Day Lewis partners with 'Locate a Locum' for enhanced pharmacy staffing in 267 Locations

Day Lewis Pharmacy has enlisted Locate a Locum, a Belfast-based healthcare technology innovator, to deploy and manage a digital solution aimed at enhancing locum staffing and management across its 267-pharmacy network.

"We sought a faster, user-friendly system for instant locum bookings, particularly for last-minute shifts," said Sam Patel, Executive Director at Day Lewis Pharmacy. "This tool improves communication between potential locums and our coordinators, creating more opportunities to attract talent from across the country. Our customers are our priority, and ensuring they have access to staff and advice when needed is our main focus."

Locate a Locum will implement a cloud-based digital solution across the Day Lewis Pharmacy estate, allowing locums to securely search, manage, request, and receive payment for shifts, Day Lewis said in a statement. This platform enables locum staff to manage their work diaries, location preferences, and commitments, promoting balanced work-life planning.

"The Locate a Locum platform allows for swift, complete payments to our locums and offers them instant booking, eliminating the need for shift confirmation wait times," Patel added. "In a dynamic market with rising demand for pharmacy services, this platform is a game-changer, driving growth and unlocking potential."

Day Lewis' network spans from Darlington in County Durham to St Just in Cornwall, serving over one million patients and employing more than 2,500 staff. This new technology will be implemented in all pharmacy outlets and at the head office in Croydon, providing managers with an online solution for staff rota planning, ensuring efficient resource allocation across all locations, the statement added.

"Day Lewis Pharmacy is a notable success story in the UK and Europe, prioritizing both employees and customers," said Jonathon Clarke, CEO of Locate a Locum. "We're thrilled to provide an innovative, tech-rich solution to support their growth ambitions. Our close collaboration with Sam and the team focused on meeting their needs, ensuring efficiency, transparency, and operational performance to drive digital transformation and business growth."

Clarke, a trained pharmacist, founded the digital company in 2017. Presently, it serves more than 30 pharmacy organisations across 3,000 locations in the UK and Northern Ireland, boasting a registry of over 30,000 registered locum pharmacists, making it the UK's largest locum pharmacist network.

In August, the NHSE's 2022 Community Pharmacy Workforce Survey revealed a notable shift in working patterns within community pharmacy, with an increased utilisation of locum pharmacists. The number of employed pharmacists decreased by 16 per cent, dropping from 12,774 in 2021 to 10,943 in 2022, while the count of locum pharmacists rose by 26 per cent, increasing from 4,297 in 2021 to 5,477 in 2022.