Q&A: Hybrid Pharmacist Roles Modernize Pharmacy Workforce and Career Paths

With new approaches to medication dispensing and technology taking over in the pharmacy space, the need to modernize pharmacy practice is evolving in real time. However, much of this need for modernization lies within innovating the pharmacy workforce.

That is exactly what the Walgreens organization is attempting with its newly introduced hybrid pharmacist role.

“What we really have to start focusing on now is modernizing how we actually hire pharmacists, train pharmacists, work with them to really have the impact that we know they can have day in and day out,” Rick Gates, chief pharmacy officer at Walgreens, told Drug Topics. “I think this is just the next version of innovation that you're going to see within the pharmacy space. We have to be more creative."

In part 2 of our interview, Gates explores how this new role will fall in line with the greater pharmacy industry, introducing new approaches to work-life balance, innovation behind the counter, and so much more.

READ MORE: Hybrid Pharmacist Roles Could Boost Flexibility, Satisfaction, and Staffing Solutions

Drug Topics: What type of impact will this new role have on the rest of the pharmacy’s employees—from pharmacists and pharmacy managers to clerks and pharmacy technicians?

Rick Gates: I think that we're learning from this. It’s obviously going to help from a pharmacist engagement retention perspective, which I think is an important part of what we're trying to do. We want to listen to our employees, [while] investing in places to make their work life exactly what they're wanting it to be and really helping them be in front of patients. But it's really about giving balanced, predictable schedules. Retail sometimes can be hard. We have open and close shifts; we have weekend shifts. I think sometimes people are looking for a little bit more predictability.

I think [the hybrid pharmacist role] gives us the ability to give scheduled time, more flex time, and give a little bit of a different work-life balance versus always having to be in stores all the time. I think that you're going to see us probably learn from this and say, ‘Can we actually expand this into a technician population, or beyond pharmacists?’ If you think about it, the more that we can take out of a store to leave our employees in stores that have face-to-face interaction with the patients, that's better for all of us. I do think you're going to see us expand this going forward beyond just pharmacists to support more broadly technicians in our stores as well.

Just a point of clarification, we aren't nationwide yet. I am hoping to be soon, but I have a list over here. We have it out in 6 states right now: Arkansas, Missouri, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. I think why that's important is we wanted to go broad enough to really understand the impact and the feedback, most importantly, from our pharmacists. I think you'll see us roll that quickly if we get the feedback that we expect to get from this program.

Drug Topics: What kinds of pharmacy professionals are going to be best-suited to take on these new roles?

Rick Gates: I don't think it's just pharmacists. I think everybody has some change management, change acceptance. I think it's going to be a mix. You’re going to have some that are going to come out of school and want to just gain experiences in different settings and really try to see, ‘Is this an environment that I really wanted to be in? Can I see myself starting my career here and then seeing different career paths?’ You'll have some that are highly tenured that have been with the company for a long time, saying, ‘I want to try something different and see how much of a difference there is in work-life balance.’

I don't know that it's suited necessarily for any individual. I think it's going to be very personal. What we want to do is make sure we have flexibility based off of what you're looking for in your career. I think that's actually why I'm most excited about it, because it does give a different type of lens into things that you can do, if you want to have direct patient care. Now, we have lots of different opportunities that are out there: pharmacy district supervisors; my role [in] corporate support centers. There's lots of roles where pharmacists can play, but this is really for those that want to continue to have direct patient care day in and day out, with a little bit more flexibility. I think it's just expanding that flexibility more than we've had in the past.

Drug Topics: How do you think the introduction of new pharmacy roles like this one will encourage other pharmacy businesses to revamp or update their business models or general pharmacy workflows?

Rick Gates: I think that's the important question. You keep hearing me talk about the modernization that we're doing here at Walgreens, but everybody is. [At] NACDS, I'm trying to push it as well. We've got to make sure pharmacy is getting better, and we have to make sure that we are all invested in the right ways. We've done a lot to start to take work out of stores, to simplify what our stores are doing, and make it easier for them day in and day out. That's micro-fulfillment centers and centralized services.

What we really have to start focusing on now is modernizing how we actually hire pharmacists, train pharmacists, work with them to really have the impact that we know they can have day in and day out; to have outcomes for their patients and have a fulfilling career. I think this is just the next version of innovation that you're going to see within the pharmacy space. We have to be more creative.

We have to make sure that we are listening to our employees to make sure that we're putting these things out in market. I think this is a place where people, hopefully, will come in and say, ‘It's a great place to start my career, but I feel like there's flexibility in what I can do in that career, whether it's daily, staying in and taking care of my patients,’—which we have so many pharmacists that have been doing it for 30-plus years that are amazing in taking care of their patients—to those that want to come and do things in the corporate office. I think the flexibility within what we can offer is what we're really trying to do. It all starts like it always has at Walgreens with our pharmacists in our stores.

READ MORE: Can Hobbies Help Pharmacists Combat the Burnout Epidemic?

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