The PDA has handled more than 80,000 incidents since its inception and it currently handles more than 5,000 episodes when pharmacists run into a crisis each year.
A trend which was first seen on a larger scale during the Covid-19 crisis appears to continue where pharmacists are facing the risk of violence from the public. The PDA has previously launched its zero tolerance to violence campaign which is supported by many police forces around the UK. It also produced its violence in pharmacy policy and toolkit, designed to reduce the risk and likelihood of a violent attack.
However, following a shocking attack at the end of 2025, where a patient attempted to strangle a pharmacist, the PDA has launched a new automatic benefit which supports pharmacists in the aftermath of a violent attack.
The experience of the PDA regarding episodes of violent attacks have shown that employers may not provide their pharmacists with sufficient time off work to help recovery. In one recent instance a pharmacist who was seriously attacked in the pharmacy was encouraged by their employer to come to work the next day. In instances where pharmacists need to take time off work, many employers will only provide the pharmacist with two- or three-days full pay, requiring them to rely upon statutory sick pay benefits thereafter.
The scenario for self-employed locums is even worse as they would not be entitled to receive any pay from an employer in the event of having to take time off to recover from a violent attack.
A pharmacist who was recently the victim of a violent attack was left with no option other than to return to work on the third day, despite having extensive bruising and suffering symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress (PTS).
The new PDA benefit will provide up to ten days of financial support allowing pharmacists to take more time off work for recovery.
The new PDA benefit will replace lost income and will automatically extend to all PDA members whether they are employed or self-employed. Subject to being able to comply with certain operational conditions such as providing a police crime reference number linked to a violent attack in the pharmacy, the new member benefit would provide up to ten days benefit of up to £350 per day to the pharmacist to cover lost income.
Additionally, the PDA has agreed with a specialist firm of lawyers that they would seek to pursue an assailant for personal damages in compensation for the benefit of the pharmacist and also consider action against the employer on a no win no fee basis if possible, if it transpired that the employer had acted in such a way as to increase the risk and likelihood of an attack. This support is being added as a standard PDA membership benefit at no additional cost to members.
Chairman of the PDA Mark Koziol said “While pharmacists are looking after patients, who is looking after them? On too many occasions we see pharmacists who have had a terrible experience through being attacked at work, not being given the support that they need in the aftermath. We are meant to be a caring profession, but when push comes to shove, pharmacists are often not treated at all well.”
He continued. “We recognise that our support of ten days’ worth of recovery time is no fulsome compensation for an episode that could haunt them for many years, but our new automatic benefit is at least a practical token of support which shows that we care. They will not have to return to work for financial reasons immediately afterwards. We would also recommend that they contact our excellent charity partner Pharmacist Support, as they also care about pharmacists and can assist with other aspects of trying to come to terms with what has happened.”
Learn more
- Technical information about this new benefit
- Support in the event of violence in pharmacy
- Pharmacist Support website
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Read about our key member benefits here.