Voices in pharmacy: gender equality in Australian pharmacy research

Abstract Background Gender diversity in healthcare is essential for fostering an inclusive environment that enhances quality of care and improves health outcomes. Diverse perspectives drive innovation and better decision‐making in patient care. Pharmacy practice has evolved significantly in the last decade, along with growing recognition of the importance of diversity. While progress has been made in achieving gender balance within pharmacy organisations, research on gender diversity in pharmacy academia remains limited. Aim To assess gender representation in published pharmacy research by examining editorial board membership and authorship patterns in research manuscripts and letters to the editor published in the Journal of Pharmacy Practice and Research (JPPR). Method Issues of JPPR published from 2000–2024 (at five‐year intervals) were extracted (at five‐year intervals) from Wiley Online Library. Data on the number of women and men were collected for authors of research articles, authors of letters to the editor, and editorial board composition. Ethics approval was not required for this research as it utilised published data and did not involve human participants or data. Results The study evaluated 27 issues of JPPR and a total of 141 research articles and 75 letters to the editor. Female researchers increased from 41% in 2000 to 60% in 2024, with senior authorship (indicated by first or last named author) rising from 30% to 61%. Female representation in letters to the editors also increased from 30% in 2000 to 33% in 2024. However, editorial board representation of women declined slightly from 28% in 2000 to 24% in 2024. Conclusion While significant progress has been made in female representation in authorship, aligning with trends in the Australian pharmacy workforce, under‐representation persists in editorial leadership roles.