Culture in community pharmacy organisations: what can we glean from the literature? Sally Jacobs, Darren Ashcroft and Karen Hassell School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK Abstract Purpose – The aim of this paper is to report on the findings of a systematic literature review-seeking to elicit existing evidence of the nature of organisational culture in community pharmacy organisations. Design/methodology/approach – This review takes a novel approach to systematically identifying and synthesising the peer-reviewed research literature pertaining to organisational culture in this setting, its antecedents and outcomes. Findings – The review provides an overview of the scope of and research methods used in the identified literature, together with a narrative synthesis of its findings, framed within five dimensions of organisational culture: the professional-business role dichotomy; workload, management style, social support and autonomy; professional culture; attitudes to change and innovation; and entrepreneurial orientation. Research limitations/implications – There is a need for more detailed and holistic exploration of organisational culture in community pharmacy, using a greater diversity of research methods and a greater focus on patient-related outcomes. Originality/value – This paper demonstrates that, whilst little research has explicitly investigated organisational culture in this context, there exists a range of evidence describing aspects of that culture, some of the environmental and organisational factors helping to shape it, and its impact on the pharmacy workforce, services delivered and business outcomes. It highlights the importance of the business-professional role dichotomy in community pharmacy; the influence of individual pharmacists’ characteristics and organisational setting; and the impact on pharmacists’ wellbeing and job satisfaction and the services delivered. It provides less evidence of the impact of organisational culture on the quality and safety of service provision. Keywords Organizational culture, Pharmaceuticals industry, Job satisfaction, Service quality assurance, Retailing, Supply, United Kingdom Paper type Literature review Introduction Community (retail) pharmacists across the globe have always played a central role in the safe and effective supply of medicines to the general population (Anderson, 2002). However, their role has developed and expanded over the years from the preparation and supply of pharmaceuticals to encompass a more clinical focus including the management of prescribed medicines, advice giving on a range of minor ailments, supporting the management of long-term conditions, health promotion and as a source of specialist medicines knowledge for other health professionals including general practitioners (family doctors) and nurses. This recent shifting emphasis is aligned with the philosophy or movement described as “pharmaceutical care” (Hepler and Strand, 1990) although the services provided may be classified under the terminology of The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/1477-7266.htm JHOM 25,4 420 Journal of Health Organization and Management Vol. 25 No. 4, 2011 pp. 420-454 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 1477-7266 DOI 10.1108/14777261111155047