Undervalued, under-supported? Why Dispensary Managers need more help

“I’m doing 40 hours of my 25 contracted now. It used to be 50.”

It makes you do a double take when someone is thankful to be only 15 hours overtime. But for Jo at Wickhambrook Surgery, managing a 12,000‑item, 100% dispensing practice means: “We don’t stop. There are always 2-3 people at the counter dispensing.” With staff, risk assessments, flu season and balancing the books – it’s full‑on.

“I don’t think people outside understand the work that goes in. Finding stock, training staff, all the legal adherence, SOPs that need rewriting.

The dispensary is doing well - “the team are happy, the partners are happy” but – “I’m knackered. It takes a lot to stay on top of things.” That frustration, that people outside the dispensary don’t understand its importance or what it takes to be successful, is something so many teams get.

So, why do so many dispensary managers feel undervalued and under supported?

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No framework for Dispensary Managers

It’s a role that people like Jo are often left to piece together themselves. Previously, their team had no Dispensary Manager. It’s an industry‑wide issue, says Kirstye, Dispex Consultant and manager herself:

“I wrote the essential guide to dispensary management, because over 20 years, there was no one who taught me how to do it. It was just a case of going in and carrying on what the last person did.”

Nearly all the managers she helps “escalated up into the role” without any framework. “When CQC come in, it’s the dispensary manager who is responsible for risk assessments,  near miss records, significant events.”

The wider NHS doesn’t fully grasp this, says Max von Tongeren, Deputy Dispensary Lead at Clarkson Surgery: “There’s not a deep understanding of the work involved from the wider NHS.  We need on upcoming changes, training and more clear systems, because we don’t have the resource to constantly monitor changes.”

Without structure, all the knowledge sits with one person, and practices know how quickly disruption cascades when they move on.
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It all means that having access to fast, clear info and a proper workflow to manage these things is key. For Jo, joining Cambrian Alliance has given her transparency and a platform that can automate much of the hassle of ordering;

“Before, I was pinging orders for 100s of items on 5 different websites. It could take my whole afternoon. Now I use e-CASS and I don’t have to do that. It’s the reason I’ve saved 10 hours of my week.”

On top of the platform – it’s the independent advice that’s so helpful. Rachael, her Business Manager, visits monthly to go through their profit report, train staff and make tweaks. Whereas before, they used to figure out their profit every few months by talking to their accountant, they now have a reference point with practical insights from Rachael.

It means, if they’re wasting money on particular medicines, missing deals or just need to turn off a supplier – they won’t miss it, and they have someone they can trust to provide ongoing support & knowledge.

“We’re doing so much better that our accountants asked me what our secret was!”
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Proper Accreditation

Kirstye wants dispensing management to have its own CPD and accreditation pathway. Her mentorship programme grew out of the Essential Guide to Dispensary Management, turning 20‑plus hours of one‑to‑one sessions into a structured pathway through compliance, SOPs, CQC expectations.

But without formalising the skills that are needed – it can be argued that the wider NHS will continue to fail to recognise what dispensary managers need to work effectively.

On top of that, Jo also calls for teams outside the dispensary to be alive to what the team are doing, and what they need to succeed.

“it’s sometimes assumed that there doesn’t even need to be a manager. It’s a vital role – there are so many cogs to manage!”

Having the support of Dispex and Cambrian has helped Jo do that; “Dispex’ 2 days of initial training & their recent dispensary management course taught me, and the practice so much. I knew before that there was things to learn, so having the pathway to do that was brilliant. From business management, to having SOPs that mean any staff can now run the dispensary like clockwork, it’s been brilliant.”

And working with Rachael – "it used to take us months to figure out profitability, now I can see it’s gone up and react to things straight away. Both of them are the gold standard.”

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