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Professor Mahendra Patel OBE, CEO of the Oxford University Centre for Research Equity (CfRE), has been appointed as an independent expert member of the UK Pharmacy Professional Leadership Advisory Board. The newly established Board comprises nine independent expert members (IEMs) with outstanding leadership capabilities, who were appointed through open recruitment, ensuring a "broad, balanced, and diverse" representation. Sir Hugh Taylor KCB, the Independent Chair of the Board, and the UK Chief Pharmaceutical Officers (CPhOs) - Andrew Evans (Wales), Cathy Harrison (Northern Ireland), Alison Strath (Scotland), and David Webb (England) - announced the appointment of IEMs in an open letter to the UK pharmacy professions. "Bringing a wealth of experience and expertise, they will play a pivotal role in the Board's work to deliver an exciting vision through supporting a new and dynamic phase of collaboration," the CPhOs said. As the CEO of CfRE, Professor Patel spearheads efforts aimed at addressing inequalities in healthcare.

In a first, NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE&I) has appointed a pharmacy technician to the chief pharmaceutical officer's team. Liz Fidler, president at the Association of Pharmacy Technicians UK (APTUK), will join the team in March 2022 in the newly created post of senior professional advisor: pharmacy technician practice NHSE&I. The appointment signaled "a new era for the profession, leading the step-change needed to build on and fully realise the benefits of the pharmacy technician clinical role for patients across the NHS system," said Dr Keith Ridge, chief pharmaceutical officer. In the new role, Fidler will provide leadership and professional advice in relation to the pharmacy technician profession in England.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has appointed James Davies as Director of England. Davies will be joining RPS in January 2023 to drive professional leadership for the pharmacy profession in England, working with and for RPS members. He'll lead on national policy development, professional advocacy and member engagement across England, in partnership with the English Pharmacy Board. Davies said: "It's a privilege to take up this position within the RPS, the professional home of pharmacy. I have been a member of the RPS throughout my pharmacy career, and that has helped me to continually drive excellence in pharmacy practice. I'm excited about delivering the current RPS strategy to ensure that pharmacy is, and continues to be, at the forefront of healthcare. I'm eager to work as part of the team and with the Board, leading and developing opportunities for the profession that improve the lives of patients and the public.

Alitam Group, the 100-plus pharmacy store consolidation, has appointed Bharti Patel, the former group executive director of Avicenna to its executive board. Patel, who was part of the leadership team at Avicenna until late 2021, brings with her a wealth of experience covering pharmaceuticals, multiple retail and independent pharmacy, homecare and NHS primary and secondary care. In her early career, she worked at Lloyds Pharmacy, where she rose from a prescription medicines buyer to director of procurement over a period of eight years. She is known in the industry for her strong leadership, commercial acumen and ability to create opportunities for innovation and strategic partnerships. Alitam founder and CEO Feisal Nahaboo said in a statement that Patel's appointment will further strengthen the group's ability to deliver its transformative multi-billion-pound 'Pharmacy of the Future' concept.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has published a consultation to review the 'Professional standards for the reporting, learning, sharing, taking action and review of incidents error reporting' in collaboration with Association of Pharmacy Technicians UK and Pharmacy Forum of Northern Ireland. The consultation is open from 21 April 2023 until 2 June 2023 and are due to be published in early 2024. All three professional leadership bodies are calling for contributions from anyone using the standards to ensure they are clear, current, relevant and fit for purpose. "The review affects all pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, trainees and members of the pharmacy team working in all sectors across the UK," RPS said. "The standards may also be of interest to the public, people who use pharmacy and healthcare services, healthcare and professionals working with pharmacy teams.

The Chief Pharmacist for England and Co-Chairs of professional leadership commission has responded to the questions raised by the Pharmacists Defence Association (PDA)'s member on the professional leadership survey. In early September, the PDA wrote to the UK's Chief Pharmaceutical Officers to increase transparency and confidence in the process by asking for clarification of some of the commission's thinking, assumptions, and scope. On behalf of all four CPhOs, Chief Pharmacist for England David Webb provided feedback: "The Commission has two independent co-chairs and members have agreed to abide by the 7 principles for the conduct of public life as recommended by the Nolan Commission which form part of the Terms of Reference. Commission members have been appointed on behalf of all pharmacy professionals to contribute their expertise in and knowledge of professional leadership and are not appointed to represent their particular countries, organisations, sectors or roles."

The Department of Health has published 'A Guide to Developing the Role of Consultant Pharmacists' in Northern Ireland on Thursday (22 June). The guidance provides direction on supporting a consistent approach to the introduction of senior clinical pharmacy roles within and across HSC organisations. The Chief Pharmaceutical Officer Professor Cathy Harrison said: "There is a recognised need for increased clinical pharmacy and medicines focussed leadership across our HSC." "Consultant Pharmacists have an essential role in healthcare as clinicians and as leaders who make a significant impact to medicines optimisation and clinical governance, providing a vital link between clinical practice and service development by generating and disseminating evidence to drive improvements in care. "I am delighted that this guidance has been published to take forward the strategic development and appointment of the consultant pharmacy workforce in both primary and secondary care and to enable pharmacy to be at the forefront of healthcare in NI".

The Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) has submitted a 17-page contribution to the commission on the future of pharmacy professional leadership and encourages pharmacists to engage in the overall discussion. The association wants to ensure that the voice of its members is heard in the discussions about the future of professional leadership, which has been initiated by the four government Chief Pharmaceutical Officers. The PDA has published its first formal contribution to the commission, in its response it raised concern on the current exercise is being rushed and a call for the review to be conducted in a more sensible timeframe, one which enables the engagement of the whole profession. It has urged on being supportive of the creation of a Royal College of Pharmacists to take custodianship of the training and education for pharmacists and to set the requisite standards, whilst still relying upon the profession's regulators to undertake the accreditation role.

The professional leadership body for pharmacists has urged the General Pharmaceutical Council's (GPhC) to make it mandatory to have a chief pharmacist within organisations to ensure transparency for patients, the public and pharmacy staff. On 23 January, the GPhC launched a consultation seeking views on the new draft Standards for Chief Pharmacists it has developed to strengthen pharmacy governance. These standards outlined the professional responsibilities and qualifications required by a chief pharmacist to support their organisation and its staff to deliver "safe and effective" pharmacy services. The pharmacy regulator highlighted the importance of having a registered chief pharmacist meeting these standards in hospitals (or relevant settings) to benefit from the new legislation regarding accidental errors. In response to the consultation, the RPS expressed that while meeting these standards could enhance pharmacy governance, they may not provide the framework needed to fully support staff in reporting and learning from errors.

Former superintendent pharmacist and National Pharmacy Association (NPA) director, Phil Galt, has been appointed the new UK managing director for pharmacy software supplier Cegedim Rx. The position was previously held by Adam Dennett, who resigned after a successful ten-year tenure to pursue a new career outside healthcare, the company said. Cegedim Rx, the pharmacy entity of Cegedim Healthcare Solutions UK, announced the new appointment this month (April 5). Tristan de Foucher, head of European operations for Cegedim Group, said: "Adam has been a force of nature in this business for the past 10 years. Under his leadership, the team has continuously and successfully invested in and driven product innovation to stay ahead of the ever-changing demands placed upon community pharmacy." Galt has over 20 years of experience as a qualified pharmacist and a successful business leader. He has worked extensively in community pharmacy, focusing on both care delivery and technology implementation.

The Pharmacists' Defence Association's anti-racist pharmacy toolkit was launched at the 2022 Clinical Pharmacy Congress. The event also included a demonstration of how members could use the toolkit to work together to address inequality and discrimination in their workplace. Elsy Gomez Campos, president of the PDA BAME Pharmacists' Network, gave an overview of issues raised by network members as well as broader professional issues including over-representation of BAME pharmacists in fitness to practice complaints, under-representation of BAME pharmacists in leadership roles, limited access to post-graduate education, and bullying and discrimination in the workplace. She concluded her opening statement by reminding members of what an exemplary pharmacy profession should look like which is about "being treated fairly and being offered the same opportunities to those that do not look like us." Manuella Asso, organising assistant and PDA BAME Pharmacists' Network coordinator, explained that the toolkit for was representatives, members, and other pharmacists to assess their workplaces and to help them take collective action to create an anti-racist workplace culture and environment.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has revealed the "differential attainment" gap among Black pharmacy students and Foundation trainees. Research conducted by pharmacy education has revealed unique challenges leading to lower attainment in the registration assessment and an undergraduate awards gap compared to white students. The organisation plans to work with new groups including BPSA, GPhC, NHS England, Pharmacy Schools Council and representatives from Schools of Pharmacy, to achieve a fair and equitable education and training experience for the students. They plan to reach out to student representative organisations to secure their participation in a quarterly meeting of the group. Differential attainment is the unexplained variation between groups who share a protected characteristic, for example, ethnicity, gender and disability.

A recently published report on medicines optimisation highlights the urgent need for transformative changes across all pharmacies to unlock their full potential in delivering integrated care. The report by Public Policy Projects (PPP) is first of the four in the series that emphasises the significant benefits that medicines optimisation can bring to integrated care systems (ICSs). This includes reducing health inequalities and improving population health. Pointing to the "untapped opportunity" that medicines optimisation presents for ICSs facing financial challenges, the report underscores the vital role of pharmacies in enhancing patient outcomes. The launch of the Pharmacy First services has already demonstrated the essential contribution of pharmacies to the health and care system. With "medicines being the second highest cost to the NHS," the report recommends ways "to achieve better value for money while improving patient outcomes".

RPS Scotland has named Fiona McIntyre as its new Policy and Practice Lead. With a background in hospital pharmacy, McIntyre will be responsible for policy development and professional support at RPS Scotland, and is set to assume her new role in early October. McIntyre will assume a leadership role for specific projects across Great Britain, collaborating with the Policy and Practice Leads in England and Wales, RPS Scotland said in a statement. Her responsibilities include representing pharmacists in working groups and meetings, engaging with pharmacists and pharmacy organisations, and supporting the RPS Director for Scotland. "During my career in NHS Scotland, I have advocated for pharmacy teams whenever possible," said McIntyre. "I am passionate about the profession's role in the safe and effective use of medicines, and I'm privileged to join the RPS. I look forward to promoting pharmacy in Scotland and helping our profession reach its full potential." "I'm pleased that Fiona will be joining the RPS Scotland team as our policy lead," said Laura Wilson, Director for RPS Scotland. "Fiona's experience will be invaluable to the role, and the whole team looks forward to her starting with us in October."

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has announced the results of the 2024 elections for its three national Pharmacy Boards. For the English Pharmacy Board, the newly elected members include Claire Anderson, Martin Astbury, Steve Churton, Ciara Duffy, Sue Ladds, Mike Maguire, Tase Oputu and Ankish Patel. Matthew Prior has been elected for a period of one year to fill the casual vacancy on the Board. Seven candidates have been elected unopposed to the RPS Scottish Pharmacy Board. They include: Jonathan Burton, Lucy Dixon, Laura Fulton, Catriona Sinclair, Amina Slimani-Fersia, Richard Strang and Audrey Thompson. Only seven nominations were received for the eight substantive vacancies on the board. Helen Davies has been elected to the RPS Welsh Pharmacy Board to represent the Primary Care sector. Meanwhile, Rafia Jamil and Geraldine McCaffrey have been elected unopposed to fill the two vacancies in the Hospital sector.

The Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) has become a member of the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP). On Thursday (22 September), the FIP council voted to welcome the PDA as a full member of the global federation of organisations that brings together and advances pharmacy. Mark Koziol, PDA chairman, said: "Being admitted to FIP with such a decisive level of support from its Council means that the PDA can ensure that UK pharmacists can enjoy a clear and powerful voice representing their collective professional interests at global level, which of late they could not. "Bringing one of the largest pharmacy membership organisations in the world to FIP also gives the PDA significant influence in being able to inform the policies of the World Health Organisation. This means that the PDA can do even more for members by helping to make pharmacy practice more professionally fulfilling for them." "The PDA constantly seeks ways to provide even better support for members; membership of FIP will give the PDA much more influence and will result in better outcomes for pharmacists," the association said. To support humanitarian crises in other parts of the world, the PDA approached FIP, as a global pharmacy leadership organisation.

The Taskforce report recognises the important role of community pharmacy and pharmacy teams, and in particular, the fact that they often have most contact with individuals who are receiving medication assisted treatment, commented the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) on the publication of the Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce's final report. The final report published on Thursday (June 21) follows four years of work developing and implementing a programme of actions to tackle the rising number of drug deaths in Scotland. RPS, as pharmacy's professional leadership body in Scotland and the rest of Great Britain, has positively engaged with the Taskforce as it carried out its work. Last year, RPS published 'Pharmacy's role in reducing harm and preventing drugs deaths (Scotland)' which contained 14 key recommendations. Many of the recommended actions within the Taskforce's report align with RPS policy.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) Assembly has announced the re-appointment of Professor Claire Anderson as President for a further term of two years on Tuesday (11 July). As president, Anderson will oversee delivery and implementation of the constitutional governance review; continue to extend the profile and influence of pharmacy as a profession by building and strengthening relationships with all the other pharmacy leadership bodies and organisations. She aims to ensure that RPS is invited to the table whenever medicines and public health are discussed by continuing to invest in strategic relationships beyond pharmacy Claire was first elected as President in 2021. In her address to the Assembly, Claire said: "This is a time of unprecedented change and I have decided to stand as President for a second term to offer much needed continuity. "I am passionate about our profession and committed to making the RPS and our members even more successful. I will also continue to be a dedicated ambassador and advocate for the profession nationally and internationally."

The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) recently appointed a chief pharmacy officer and a chief enforcement officer on 26 October. Roz Gittins will be joining as chief pharmacy officer and deputy registrar whereas Dionne Spence as chief enforcement officer and deputy registrar from 3 January. The regulator confirmed that the new officers will "form the new executive structure of the GPhC". They will be working with the existing staff members Mark Voce, in his new role, is the chief strategy officer and deputy registrar and Jonathan Bennetts, will be the chief operating officer & deputy registrar. It is stated that Gittins is to serve as "the most senior member of the profession," offering pharmacy leadership throughout the GPhC.

Former health secretary Sajid Javid on Tuesday (July 12) dropped out of the leadership contest to replace Boris Johnson as leader of the Conservative Party and prime minister. "There is an abundance of both ideas and talent in our party. One of the candidates will be given the honour of becoming prime minister," Javid said in a statement. "I look forward to seeing the debate unfold and to see colleagues working together as a united Conservative Party once the leadership election is concluded." Javid and chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak resigned on July 5.