Work Pressure Continues to Impact Pharmacists’ Suicide Risk, Mental Health

According to a study published in the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy (AJHP), pharmacists are 21% more likely to die by suicide than individuals in the general population.¹ With these suicide trends stemming from a plethora of industry concerns—from the COVID-19 pandemic to current pressures and stigmas—the need for increased suicide awareness and prevention is crucial for pharmacists and technicians across the globe.

“The most concerning finding is that pharmacists are at increased risk of suicide compared with the general population,” Kelly Lee, PharmD, MAS, professor of clinical pharmacy and associate dean for assessment and accreditation at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, told Drug Topics. “While pharmacy technicians as a group have lower risk, female technicians were found to have a higher risk of suicide compared with female nontechnicians. Job-related and mental health problems continue to be associated factors of suicides, and this trend is consistent with our previous work on physician and nurse suicides.”

Lee, who was also a contributing author of the AJHP study, met with Drug Topics to discuss the growing trends of pharmacist and pharmacy technician suicides. According to the study, and what’s been apparent to many experts throughout health care, pharmacists have long acted as the “invisible workforce” across the health care continuum.

Although the study’s findings resemble similar trends among nurses, physicians, and other providers, there are a variety of factors that place pharmacists in a particularly unique position regarding their mental health. From the COVID-19 pandemic serving as a catalyst for increased clinical services at pharmacies, to persistent issues regarding staffing, stigmatization, reimbursement, and more, experts across pharmacy and mental health are helping to address suicide risks among pharmacists.

READ MORE: Addressing Burnout in Pharmacy | APhA 2025

The Common Stressors of the Mental Health Burden

“The field talks a lot about mental health, especially after COVID, but our overall work culture hasn’t changed,” Lee told UC San Diego Today.² “Access to mental health resources is limited, and stigma continues to be a major barrier to seeking help.”

A statistic that is well-known in the pharmacy industry and within many health care arenas, 90% of American patients live within 5 miles of a pharmacy location. Aside from the common stressors in their day-to-day work, this sheer accessibility of pharmacy locations inherently adds a burden onto pharmacists and the businesses they help operate. Furthermore, discussing trends outside of the pharmacists’ control, there is a projected shortage of over 87,000 physicians expected to reach the US health care system by 2037, according to an article from the Point of Care Marketing Association.³

According to Lee, pharmacists have also historically experienced being the “last check” providers tasked with navigating a slew of regulatory hurdles to ensure patient safety and the avoidance of malpractice.

“Pharmacy is one of the most regulated professions that relate, not only the duties of the pharmacist and pharmacy technicians, but the storage and security of medications,” she said in an interview. “The responsibilities of pharmacists extend beyond ‘pill counting’ and they are often considered the ‘last check’ before a medication touches a patient. This perpetual responsibility can be a heavy mental health burden on our profession.”

Finally, pharmacists and technicians are further burdened by necessary duties that reach beyond their expertise and add entirely new processes to pharmacy operations that several pharmacists are unaware of prior to entering the profession.

Lee explained that similar to the “last check” aspect of pharmacists’ duties, responsibilities within the entire pharmacy supply chain must be addressed in the pharmacy, including those related to insurance premiums and companies, drug shortages, and medication affordability. “Unfortunately, in the community, patients feel that pharmacists are responsible for these issues and [it] places a significant emotional toll on the pharmacy workforce,” she continued.

With all of these issues gradually becoming the norm in pharmacy, the workforce’s capacity to pay close attention to and address mental health concerns is seemingly dwindling in real time. Add to that the gross profit margins of retail pharmacies falling under 20%—mainly owed to pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) control and vertical integration of some of health care’s largest corporations—the mental health burden of pharmacists, technicians, and community pharmacy operators may be reaching an all-time high.⁴

READ MORE: The PBM Putting Pharmacists at the Center of Formulary Design

Using Study Findings to Bring Awareness to Suicide Risk

The AJHP study explored National Violent Death Reporting System data from 2011 to 2022. Among its key findings, Lee and her colleagues uncovered that male pharmacists were at a 25% greater risk of suicide then men in the general public. Although suicide risks among women and female pharmacists were comparable, pharmacy technicians that were women had a 22% higher risk of suicide than women in the general population.¹

Furthermore, the overall incidence among men was 76% pharmacists and 39% technicians, and women accounted for 24% of pharmacist suicides and 61% of technician suicides.

According to Lee’s breakdown of the study results with UC San Diego Today, these findings underscore the need for greater attention on pharmacists’ mental health.

Indeed, with her background in both pharmacy practice as well as academia, Lee is well-aware of the persistent stigmas surrounding the profession and pharmacists’ willingness to seek mental health support. Although not necessarily on the radar of the general public and other providers working in their own capacity, these mental health concerns and issues surrounding stigma are a common trend among pharmacists.

Aside from the insights Lee provided, Drug Topics was also joined by Lisa Miller, PharmD, BCPS, MSCP, associate dean and clinical professor at the University of Florida College of Pharmacy.

“Many pharmacists worry that acknowledging mental health struggles could affect licensure credentialing or career advancement,” she told us. “That fear alone can delay or completely prevent people from seeking help.”

As these concerns continue to reach the forefront of the pharmacy industry, as well as the pharmacist champions advocating for these mental health challenges to be addressed, there is a future reality where suicide risk is reduced. If pharmacists continue to call for better access to necessary services, the health care community can come together to improve pharmacists’ overall quality of life and ability to administer care.

READ MORE: Impact of Pharmacy Closures Reaches Far Beyond Medication Access

Addressing the Suicide Risk Through Structural Support

Despite the bleak nature of many pharmacists’ current mental health status, the experts interviewed still believe there is a path forward. According to Miller, there has been “encouraging progress.”

“Pharmacy is now part of a broader national movement to remove structural barriers to mental health care,” she continued. “The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) has acknowledged that licensure and renewal applications may include intrusive questions about prior mental health diagnosis or treatment and has encouraged boards to reevaluate that language. When those barriers are removed and leaders clearly communicate that it is safe to seek care, stigma drops and help-seeking increases.”

NABP is one example of the pharmacy community coming together and dedicating itself to improving the lives of their pharmacists, technicians, and all pharmacy staff. Although similarly aligned organizations agree that mental health can lead to medication errors and poor patient outcomes, they also understand the importance of focusing on pharmacists’ work life and conditions. According to NABP, they and their partners are collectively working to both promote healthier pharmacy environments while also fighting to end all unsafe working conditions in US pharmacy practices.⁵

On a more localized level, communities are also gathering to address mental health concerns among their most accessible health care providers.

“UC San Diego’s HEAR initiative offers confidential screening, education, and referrals for burnout and mental health concerns,” explained Lee. “Demand now outpaces capacity, underscoring the urgent need for workplace reforms and licensing policies that protect—rather than penalize—those seeking help.”

The college’s HEAR (Healer Education Assessment & Referral) program gives participating pharmacy professionals the proper education, anonymous stress and depression screenings, and referral and support for all UC San Diego Health learners and workers.⁶

However, for those that do not have access to well-established mental health programs geared toward the pharmacy workforce, efforts are being encouraged all around the country to bolster pharmacists’ mental health needs.

According to Miller’s experience, many pharmacy leadership teams are redesigning their workplaces and initiatives to move mental health concerns from crisis response to prevention. This includes pharmacy practices implementing necessary staff breaks as well as improving workflows to reduce pharmacists’ workload while simultaneously improving efficiency and mental health.

Workplace leaders are also beginning to introduce tools that measure pharmacists’ workload and mental health burdens by tracking long-term mental health outcomes among pharmacy staff. Finally, Miller touched on the peer support that is offered—and growing—through professional organizations and national and state boards of pharmacy across the country.

Although the current outlook may be geared toward trends of declining mental health and demoralization of pharmacy staff, experts agree that more can, and will, be done.

“We need to address mental health problems for all health care workers, including pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, so that we can continue to provide care for our patients,” concluded Lee. “The current study underscores the importance of screening and ensuring that pharmacists and pharmacy technicians have accessible mental health resources when they need them, before it’s too late.”

READ MORE: Mental and Behavioral Health Resource Center

Are you ready to elevate your pharmacy practice? Sign up today for our free Drug Topics newsletter and get the latest drug information, industry trends, and patient care tips, straight to your inbox.

REFERENCES

1. Makhija H, Davidson JE, Barnes A, et al. National trends in pharmacist and pharmacy technician suicide: incidence and associated features. AJHP. January 8, 2026. Accessed January 26, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajhp/zxag006

2. Martin M. Pharmacists are at elevated risk for suicide, study finds. UC San Diego Today. January 8, 2026. Accessed January 26, 2026. https://today.ucsd.edu/story/pharmacists-are-at-elevated-risk-for-suicide-study-finds

3. Pharmacies are an emerging access point for patient care: Explore their evolving role. Point of Care Marketing Association. September 30, 2025. Accessed January 26, 2026. https://pocmarketing.org/resources-insights/pharmacies-are-an-emerging-access-point-for-patient-care-explore-their-evolving-role

4. Joseph S. Why pharmacies like Walgreens, Rite Aid and independents are dying. Forbes. January 12, 2026. Accessed January 26, 2026.https://www.forbes.com/sites/sethjoseph/2026/01/12/why-pharmacies-like-walgreens-rite-aid-and-independents-are-dying/

5. Mental health and well-being: for pharmacy staff. NABP. Accessed January 27, 2026. https://nabp.pharmacy/initiatives/pharmacy-practice-safety/mental-health-and-well-being-resources/

6. Healer Education Assessment & Referral program. UC San Diego. Accessed January 27, 2026. https://hear.ucsd.edu/