ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with some background on the pharmacy profession. It presents results from a larger scale study, which offers, for the first time, some detailed insights into the experiences of Asian pharmacy professionals. The chapter provides a preliminary view on the nature and extent of ethnic minority participation in pharmacy, drawing on information from a variety of sources. It focuses on existing explanations for the development of ethnic minority business in an attempt to explain Asian entry into the profession, in particular into pharmacy ownership. The category ‘community pharmacy’ masks quite different occupational types. It includes those working as employees, at different levels, for either large chain store pharmacies or small chain and independently owned pharmacies. It also includes those owning their own pharmacy and locum pharmacists. The minority retail pharmacists work significantly longer hours than white pharmacists, even controlling for work extent.
