APhA, NASPA launch confidential portal for pharmacy personnel to report workplace experiences
The American Pharmacists Association and the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations are launching the first confidential reporting mechanism of its kind to collect anonymous reports from pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and student pharmacists about their positive and negative experiences in the pharmacy workplace.
The Pharmacy Workplace and Well-being Reporting portal was developed in response to the desire by pharmacy personnel across many practice settings for a venue to address workplace concerns and suggest improvements, without fear of retribution.
The reports will be collected and analyzed by the Alliance for Patient Medication Safety, a federally recognized Patient Safety Organization, to help tell a collective, powerful story to spark change and improvement in pharmacy personnel well-being, and patient safety. The information collected is protected by the confidentiality and privilege provisions of the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005. Submissions to the PWRR cannot be disclosed or subpoenaed, and are not subject to discovery in a legal proceeding.
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“Pharmacists and pharmacy personnel workplace issues and their relationship to personal well-being continue to be a critical, complex issue across all practice settings,” said APhA President Sandra Leal. “In recent decades, considerable work has been done to identify and understand medication errors, including near misses, and characterize the root causes. What has been lacking in the research is a critical examination of workplace factors and solutions to determine how they affect pharmacy personnel well-being and patient safety.”
“Pharmacists have asked for a way to discuss these issues without fear of retribution. They want to learn about solutions colleagues have instituted to make real changes in their pharmacy practice to better take care of their patients,” said Garth Reynolds, president of NASPA. “PWWR was developed by APhA and NASPA to address their request. What is learned from their positive and negative experiences and solutions can serve as the foundation of best practices, education, and recommendations to enhance the pharmacy workplace, patient safety, and pharmacy personnel well-being.”