World Pharmacists Day (September 25) highlighted the need for more young people to study and join the industry.

Regional community pharmacist and NSW Pharmacy Guild branch committee member Judy Plunkett described pharmacy as a very satisfying career.

"You have that mix of being a well respected health professional and having all of your knowledge to draw on to provide a very good professional service to the community you look after," she said

"It's a great job because you have interaction with people all day, every day and you get a great sense of satisfaction helping people with their health."

Ms Plunkett said Port Macquarie, a town on NSW's mid-north coast, had just enough pharmacists but there were no spare locums and new pharmacists had to be sourced from out of town.

"I had two pharmacists go on maternity leave this year and found it really difficult to find replacement pharmacists," she said.

"There is a shortage, especially in rural and regional areas."

Pharmaceutical Society of Australia's Medicine Safety: Rural and Remote Care report said by 2027, without intervention, it is estimated there will be as few as 52 pharmacists per 100,000 people in regional and remote areas, compared to 113 pharmacists per 100,000 people in major cities.

Charles Sturt University pharmacy academic Maree Donna Simpson said pharmacists played a crucial role in the healthcare jigsaw.

The Associate Professor in Pharmacy Practice said the role of pharmacists had been highlighted in the past 18 months.

Pharmacist vaccinators play a vital role in delivering vaccines including the COVID vaccine, for example.

Thousands of community pharmacies have joined the COVID-19 vaccine rollout with 1262 of those from regional, rural and remote areas.

Professor Simpson said pharmacists did not just help with vaccinations.

They are meeting the need for timely access to medicines and other supplies and provide information and assurance during the pandemic.

Ms Plunkett believes the community has a greater appreciation of the role of pharmacists given their participation in the COVID vaccine rollout.

"We have stayed open, we have stayed available, stayed accessible, we have stepped up," she said.