Pharmacists can help protect themselves from being disciplined for MUR performance by following some simple steps
Pharmacists can reduce the risk of being disciplined for failing to meet MUR targets by following some simple steps and by taking advice from the PDA at an early stage.
- Don’t agree to a target that you know to be unachievable. Business measure setting should be a two way process and any objectives agreed should be realistic and attainable within the available resources.
- Professional and patient interest considerations are paramount. MURs should be delivered according to a pharmacist’s assessment of individual patient need and not done just to meet employer driven commercial targets.
- Never agree to a rolling target where the next days target increases if the current days target for whatever reason cannot be met.
- If you are unable to reach the required number of MURs without extra support, resources or training being provided by the company, it is essential that this is documented at an early stage and communicated to your line manager. A proper audit trail must be kept in order to verify the number of MURs undertaken if required.
- When circumstances outside your control prevent you from providing sufficient MURs to patients, make a note of these for discussion at review time.
- If you experience bullying, harassment or generally unacceptable behaviour at work from your line manager, keep a diary of events and retain copies of emails or other correspondence that will demonstrate this behaviour if needed at a later stage.
- If matters start to get out of hand then make contact with the PDA for advice as soon as possible.
- There are effective mechanisms available for pharmacists to challenge unacceptable presure from their employer to reach MUR targets. The PDA has a proven strategy to support pharmacists in this position and continues to lobby the GPhC and the profession to stop such bullying behaviour in the workplace.