Teaching for turbulence: global evidence on pharmacists’ crisis contributions and implications for education. A scoping review

Abstract Introduction Public health emergencies, including the COVID-19 pandemic, have highlighted pharmacists’ vital roles in sustaining medicines supply, delivering vaccination programmes, supporting remote care delivery and managing health misinformation within communities.1 Despite these crisis-response contributions, there is limited synthesis of global evidence examining the extent of pharmacists’ roles across healthcare settings and how these functions are reflected in pharmacy curricula; without crisis training, service gaps may directly affect patient care.2 A scoping review was conducted to map international contributions by pharmacists during crises and to establish implications for pharmacy education. Embedding this diversity into the review process strengthens inclusivity and the global relevance of findings. Aim To review global evidence on pharmacists’ roles in crisis preparedness and response and identify how evidence informs educational and training needs within pharmacy curricula. Methods The review followed PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Five databases (PubMed, Scopus, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science) were searched for English-language literature published between 2000–2025 using standardised search terms related to pharmacists, pandemics, disaster preparedness, workforce resilience, and education. Ten student reviewers from eight countries participated. Data were extracted independently using a standardised extraction form that captured crisis type, country, healthcare setting (community, hospital/secondary care, primary care or public health administrative settings), pharmacists’ roles, and educational implications. Discrepancies in interpretation were resolved through structured consensus discussions chaired by academic mentors. The collaboration was organised through fortnightly Microsoft Teams meetings where progress was reviewed and agreed tasks assigned. Each fortnight, reviewers examined one of six predefined key focus areas across all represented countries: (1) workforce resilience and medicines supply; (2) pharmacists’ roles in vaccination programmes; (3) public health communication and misinformation management; (4) use of digital health; (5) interprofessional collaboration; and (6) integration of crisis-preparedness content into pharmacy curricula. Findings were cross-checked and synthesised collaboratively during team meetings to ensure methodological rigour and shared interpretation. Results The search returned 684 records; 79 full-text articles were screened, and 28 met the inclusion criteria. Four key points were identified. (1) Workforce resilience and medicine supply: pharmacists in all four settings mitigated shortages, although strategies varied by national supply chain robustness. (2) Vaccination and public health communication: UK and Jordan evidence highlighted pharmacists as trusted vaccinators and educators; Indonesia and Egypt emphasised the impact of community outreach. (3) Digital health and innovation: telepharmacy models were well-reported in the UK; emerging practices noted in Indonesia. (4) Education and training gaps: across all settings, crisis preparedness remains underdeveloped in curricula, although simulation and interprofessional learning pilots were identified in the UK and Indonesia. Conclusion This review demonstrates that pharmacists contribute essential services during public health crises across multiple healthcare settings; however, evidence indicates an urgent need to integrate crisis-preparedness competencies into undergraduate and postgraduate pharmacy programmes. The international, student-led collaboration strengthened interpretation by incorporating diverse educational and healthcare contexts, although restricting the search to English and variation in reviewers’ experience represent study limitations. Future research should explore how crisis-focused curriculum innovations can be aligned internationally to ensure preparedness competencies are consistently incorporated across pharmacy education and workforce development.