Work experiences of internationally trained pharmacists in Great Britain.
OBJECTIVE
Internationally trained health professionals are an important part of the domestic workforce, but little is known about the working experiences of internationally trained pharmacists (ITPs) in Great Britain (GB). The purpose of this study is to explore the work experiences of ITPs practising in the community or hospital sector in GB.


METHODS
Twenty-five semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted with a sample of European Economic Area (EEA) and non-EEA pharmacists who, at the time of the study, practised in the community (n = 20) or hospital sector (n = 5) in the North West England from March to May 2009.


RESULTS
In general, ITPs complained about their heavy workload, long working hours and lack of support from their employers. Specifically, EEA pharmacists in most cases felt excluded from the professional network and sensed colleagues saw them as 'foreigners' while some non-EEA pharmacists had to deal with a level of hostility from patients.


CONCLUSIONS
This novel research provides a foundation for future work on ITPs in GB and could assist employers to better target their efforts in development of standards to support the working experiences of ITPs in GB.
Centre for Pharmacy Workforce Studies, Manchester Pharmacy School, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Zainab
Z
Ziaei
Karen
K
Hassell
Ellen I
EI
Schafheutle
D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003157:Community Pharmacy Services; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010595:Pharmacists; D010607:Pharmacy Service, Hospital; D024382:Professional Role; D006113:United Kingdom; D016526:Workload
internationally trained pharmacist; migration; pharmacy