Pharmacists to help address loneliness epidemic with world-first training and education
5 August 2024
Marking Loneliness Awareness Week (5-11 August 2024), the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) is proud to partner with Pharmacy Addressing Loneliness and Social-isolation (PALS) to deliver world-first training for pharmacists to identify and address loneliness as a social and health priority.
Research has shown that loneliness has a significant impact on a person’s physical, cognitive and mental health, including a 26% increased risk of premature death – similar to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Loneliness has also been linked to a 32% increased risk of stroke, a 29% increased risk of coronary heart disease, high cholesterol and blood pressure, and an increased risk of depression.
Loneliness has significant economic repercussions, costing the Australian economy an estimated $2.7 billion annually, with the average cost of approximately $1,565 per person per year. Loneliness is associated with increased use of primary health services including contact with pharmacy services and GPs, and results in more emergency treatments and hospital visits. Tackling loneliness could also assist with reducing waiting time and improving access to health services.
The program, founded and created by Australian pharmacist and PALS founder Jenny Kirschner, is the first education program in the world targeted toward health professionals, giving them the skills and confidence to identify and work with patients most at risk of poor health outcomes as a result of loneliness.
The Pharmacist Training Program on Loneliness combines video testimonies of pharmacists working to improve social cohesion, interviews with global health and social connection leaders including the World Health Organisation, and comprehensive evidence-based education designed specifically for pharmacists.
PSA National President Associate Professor Fei Sim FPS said it’s clear something had to be done.
“As pharmacists we often see members of our communities struggling with loneliness. By empowering pharmacists with education and raising awareness, we can make an even bigger difference to the lives of Australians who are experiencing loneliness.
“Loneliness is not just a social problem. The impact on physical and mental health is clear. When you see it through a health lens, it makes sense that all health professionals have an obligation to learn and understand loneliness, and what we can do to help.
“Pharmacists are among the most accessible and trusted health care professionals in our communities, meaning there are more opportunities than ever for pharmacists to have an impact on social health as part of a true person-centred approach to healthcare.
“I sincerely thank Jenny Kirschner for her long-term commitment to advancing the role of pharmacists to address loneliness. I urge all pharmacists, no matter where or how you practise to take on this new opportunity to champion connectivity and social cohesion in our communities.”
PALS Founder Jenny Kirschner MPS commended the leadership of pharmacists addressing loneliness on the ground.
“Partnering with the PSA to launch the World’s First Pharmacist Training program on Loneliness is more than an endorsement of educational content, it is a watershed moment for the pharmacy profession in Australia and globally,” Ms Kirschner said.
“This demonstrates true leadership from the PSA, prioritising loneliness as public health priority and putting the pharmacy profession at the forefront of helping to address one of the most pressing issues of our time.
“Addressing loneliness is deeply personal for me and I have aspired to integrate the research on loneliness into the curriculum for pharmacists and pharmacy students to develop a workforce equipped to help address loneliness.
“This program feels like my most meaningful work to date. Yet, this training program is just the beginning… there is more work that needs to be done,” she concluded.
The Pharmacist Training Program on Loneliness is available now, free for all PSA members.
About Jenny and PALS
Jenny Kirschner BPharm (Hons) MPS has 20+ years’ experience in the healthcare and pharmacy sectors including as a clinical and retail pharmacist. She has a deeply personal experience of loneliness and is a passionate clinical entrepreneur who is out to educate and inspire the entire pharmacy industry to address loneliness at patient, pharmacy and community level.
Jenny is the founder of the PALS (Pharmacy Addressing Loneliness and Social Isolation). PALS is first international pharmacy initiative developing a road map for the pharmacy sector to address loneliness. The longer-term goal is for pharmacists to have an in-depth understanding of the health effects associated with loneliness, and how to address them, and for this to become an intrinsic part of pharmacy practice across Australia and globally.
Jenny’s work has been published in the Australian Journal of Pharmacy (AJP) and Australian Pharmacist (AP) on the topic of loneliness. In Australia, Jenny has presented on loneliness at peak national pharmacy education conferences (PSA conference), to the #1 global ranking (2023) pharmacy university (Monash University Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences) and at a Parliamentary House event championing the pivotal role that pharmacists can play in addressing loneliness. Jenny is the creator of the World First Pharmacist Training program on Loneliness.
Media contact: Leah Robinson M: 0421 659 040 E: leah.robinson@psa.org.au
