The result of the common registration assessment for pharmacists, held jointly by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and Pharmaceutical Society of
Northern Ireland (PSNI), have been published with an overall pass rate of 80 per cent.
A total of 2,697 candidates sat the registration assessment in four countries on 29 June and 2,147 candidates passed the assessment.
This summer's pass rate has fallen to 80 per cent compared with the 82 per cent pass rate for the summer 2021 registration assessment, and the 61 per cent pass rate
for the Autumn 2021 registration assessment.
GPhC chief executive Duncan Rudkin said: "We would like to congratulate the successful candidates and we look forward to them joining our register and continuing to
the next stage of their career.
"However, we appreciate that the June registration assessment was a difficult and stressful experience for many - and we are extremely sorry about the problems
faced by a number of candidates on the day.
"For those who did not pass, there is a guide on our website [PDF 255 KB] outlining all the options that may be available, such as provisional registration and
the right to appeal. There are also links to organisations and resources that can provide support with mental health and wellbeing.
The Pharmacist' Defence Association (PDA) has welcomed the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland (PSNI)'s
plan to ensure a more robust, fair and positive experience for trainees, provisionally registered and potential pharmacists who will be sitting the November 2022
assessment.
"Many candidates at the latest (June 2022) assessment experienced significant delays, technical issues, inadequate invigilation, and disturbances in test centres
around the UK as the newly appointed company BTL ran the high-stakes pharmacist examinations for the first time. The next online exam is due in November 2022 and the
PDA welcome proposed improvements to be introduced before that sitting," said the association.
For some, provisional registration was the accepted response from the GPhC, but for others, such as potential pharmacists who did not want the provisional role,
those unable to find a suitable provisional post, or some that did not meet the criteria for provisional registration, they found themselves in financial
difficulties through no fault of their own, having reasonably expected to have joined the register in the Summer.
The result from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS)'s survey showed that pharmacists witnessed 'the cost of living is having an impact on whether people
can afford prescription medicines in England'.
RPS has long campaigned to remove prescription charges for people with long-term conditions in England because they create a financial barrier to patients receiving
the medicines needed to keep them well.
The charge currently stands at £9.35 per item prescrib9ed and an annual rise usually occurs in April. Prescriptions are free for people in Scotland, Wales and
Northern Ireland.
One in two pharmacists who responded to the survey said they've seen an increase in the last six months in patients asking them which medicines on their prescription
they can 'do without' due to affordability issues.
One in two pharmacists had seen a rise in people not collecting their prescription, whilst two out of three pharmacists reported an increase in being asked if there
was a cheaper, over-the-counter substitute for the medicine they had been prescribed.
The Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) has undertaken an additional survey of pharmacists employed in the NHS, before deciding to hold their first-ever
ballot for industrial action.
The PDA has more than 7,000 NHS-employed pharmacists in membership and the union is actively considering balloting those members regarding strike action.
The association said: "The experience of some other unions has shown that the government's restrictive rules, designed to make it difficult for working people to
lawfully take industrial action, means trade unions should test members' strength of feeling before balloting."
"Trade unions are not only forced to rely upon postal ballots, but for lawful industrial action to be taken, the result must also meet three tests- at least 50% of
eligible voters must vote; at least 40% of eligible voters must vote 'yes' and a majority of votes must be for 'yes'."
The association is asking members in England, Northern Ireland and, Wales to show if their collective wish, insignificant enough strength, is for strike action. PDA
has emailed the survey to all its members in the NHS in the three nations and will close on Tuesday 3 January.
The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has published the results of the common registration assessment for aspiring pharmacists held on 2 November, 2023.
An overall pass rate of 66 per cent was recorded this year, as compared to 56 per cent in 2022 and 61 per cent in 2021.
A total of 1,067 candidates took the registration assessment, held jointly by the GPhC and Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland (PSNI), of which
700 candidates cleared the assessment
In 2022, 937 candidates sat the registration assessment of which 525 passed the assessment.
Commenting on the results, GPhC Director of Education and Standards, Mark Voce, said: "I would like to congratulate all those who passed the November
registration assessment and I look forward to them joining our register to continue to the next stage of their career.
"There will be candidates who unfortunately did not pass the assessment. If this is the case, the information on our website outlines all the possible
options of what to do next.
The 'Life and Health Sciences Launchpad' has been introduced to focus on the precision medicine sector.
It would help businesses and researchers to level up their impact on economic growth within the region.
The launchpad has been funded by Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
Kerry Curran, Director of GB & EU Trade in the Department for the Economy hailed the decision to support NI's "trailblazing" sector.
She said: "Life and Health Science, including our highly innovative precision medicine cluster, is an area the Department is also prioritising through its
10X Economy Vision, and this Launchpad represents a further endorsement of the world-leading growth potential of precision medicine, and indeed life and
health science, in Northern Ireland.
More than 7,000 hospitalisations and deaths in the UK could have been averted in summer 2022 if people had received their recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses,
a new study published in The Lancet has revealed.
The largest ever study carried out in the UK found that between a third and a half of the UK population had not had the recommended number of COVID vaccinations and
boosters by summer 2022.
In Northern Ireland, nearly 50 per cent of the population were under-vaccinated, while the proportion of under-vaccinated people in England was 45.7 per cent,
34.2 per cent for Scotland and 32.8 per cent Wales.
Researchers from the Health Data Research UK (HDR UK) and the University of Edinburgh analysed the electronic health records of 67 million residents aged 5 and
older from across the four countries during June 1 to September 30 2022.
The World Health Organization (WHO) issued a warning on Thursday regarding falsified semaglutide medications used for treating type 2 diabetes and obesity
in select countries.
This WHO Medical Product Alert addresses three falsified batches of the specific brand Ozempic that were detected in Brazil (October 2023), the United Kingdom
and Northern Ireland (October 2023), and the United States (December 2023). These falsified semaglutide products were distributed through the regulated supply chain.
Novo Nordisk, the genuine manufacturer of Ozempic, confirmed that the three products mentioned in the alert are falsified and were not produced by the company.
Healthcare professionals, regulatory authorities and the public are advised to remain vigilant regarding these falsified batches of medicines.
Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for Access to Medicines and Health Products, urged stakeholders to stop any usage of suspicious medicines and
report them to relevant authorities.