Tips for Caring for Yourself During Your Pregnancy While Working in the Pharmacy
There’s a rush of excitement when you find out that you are pregnant and expecting a new bundle of joy! As the news sinks in, another set of emotions may surface. You might start to feel anxious and worried, as you try to navigate your pregnancy while continuing to work as a pharmacist.
Working in a pharmacy while pregnant is not the easiest and has its challenges, from potential exposure to hazardous drugs to being on your feet all day. You need to take and be aware of various precautions during pregnancy, and it may be difficult to know where to start. Let’s go over some self-care tips for working in the pharmacy while pregnant.
Drugs to avoid handling
One of the greatest risks for pharmacy staff is the danger of exposure to hazardous drugs. (Pharmacists and nurses already have the highest exposure risk to hazardous drugs.) There is a long list of drugs that you will need to avoid handling while pregnant. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) characterizes drugs as hazardous if they have one or more of the following characteristics: carcinogenicity, genotoxicity, organ toxicity at low doses, reproductive toxicity, and teratogenicity or other development toxicity.
Instant Rx savings for insured and uninsured patients
GoodRx for HCPs has savings that can beat insurance copays and reduce your need to complete prior authorizations.
GoodRx is NOT insurance. GoodRx Health information and resources are reviewed by our editorial staff with medical and healthcare policy and pricing experience. See our editorial policy for more detail. We also provide access to services offered by GoodRx and our partners when we think these services might be useful to our visitors. We may receive compensation when a user decides to leverage these services, but making them available does not influence the medical content our editorial staff provides.
Pharmacists handle hazardous drugs in retail pharmacies, inpatient pharmacies, and outpatient oncology pharmacies. If you work with any hazardous drugs on a regular basis, you will need to inform your manager of your pregnancy as early as possible to minimize the handling of these drugs to ensure you have a safe work environment. You may be able to transfer to other shifts or roles that do not involve the handling of hazardous drugs.
Hazardous medications include those for chemotherapy, some antivirals (aerosolized ribavirin, entecavir, valganciclovir), hormone agents (testosterone, misoprostol), and bioengineered drugs that interfere with cell growth or proliferation or with DNA synthesis. There are also some medications that are not hazardous when intact, but become hazardous when they are altered, broken, or crushed and no longer coated. An example is finasteride.
To safely handle these medications, wear gloves to work with them cautiously. Don full personal protective equipment (PPE) when handling broken tablets, powders, liquids, and topicals. Avoid touching your face, mouth, and nose when handling these medications and wash your hands frequently.
There are also several resources to check that can tell you whether you should avoid handling certain drugs while pregnant, including the following:
Black box warnings: risk of embryo-fetal effects or birth defects
FDA product labeling: FDA Pregnancy Category D or X
International Agency for Research on Cancer: IARC Group 1, 2A, or 2B
NIOSH list of antineoplastic and other hazardous drugs in healthcare settings
Safety data sheets (SDS)
Time management
Working in a pharmacy involves a lot of effort, sometimes up to 12 hours a day. Being pregnant can make the workday feel even longer. To help manage the long hours, be sure to take short breaks, even if they’re just for a few minutes.
As pharmacists, we often go the entire shift without taking any breaks, sometimes even skipping meals, because of how busy the pharmacy can be. But it is important, especially now while you are pregnant, to listen to your body and take the breaks you need. Know your state labor laws for rest breaks. For example, nonexempt employees in California are entitled to 10-minute breaks for every 4 hours worked — so for an 8-hour work day, workers are entitled to two 10-minute rest breaks and a 30-minute meal break.
Make sure you’re snacking, resting, or walking during breaks. Do not feel obligated to work longer hours than you are required, such as offering to do overtime if you are not feeling up for it. Stay hydrated throughout the day and excuse yourself for the bathroom breaks you need.
Standing or sitting all day
The nature of pharmacy work requires standing or sitting for extended periods. Retail outpatient pharmacists tend to stay on their feet, due to the fast-paced environment, while ambulatory care or managed care pharmacists typically sit in front of a computer in an office. Below are some tips that can help alleviate body strain from having to stand or sit all day while pregnant.
For pharmacists who stand:
Wear comfortable shoes with good arch support.
Wear compression socks or stockings to help improve swelling and blood circulation.
Stand on anti-fatigue mats to help decrease strain on your feet.
Elevate one foot to lessen back strain.
Walk and do not stand in one place for too long.
Ask for a chair or stool to take breaks from standing.
For pharmacists who sit:
Use a lumbar cushion for lower back support.
Take walking breaks, including during your mealtimes.
Stand up to stretch and move your body.
Elevate one foot on a footstool.
Get an ergonomic assessment for modifications of your workstation.
Coping with stress
Informing your employer early about your pregnancy can help alleviate work-related stress. Your manager and colleagues may be more understanding of your need to sit, stand, or take short breaks more frequently. You could be reassigned to other tasks or shifts, which can help with the workload and stress.
Be transparent with your manager on what you are able to handle. Remember to take breaks, stay hydrated, try to relax, and learn to say no.
The bottom line
Being pregnant and bringing a new human being into the world is a natural and joyous experience. But there are challenges that come with being pregnant and working in a pharmacy. Taking the right steps in caring for yourself and baby are important to ensuring you have a smooth and healthy pregnancy while on the job.
