of the healthcare team. Their contributions extend beyond dispensing to ensuring rational use of medicines, supporting chronic disease management, and delivering essential public health services (Atif et al., 2020; Babar, 2016; Palaian et al., 2022; World Health Organization, 2019). Evidence from diverse health systems demonstrates the clinical and economic value of pharmacists across primary, secondary, and tertiary care (Babar, 2016; Chou et al., 2003; Hwang & Young, 2015; Scahill et al., 2017).  \nYet in Pakistan, pharmacists remain marginalised within the health system. Despite more than 40,000 pharmacies operating nationwide, 95% lack a qualified pharmacist (Gulf News, 2019; Pharmacy Council of Pakistan, 2020) . This poses major risks for medication safety and rational use. Pharmacists’ invisibility is reinforced by limited roles in policy and practice, outdated regulations, and lack of public awareness campaigns (Hafeez, 1991; Malik et al., 2020; Mumtaz & Shaheed, 1987) .  \nThe FIP National Intelligence Report: Pakistan (Bukhari et al., 2023) highlights these systemic barriers and provides a roadmap for reform. It is complemented by insights from a practitioner poll of over 340 pharmacists, revealing frustrations with governance, training, and recognition. Together, these perspectives show both the urgency of reform and the profession’s aspirations (International Pharmaceutical Federation, 2019; UHC2030, 2021) .  \nSignals from the workforce  \nPharmacists participating in the national poll described recurring themes: weak enforcement of existing laws, lack of pharmacist presence in retail, curricula dominated by basic sciences, and scarce clinical placements. Many reported feeling undervalued by patients, physicians, and policymakers, restricted to dispensing roles rather than recognised as clinical experts (Bukhari et al., 2020; Mustafa et al., 2018) .  \nDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, however, pharmacists stepped forward as frontline providers, ensuring medicine supply chains, patient counselling, and infection prevention (Bukhari et al., 2020; Cucinotta & Vanelli, 2020) . This visibility offered a glimpse of what is possible when pharmacists are empowered. The challenge now is translating this momentum into sustained policy reforms.  \nSystemic barriers holding back the profession  \nOutdated legislation  \nPakistan’s Drug Act 1976 and Pharmacy Act 1967 are no longer fit for purpose (Drug Act, 1976; Pharmacy Act, 1967) . While the DRAP Act 2012 attempted to modernise oversight, enforcement remains weak. Prescriptiononly medicines continue to be sold without checks, and there is no consistent mandate for pharmacist presence at every point of sale (Malik et al., 2020) .  \nThe pharmacist-to-population ratio set under the Pharmacy Act is outdated at 1:50, and definitions of pharmacy practice fail to reflect current roles in clinical care, public health, and research. Without legislative reform, the profession cannot meet modern healthcare needs (Babar, 2017; Pharmacy Council of Pakistan, 2020) .  \nWeak professional governance  \nThe Pharmacy Council of Pakistan (PCP) was established to regulate education, practice, and premises, but fragmentation following devolution has weakened its authority. Registration is still paper based, limiting workforce data accuracy and planning capacity (Pharmacy Council of Pakistan, 2020). Without restructuring and digitalisation, PCP cannot provide the leadership needed for reform (International Labour Organization, 2018; World Bank, 2022).  \n© 2025 The Author(s) . Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group  \nThis is an Open Access article dist","cbCaifBZvvrJzjko","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaifBZvvrJzjko","pdf",288733,"English","# Setting the scene\n## Signals from the workforce\n## Systemic barriers holding back the profession\n### Outdated legislation\n### Weak professional governance\n# Shaping future pharmacists\n## Curriculum renewal\n## Internships and residencies\n## Competency development\n## Beyond the counter: building a modern workforce\n### Continuous professional development","[{\"question\":\"Why are pharmacists considered important in healthcare systems globally?\",\"answer\":\"Pharmacists are increasingly recognised as key healthcare team members, supporting rational use of medicines, chronic disease management, and essential public health services.\"},{\"question\":\"What major workforce problem exists in Pakistan according to the article?\",\"answer\":\"A large share of pharmacies operate without a qualified pharmacist, with 95% lacking a qualified pharmacist, which increases risks for medication safety and rational use.\"},{\"question\":\"Which reforms does the article propose to strengthen the profession?\",\"answer\":\"Reform priorities include updating outdated legislation and strengthening governance, renewing curricula with clinical exposure, expanding structured placements, building competencies, and making continuous professional development more effective.\"}]","Strengthening Pakistan’s pharmaceutical workforce: from evidence to action - Editorial | PDF",1790741811,13]