For independent pharmacies
Run your own relief staffing. Skip the agency bills.
When a shift opens, give your own staff first pick, invite relief pros you trust, or share part-time and relief staff with nearby independent pharmacies. ReliefGuru's 5,000+ professional network is available too. Run it all in one app for one low monthly fee, less than a single agency shift fee.
5 agency shifts × $65 = $325 in booking fees.
With a monthly plan below $65, that’s over 80% less in fees.
Your pharmacy
Your week, covered.
Team9–5
Team9–5
Team9–5
Team9–5
Relief9–5Maya Chen
Relief pharmacist
Results from ReliefGuru Users
Includes earlier relief service results
The independent pharmacy owner's workload
Covering one shift means calls, texts and follow-ups you don't have time for
A staff member calls in sick while you're busy at the counter. Now you're calling relief pharmacists, waiting on text replies, and trying to remember who said yes to what. Finding someone is only half the job. You also have to track every follow-up while still running the pharmacy. ReliefGuru puts all of that in one place, so you always know what needs your attention next.
Calls, texts, WhatsApp and Facebook groups
You work the phone and group chats one message at a time. Availability, replies and pay talks get lost in scattered threads, with nothing saved for next time.
One sick call can eat most of a day
Chasing coverage before opening pulls you away from patients and staff. If it drags on, you end up calling an agency anyway, and paying the premium you were trying to avoid.
Relief and hiring live in separate systems
The person who covered your shift last month could be a great permanent hire, but that history is rarely connected to your job posting.
Three staffing jobs, one system
One system for urgent relief shifts, planned coverage and permanent pharmacy hiring
A sick call this morning, a planned vacation next month, and an open permanent role are three different problems. ReliefGuru handles urgent relief, planned coverage, and permanent hiring in one system. You can fix today's gap without losing sight of the long-term hire your pharmacy still needs.
Urgent relief
TodayPost a sudden pharmacist, technician or assistant gap from your phone and reach the chosen pool quickly.
- One clear shift request
- Immediate pool notifications
- Applicant review and chat
Planned coverage
UpcomingOrganize vacations, recurring weekends and known schedule gaps before they become last-minute problems.
- Recurring shift setup
- Preferred-person invitations
- Confirmation history
Permanent hiring
Long termWith a subscription, post one permanent job free for a limited time and receive resumes directly. To assess fit, post a paid relief shift separately.
- Self-managed job posting
- Direct applicant contact
- Full hiring service available
The single-store relief staffing workflow
How an open shift becomes a confirmed relief staffing booking
Posting the shift is just the first step. The order you share it in decides how much control you keep. Start with your own staff. Then invite relief pharmacists and technicians you trust. If you still need more options, open it up to ReliefGuru's wider network. You always decide who sees the shift and who gets booked.
Add the shift from phone or web
Enter role, date, hours, offered rate, pharmacy system and any experience needed.
Give your own team first look
Employees and regular casual staff can respond without another manager-created group chat.
Use trusted staff and our relief network
Invite your preferred relief professionals, then reach the wider verified network if needed.
Confirm the booking and keep the shift record
Review the applicant, coordinate details and keep the completed shift in the same system.
Your pharmacy's relief staffing bench
Build your relief bench and share staff with nearby pharmacies
A relief pharmacist who already knows how your pharmacy runs is more useful than a stranger's name in your contacts. Keep the people who work well with your team in one list. Add staff shared by nearby pharmacies. And when you need more, ReliefGuru's network of over 5,000 pharmacists is right there too, so you're never starting from zero.
Add people you already trust
Bring existing relief contacts into a structured pool without giving up the relationships you have built.
Learn from completed shifts
Use ratings, messages and previous work context to make the next coverage decision faster.
Invite preferred people first
Ask the professionals most familiar with the pharmacy before opening the shift to a larger audience.
Add our relief network
Your own bench always comes first. When your preferred pool can't cover a date or role, our relief network is right there to step in.
Group with other pharmacies
Team up with nearby independent pharmacies to share part-time, casual and relief staff across all your sites. You get one organized pool, more visibility and a lower staffing bill, instead of a dozen separate group chats.
Consider trusted relief staff for permanent roles
When a permanent role opens, prior work can provide more context than an unfamiliar resume alone.
The independent pharmacy owner dashboard
Track every shift from open to confirmed in one staffing dashboard
When shift details are scattered across different chats, even a quick check turns into a search. ReliefGuru's dashboard shows you which shifts are open, in progress, or confirmed, all in one place, with the messages attached. You can see what's covered and what still needs your attention before the next interruption hits.
Open-shift status
See which shifts are internal, preferred, externally visible, awaiting confirmation or filled.
Applicant comparison
Review role, experience, ratings and availability before choosing a professional.
Recurring coverage
Organize repeated weekend or vacation needs without re-entering every shift separately.
Cancellation response
Reopen the existing shift and find replacement coverage without recreating the request.
Permanent hiring pipeline
Track job applicants and hiring stages separately from immediate relief coverage.
Favourites
Save the pharmacists, technicians and assistants you would confidently invite again, ready to reach in one tap.
Relief staffing tools built for owner-managed pharmacies
Fill your next staffing gap without another message scramble
A staffing gap can't move forward until you know who's a good fit, who's free, and whether you've agreed on terms. ReliefGuru lets you check availability, share the shift, agree on pay and keep every message attached to the booking. Coverage keeps moving while you stay focused on the pharmacy.
Share without chasing
Send one shift to your employees, trusted relief list or a wider network and keep every response in the same inbox.
+Every reply in one inboxHours before booking
See projected employee hours before you award a shift and avoid discovering overtime after the schedule changes.
Call in sick
When someone can't make it, the open shift goes to your own team first, in case anyone wants the extra hours. Overtime alerts warn you before you overpay.
Trusted relief matching
Bring back people who already know your pharmacy, then compare other eligible applicants only when you need more options.
Swap shift
Can't make it? A staff member swaps the shift to your whole pool, so it's picked up fast and no-shows drop.
Direct rate agreement
Agree pay, mileage and shift terms directly with the relief professional before you confirm the booking.
Independent pharmacy cost calculator
Estimate what agency fees and coordination time really cost your pharmacy
An agency invoice shows the booking fee, but not the extra wage cost or the hours you spend arranging coverage yourself. Enter your own numbers into ReliefGuru's calculator to see where the money and your time really go, and how much you could save with one flat subscription.
Estimated annual fees, premiums and coordination cost
$12,300 / year
Potential annual saving before subscription costs
$8,800 / year
Want the full breakdown?
Enter your details and we'll send you your agency fee, wage premium and manager time breakdown.
Illustrative estimate, not a savings guarantee. Excludes base wages. Assumes eight-hour shifts and reductions of 85% in agency fees, 70% in wage premiums and 60% in coordination time. Subscription costs are not deducted. Results are rounded to the nearest $100. Actual costs and savings vary. Confirm current subscription and onboarding terms with the ReliefGuru team.
Relief staffing software vs calls and messages
Run your whole coverage process in one place, not across ten group chats
Calls and group chats can fill a shift eventually, but it's up to you to keep track of every reply, term and change. ReliefGuru keeps the posting, the decisions and the tracking in one place, while you still choose who works in your pharmacy. One flat monthly fee replaces agency charges per shift, which is how pharmacies cut relief costs by up to 80 percent.
Get started with ReliefGuru
Set up the in-house relief staffing system for your independent pharmacy
You don't need to replace what already works for your pharmacy. Just connect your store, add your staff and the relief contacts you trust, and decide when ReliefGuru's wider network should step in. Your first real shift will show you how coverage moves without another round of agency calls and bills.
How to get started
Independent pharmacy staffing questions
Independent pharmacy staffing: your questions answered
Before moving your staffing into ReliefGuru, you probably have real questions. Here's how to start with people you already trust, control who sees each shift, handle day-to-day coverage and move into permanent hiring, all without needing a dedicated staffing department.
No. An independent owner can use the same system for one pharmacy, without the extra head-office controls a chain needs.
Yes. You control the order. Offer the shift to your own staff first, then your preferred relief contacts, then the wider network if you still need help.
Yes. Add your existing contacts to a preferred list. Future invitations, replies, bookings and shift history all stay together in one place.
You can open the shift to ReliefGuru's wider network and review the applicants before you confirm who covers it.
No. Your pharmacy always makes the final choice. ReliefGuru's matching and profiles make it faster to review candidates, but checking licences and suitability is still up to you.
Partly. Subscribers can post one permanent job free for a limited time and receive resumes directly to manage hiring themselves. Comprehensive Hiring is a separate service with its own fee; contact our team for details.
Yes. Set up recurring shifts for weekends or other known gaps, invite your preferred staff and keep confirmations together. You still choose who covers each shift.