Pharmacists spend a lot of time on their feet. When working with potentially dangerous pharmaceutical products, pharmacists must take the proper safety precautions, such as wearing gloves and masks and working with special protective equipment. Because pharmacies in many communities and hospitals are open around the clock, pharmacists in those settings may have to work evenings, nights, weekends, and holidays. Employment Pharmacists held 164,000 jobs in 1990. The majority of pharmacists practice in community pharmacies, which can be independently owned, part of a national drug store chair, nor even part of a grocery or department store.
Hospitals are the second largest employer of pharmacists.
Pharmacy services in nursing homes generally are provided on a consultant or contract basis rather than by staff pharmacists. Pharmacists employed by the Federal Government work chiefly in hospitals and clinics of the Veterans Administration and the U.S. Public Health Service. State and local health departments, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and professional associations also employ pharmacists. Some pharmacists held more than one job. They may work a standard week in their primary work setting and work several hours a week in a secondary setting, as a consultant to a nursing home or clinic, for example.