The intense pressure that retail pharmacists face when they go to work — where high demand for COVID immunizations and tests is layered on top of an already formidable array of other duties — was the subject of a recent report on “PBS News­Hour.” The segment consisted of excerpts from interviews with five pharmacists who expressed weariness, frustration and concern over the challenges they now confront.

A sampling of comments from the group, which consisted of pharmacists who work in various practice settings across the country, follows.

“Having about 30 or 40 vaccines on top of your daily work with the same amount of people for my store was overwhelming,” said one former chain pharmacist who now runs an independent drug store in Oklahoma City. “I felt that I was not living up to the oath that I took as a pharmacist to take care of my patients, but also to take care of my staff.”

A professional who practices in Delaware noted, “If you had a doctor working on a loved one or a family member performing surgery, would you want the phone ringing in the background while the doctor’s providing surgery to your loved one? [Would] you want that doctor having questions thrown at them, having the drive-thru being wrung, having emails pop up at you, having customers waving at you? So, it’s challenging.”

Another individual, who, until the end of last year, was a pharmacy manager at a big drug chain, said, “I felt like I was an octopus pulled in eight different directions and one of them is having to give vaccines. Now I’m even concerned that I might give the wrong vaccine at the wrong time. The white coat that I would wear became so heavy to put on every day in the fear that I might be a danger to my patients instead of that safety net that they need.”

Even after accounting for the hyperbole that sometimes creeps into television news coverage, the concerns that were expressed raise important issues that need to be addressed. Fortunately, major pharmacy operators take them as seriously as the people on the front lines do, and the companies have worked throughout the pandemic to augment the ranks of the pharmacists and pharmacy technicians who staff their stores. In addition, pharmacy chains moved quickly to develop digital tools to facilitate scheduling for COVID-related services and to allow patients to complete part of the necessary paperwork before arriving at the pharmacy, relieving staff members of some routine administrative tasks.

Despite those efforts, retail pharmacists are carrying a heavy burden. COVID-19 is the most serious public health emergency since the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918, thus far causing more than 77 million known infections and 912,257 deaths in the U.S. alone. The extent and virulence of the virus have put the entire health care system on an emergency footing.

Like other health care sectors, community pharmacy has risen to the occasion. As of February 2, more than 227 million COVID shots had been administered by 21 companies under the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program. It is hard to imagine where the U.S. would be in the fight to contain the pandemic, absent the contributions of pharmacy professionals at the 41,000 locations operated by FRPP participants. Located within five miles of more than 90% of the population, pharmacies are the most easily accessible place for people to receive a COVID immunization, which is still the best tool for countering the virus and protecting other individuals and society as a whole.

Like physicians, nurses and emergency medical technicians, pharmacists have been pushed to the limit by the pandemic. They have, in a sense, been operating in the equivalent of a wartime situation, and responded by consistently going above and beyond the call of duty. Pharmacists deserve respect, recognition and support, not just from the companies that employ them, but from the patients whom they serve and the community as a whole.

The pharmacist from Delaware quoted above put it well: “What our world right now needs, as much as this vaccine to help us get through the pandemic, is patience and understanding that every single one of us are being affected. … We understand your frustration, but when you come in and see someone behind the counter working for you, try to smile and be appreciative that that person’s there for you.”