International Women’s Day 2025
This year for International Women’s Day, we would like to share a profile of Brooke Shelly, GP Pharmacist, Consultant Pharmacist, Board Director and more!
Profile: Brooke Shelly
What is your name and role in the pharmacy profession? What is your background in pharmacy?
Hi! I’m Brooke Shelly, and my pharmacy career can best be described as a ‘choose your own adventure’ novel that I didn’t realise I was writing. I wear multiple hats (sometimes all at once) as a GP Pharmacist, Consultant Pharmacist, Board Director, and advocate for expanding the role of pharmacists in the healthcare system. My work focuses on integrating pharmacists into multidisciplinary teams, improving patient outcomes, and driving policy change to close the rural health equity and access gap.
In 2024, I was named PSA Consultant Pharmacist of the Year and elevated to Fellow of the PSA — both of which sound very serious, but really just mean I talk a lot about how pharmacists can transform healthcare, and occasionally, people listen.
What drew you to pharmacy in the first place? What is rewarding about pharmacy?
I started working in pharmacy on Saturdays as a junior, and what began as a part-time job quickly became a career path. There I was fortunate to meet my first ever mentor, Deborah, the then pharmacy owner, one of the few female pharmacy owners in my town at the time. She showed me that pharmacy was more than just medicines; it was about people, leadership, and being a trusted presence in the community. She knew every patient’s name and the important details of their lives; if their elderly mother was unwell, if their child was graduating from university. That connection, that trust, was just as critical as the medicines she dispensed.
That lesson has shaped my entire career. Pharmacists are solution-seekers, collaborators, and champions of person-centred care. In rural healthcare, we don’t just provide clinical services; we care for the people we live alongside— our family, friends, and neighbours. Not only do I get to make a difference to the person in front of me when I practice pharmacy, but through my advocacy work, I feel strongly that together we are making a difference to the health of the nation — by ensuring pharmacists are working to their full scope and contributing their expertise where they’re needed most.
What is your role in the PSS team?
I’m a Director on the PSS Board, representing the Pharmaceutical Society of Victoria, one of PSS’s founding member organisations.
I have the privilege of serving on multiple boards, advisory groups, and committees, but the mission of PSS is particularly important to me. As a rural pharmacist, I understand firsthand the power of communities supporting each other, and PSS embodies that same principle. Pharmacy can be a challenging profession, and having a trusted, confidential space where pharmacists can seek support, guidance, or simply a listening ear is invaluable. In the same way rural communities look out for their own, PSS ensures that no pharmacist has to navigate professional or personal challenges alone.
What are three things you enjoy doing to relax and recharge outside of work?
- Netball playing and coaching – I still take my place as goalkeeper, though at this stage of my career, I’m less of a defensive powerhouse and more of a stationary obstacle inside the circle: my left calf and my coach are in full agreement on that one. Coaching is a glorious reward, especially with the junior age groups — I’m far better at teaching them to love the sport than to play it.
- Spending time on the Murray River with my husband and three kids – Wakeboarding and slalom skiing are family favourites. All the troubles in the world seem that bit further away when you’re faceplanting a missed jump on the wakeboard.
- Long runs on the treadmill at the gym – Mostly to keep up with my kids (and my questionable life choices to still remain in competitive sport), but also because it’s the perfect excuse to watch horrendously trashy TV on my phone, guilt-free.
How are you inspired by women in pharmacy? Do you have a role model within or outside of the industry?
Debbie Rigby has been a constant presence in pharmacy leadership, shaping the consultant pharmacist space with clinical excellence and generosity. It’s still difficult for women to build careers and hold leadership positions in pharmacy, so to have done it when she did—and to still be leading today—is the definition of true grit.
Dr Fei Sim, as PSA’s first female national president in over 40 years, provided the representation I needed. You can’t be what you can’t see, and having a young female pharmacist at the top gave me the courage to step up, speak out, and push forward. She leads with heart, navigating the fine line that so many women—especially those in leadership—must walk. Balancing strength with approachability, authority with collaboration, she has shown that leadership isn’t just about having a seat at the table — it’s about making sure others have the chance to sit there too.
Where do you see pharmacy heading over the next few years?
Hopefully forward, rather than in circles. The next few years are going to be big for pharmacy — we’re seeing expansion into more clinical roles, greater recognition of pharmacists in multidisciplinary teams, and (fingers crossed) more sustainable workforce models. I think we’ll see more GP Pharmacists, embedded pharmacists, and consultant pharmacists stepping into spaces that desperately need them.
The real challenge? Ensuring pharmacists are not just given more responsibilities, but the necessary support, recognition, and resources to work at their full scope in a way that is meaningful, sustainable, and drives real impact—both for the profession and for the communities we serve.
Thank you for reading our profile on Brooke today! We appreciate Brooke’s insights and support of PSS.
Read more about Brooke’s award achievement here: ajp.com.au/news/trailblazing-gp-pharmacist-honoured/
Read more about International Women’s Day here: unwomen.org.au/get-involved/international-womens-day
