The campaign is an important step towards safer, more respectful interactions with pharmacy teams, and public messaging must be matched by action in the workplace.
Through its daily support and representation of members affected by abuse, intimidation and violence, the PDA sees first-hand how serious and damaging these incidents can be.
This experience reinforces the need for employers to play their part by providing safe working environments, with appropriate staffing, effective security measures, robust risk assessments and practical support when incidents occur.
Employer’s responsibility is already reflected in protections under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and will be reinforced by changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025, due to take effect on 30 October 2026 in England, Wales and Scotland. Under the new legislation, employers will be required to take all reasonable steps to prevent the harassment of employees by third parties, including patients, customers and other members of the public. In practice, pharmacy employers will need to identify and act on risks, maintain safe staffing and appropriate security, train staff, establish clear reporting procedures, record and respond to incidents, and make clear that harassment of pharmacy teams will not be tolerated.
Safe staffing is central to meeting these responsibilities and delivering safe services. Yet the PDA’s Safer Pharmacies research found that just 6% of respondents experienced safe staffing all of the time, while 10% said staffing levels were never safe.
Workplace measures must also be supported by responsible public communications. NHS campaigns promoting pharmacy services should set realistic expectations about what patients can expect and when, with national marketing matched by sufficient capacity at pharmacy level. Clear, accurate information can help reduce frustration, prevent unrealistic expectations and support safer interactions between patients and pharmacy teams.
Together, these measures would help turn the campaign’s message of respect into meaningful and lasting change. The NHS Staff Council, which includes the PDA, has worked with NHS employers to tackle violence in that sector and the PDA would also welcome working with pharmacy employers, Community Pharmacy England and the NHS to strengthen workplace safety and ensure that respect is matched by responsibility and practical action in the community pharmacy sector.
Learn more
- First national health campaign starts today
- Tackling violence in NHS Employers
- PDA support after violence
- PDA violence in pharmacy campaign
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