World Pharmacists Week: Statements Dail Éireann — 2026-09-24 ============================================================ Keira Keogh (FG), Mayo I thank the Minister for being here. I welcome the opportunity to speak during World Pharmacists Day and to recognise the invaluable contribution made by pharmacists across the country, including in my constituency of Mayo. Mayo people will use any excuse to say "Up Mayo" these days. This year's theme is "Empowering pharmacists for healthier futures" and it is a fitting reminder of the central role pharmacists play in our healthcare system. They are often the most accessible healthcare professionals in our communities and provide advice, support patients, administer vaccines and ensure the safe use of medicines. In many rural towns and villages across Mayo, the local pharmacy is a vital front-line health service and a really trusted point of contact for communities. I recognise the progress that has been made in expanding the role of pharmacists in recent years. Through the Government's common condition service, community pharmacists can assess patients and, where appropriate, prescribe certain prescription-only medicines for a range of common conditions like shingles, impetigo, conjunctivitis, cold sores, allergic rhinitis and uncomplicated urinary tract infections. This means that patients can access treatment more quickly and, in turn, it reduces pressures on our already overburdened GP services and it prevents presentations at accident and emergency departments. Pharmacists also play an important role in supporting women accessing hormone replacement therapy, HRT, with the State now covering the cost of HRT medicines under the national HRT scheme where these treatments have been prescribed by a healthcare professional. I welcome the upcoming secondary legislation, which I know is being worked on at the moment, to provide regulatory guidance and pharmacist training for the contraceptive prescribing service, which will allow repeat prescriptions for some forms of contraception. This is a really important and welcome move. I think especially of those women who are suffering domestic violence or under coercive control where trying to get a GP appointment might be very difficult or where they might be seen going into the doctor. To be able to go into a local pharmacist and get this is key. These reforms recognise the expertise of pharmacists and demonstrate how empowering them to work at the top of their licence can improve access to care, particularly in rural communities such as those throughout Mayo. I also really welcome the newly launched MediBack service, which has been online since 26 August. It is another really good and practical example of the important role our community pharmacists are playing. It is providing a safe and convenient way to return unused or expired medicines correctly, which is protecting our environment but also protecting public health and safety. We lost my nana in 2024. One slowly goes through the process of cleaning out the house but we are finding so many unused medications and to be able to pop into the local pharmacy is helpful. It is similar to what we have with batteries where we have the WEEE collection. Now we have somewhere to go with our medicines because it is too easy to throw them in the bin and we do not know the consequences so I remind everybody to check their cabinets this week. I thank the Minister and her Department for their work on that really practical scheme. I also acknowledge that the demands placed on our pharmacists have increased significantly in recent years because our population is ageing and our healthcare needs are becoming more complex. Pharmacists are taking on an even greater role in preventative care, medicines management and supporting patients to live healthier, longer lives. They consistently demonstrate professionalism and dedication in serving their communities. However, while we are celebrating their contribution, we must also acknowledge the challenges facing them and their struggles. There are a few facing the sector. The most pressing concern expressed to me by pharmacists in Westport and Newport is the ongoing issue of medicine shortages and stock availability. Despite the calm our pharmacists often offer at the counter, they have told me the true nature of their role, which often involves a lot of stress. To add to that, they are dealing with these significant supply issues where they are sometimes spending valuable time late in the evening trying to source alternative supplies of essential medicines, sometimes contacting prescribers to prescribe something alternative and then trying to reassure concerned patients who cannot access the medications they normally rely upon. This often places additional pressure on already busy pharmacies and can create anxiety, particularly in older people and those managing long-term conditions. I think of one story where a lady was coming in for her regular HRT medication and the pharmacist could not provide it for her, which was stressful for him and for her. This pharmacist told me that at one point, up to 300 basic medicines were not available on his shelves at a particular time and reported that at one stage, he even tried to quarter tablets. That is very stressful. In rural counties such as Mayo, these supply disruptions can have an even greater impact because patients often have to travel significant distances to get to their pharmacist and if we are waiting for the medicine to reach Mayo, that can also add to the delay. Community pharmacists are doing everything possible to manage these shortages but they cannot solve systemic supply chain issues on their own. I was told about that lady with the HRT but also about another mother whose child was diagnosed with ADHD after a long waiting process. She went in to collect the medication but could not get it. I know that these issues are also global in nature, with supply channels being driven by a range of factors and the global demand for medicine does continue to rise with the ageing population and chronic conditions. I welcome the work that the Minister has done on this. I know there was a new agreement this year. The Irish Pharmacy Union survey for this year is ongoing and we will not see the effects of that just yet but if we look at the Irish Pharmacy Union's 2025 medicine shortages survey, we can see that 57% of pharmacists reported that medicine shortages had significantly increased over the previous 12 months compared with 82% in 2024. However, the overall scale of the problem remains significant, with that 57% of pharmacists still encountering shortages. The survey suggests that shortages might be beginning to level off rather than worsen but it is not lost on me that pharmacists are continuing to spend significant time sourcing alternatives. As such, I really welcome the new framework agreement that was announced earlier this year between the State, the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association and Medicines for Ireland to govern the pricing and supply of medicines until 2029. I know that this agreement aims to improve patient access to medicine, strengthen medicine supply chains and reduce shortages, encourage the early introduction of generic and bio-similar medicines, and maintain the financial stability of the service. It is in this vein that I welcome the programme for Government commitment to support pharmacists to adopt a proactive approach to managing medicine shortages but the Government must continue working with pharmacists, wholesalers, manufacturers and healthcare providers to strengthen medicine supply chains, improve communication around shortages and ensure that patients can access the medicines that they need when they need them. We must also continue to support investment in our pharmacy workforce, particularly in rural areas, so that community pharmacists can remain sustainable and continue delivering essential services close to where people live. Today, in advance of World Pharmacists Day, I thank all pharmacists and pharmacy staff across Ireland but especially across Mayo for their dedication to patient care. I do not want to name all the pharmacists in Mayo but there is one very famous tonic. If anybody is starting to have a bit of a sniffle or to come down with something, he or she is not sent in to see the doctor but, rather, down to Tom Treacy's to get his famous tonic. Nobody knows what is in it but apparently it is a cure for everything. I must also mention my own pharmacist Ronan Lally, who has kept me alive in this new crazy political life. I think we can all agree that we Deputies do not have the healthiest of lifestyles and maybe not that much time to go to the GP, so our pharmacists so often keep us alive. With that, I thank pharmacists for their expertise. Their commitment and service have a real impact on the health and well-being of our communities every day. Happy World Pharmacists Day. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-09-24/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-09-28T05:50:50+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-09-24