Pharmacists and their teams have been urged to turn away patients who are being abusive, racist or Islamophobic.
It comes after a poll found more than half of community pharmacy teams have felt unsafe amid riots across the country.
One in three pharmacies polled by the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) said they considered closing as riots spread across the UK over the last week.
And over half of pharmacy teams said that they felt unsafe because of the violent unrest, the NPA said.
More than one in ten (13%) of pharmacy teams reported that they had faced racist comments over the last week, according to the ‘snap poll’ carried out by the NPA over WhatsApp over the last three days.
The NPA estimated that the poll represented around 350 community pharmacies.
According to the NPA, over 40% of pharmacists are from a South Asian heritage, black or from another ethnic minority, and it is thought that the majority of independent community pharmacy owners are of South Asian heritage.
Paul Rees, NPA chief executive, commented on the NPA’s polling, saying:
‘The last two weeks have been tough for so many people working in community pharmacy – especially for those who are of South Asian heritage, black or from other ethnic minorities.
‘We should not expect community pharmacy teams, under any circumstances, to accept being subjected to intimidation, harassment, racism or Islamophobic abuse.’
And in line with comments made earlier this week by health secretary Wes Streeting, Mr Rees encouraged pharmacies to ‘take a zero tolerance approach’ and ‘turn people away who are being abusive, racist or Islamophobic and contact the police’.
‘Pharmacies are the heart of their communities and as the front door of the NHS have been particularly vulnerable to a rise in violence and intimidation in the last few weeks.
‘We are immensely proud of the diversity of pharmacy contractors and their teams and are doing all we can to support them at this time.’
Statement from the GPhC on ongoing violent disorder and its impact on pharmacy services
Roz Gittins, Chief Pharmacy Officer at the General Pharmaceutical Council, said:
“We strongly condemn the racism, violence and disorder caused by a small minority of the population that has taken place over recent days.
“We understand that pharmacy teams serving our communities may feel especially vulnerable at this time. Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians from black and minority ethnic backgrounds, as well as those who trained abroad, make an enormous contribution to our pharmacy and health services and they should never have to feel fear when going to work. Any abuse, violence, Islamophobia or any other form of racism towards pharmacy staff is completely unacceptable, and should be reported to the police.
“We recognise that employers have a duty of care to keep their staff safe at work and we urge pharmacy owners and other employers to urgently consider whether there are any further steps they could take to reduce the risk of their staff experiencing abuse, violence or racism. For example, by making sure that pharmacy staff are not asked to work alone, and empowering Responsible Pharmacists to make decisions such as temporarily closing a pharmacy because of potential risks to the safety of the pharmacy staff, as well as the safety of patients and the public.
“We call on employers to do what they can to reassure their staff, and highlight the support available to help staff to protect their health and well-being, at this very difficult time.
“Our regulatory standards and guidance are there to help safeguard pharmacy staff, as well as patients and members of the public.”
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