Women Pharmacist Day Happening This Week

The inaugural Women Pharmacist Day will be commemorated on Oct. 12, 2018, in conjunction with National Pharmacist Month, to recognize the important contributions women pharmacists make, every day, to delivering quality care to patients, and conference organizers at the National Community Pharmacy Association's (NCPA) Annual Convention reminded pharmacists to celebrate.

While women made up only 8% of all US pharmacists as recently as the 1960s, women currently comprise 55% of the pharmacist workforce, and the number of those practicing is on the rise. Approximately 61% of the 14,000 PharmDs earned in the US in 2016 were earned by women, according to a recent press release from Cardinal Health, Women Pharmacist Day sponsor.

NCPA conference organizers explained that Women Pharmacist Day is an excellent opportunity to celebrate the significant gains women have made in pursuing careers in pharmacy, while honoring the trailblazers who have made such progress possible.

Women Pharmacist Day was founded by Dr. Suzanne Soliman, a pharmacist who is also founder of PharmacistMomsGroup.com, a not-for-profit organization that offers support, resources and a professional network for pharmacist moms. The group has grown in just one year to over 16,000 pharmacist moms and continues to grow daily. Soliman chose October because it marks National Pharmacist Month; she chose the 12th day of the month to honor the legendary first female pharmacist in the U.S., Elizabeth Gooking Greenleaf, who had 12 children and is an inspiring role model for thousands of women who dream of becoming a pharmacist.

We're celebrating #WomenPharmacistDay all week! #UICPharm is proud to support women in pharmacy.

Join us for a special conversation with Dean Emerita Rosalie Sagraves, Friday at 12:30pm.

See more: https://t.co/TI9aBywQTW pic.twitter.com/5SGMMc5Arl

— UIC Pharmacy (@UICPharm) October 9, 2018

Multiple colleges of pharmacy across the United States are hosting #WomenPharmacistDay themed events this week, bringing alumnae and students together to encourage career mentoring within the pharmacy profession, discuss career paths within pharmacy, and explore ways to increase female representation in pharmacy leadership roles. She also said that several colleges of pharmacy, pharmacy associations and healthcare companies have issued formal statements supporting Women Pharmacist Day, including Cardinal Health CEO Mike Kaufmann.

To increase the visibility of support, NCPA officials encouraged all #WomenPharmacistDay posts to tag Cardinal Health on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn and tag Pharmacist Moms Group on LinkedIn, Instagram or on Twitter.

Many pharmacists and pharmacy students have responded:

In honor of #WomenPharmacistDay, @UIC_APhA_ASP is collecting donations for @Sarahs_Circle, an org that serves women who are homeless or in need of a safe space. Please bring your contributions to the #UICPharm Chicago lobby on Thursday, October 11 between 12:30 and 1:20pm.#UIC pic.twitter.com/dSZXDW0gX0

— UIC Pharmacy (@UICPharm) October 9, 2018

To celebrate the upcoming #WomenPharmacistDay, we're spotlighting women who made significant contributions to the pharmacy industry throughout history! pic.twitter.com/PHxDbI7MLR

— RxOwnership (@RxOwnership) October 10, 2018

Learn more about #WomenPharmacistDay at PharmacistMomsGroup.com.