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The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has published Pharmacy: Delivering a Healthier Wales that outlines a plan focusing on what can be achieved by end of 2025. The society has urged people to share their views by responding to the consultation on four key themes which were already set out in Pharmacy: Delivering a Healthier Wales -enhancing patient experience; developing the pharmacy workforce; seamless pharmaceutical care; and harnessing innovation and technology. "We want to hear from as many of you as possible. It is important that the aims for pharmacy over the next three years are right. So please take a look at the draft 2025 goals, the proposed activity and measures and complete our consultation response form by 11 September," said RPS. "We have been proud to continue to manage this important ambition for Wales, working on behalf of the Welsh Pharmaceutical Committee and with colleagues from all over Wales. Over 300 of you have already contributed to our face to face and virtual engagement sessions we held over the past three months and we thank you for your valuable input.

Janet Morrison, CEO of Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has emphasised that stabilization of the sector is essential before any solutions can be delivered to fix the "struggling" health service. Speaking at the recent SIGMA UK Community Pharmacy Conference 2024, Janet described the current contract as "unaffordable" and warned that pharmacies are becoming "unsustainable." "Without an urgent funding uplift, the sector is facing a 'house of cards' collapse that will seriously impact communities, patients, and the safety of medicine supply. "So, first of all, we have to secure the stabilization. We have to make sure you can keep the lights on and the doors open, and that's critical," she stated. Janet pointed out that if the sector is stabilized and a fair deal is achieved, community pharmacies could effectively deliver solutions for the government that meet their policy goals. However, she noted that negotiations for the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework (CPCF) for 2024-2025 cannot resume until the budget is published on October 30.

RPS Wales will once again spearhead the development of new three-year goals to help pharmacy in Wales advance toward its 2030 vision as outlined in Pharmacy: Delivering a Healthier Wales (PDaHW). Elen Jones, Director of RPS Wales, and Jonathan Simms, Chair of the Welsh Pharmaceutical Committee, announced during the recent RPS Wales Conference. Jones said: "I'd like to thank the Welsh Government and the Welsh Pharmaceutical Committee for once again entrusting RPS to take this work forward." This iteration of PDaHW builds on the original 10-year plan, published in 2019, and the two series of stepping stone goals established from 2019-2022 and 2022-2025. Work on the new three-year goals will begin in early 2025.

May I be one of the last people to wish you a 'Happy New Year' The new year is traditionally a time to reflect on the year past and look forward to the new year and all the joys and challenges it will bring, possibly by making a resolution. However, the statistics do not bode well for your resolution lasting. Whether it is to improve your health/lose weight (the no.1 resolution) or performing better at work (3%), the Forbes Health/One Poll survey found that the average resolution lasts just 3.74 months. Only 8% of respondents tend to stick with their goals for one month, while 22% last two months, 22% last three months and 13% last four months. So that's nearly 2/3 gone by 4 months. I only mention this because at the tail end of 2024, I thought Pharmacy, or more specifically Pharmacy Representative bodies had taken an early resolution and decided to get along. I am passionate about Collaboration and am a member of the Institute for Collaborative Working (ICW) and have spoken on the topic at conferences, the Pharmacy Show, etc, and also written in this very magazine on the subject (see Volume 20 March 2024). I have also been pretty dismayed at the lack of collaboration at a representation level leading to headlines such as "Don't underestimate the power of unity" and "Sector disagreement over call for unity" coupled with some 99% of participating pharmacy owners saying they were willing to limit their services unless funding is improved.

The General Pharmaceutical Council is in the process of appointing five new council members within the next two years, coinciding with the conclusion of the current members' terms. The regulator aims to recruit five individuals from diverse professional and personal backgrounds for its governing council, the GPhC has said. "We are seeking three members to join us in April 2024 and two in April 2025," said GPhC in its job advertisement brief. "For the 2024 intake, two of the new council members must be lay members of the public, while one must be a Saxton . Moreover, at least one out of the three must primarily reside or work wholly or mostly in Wales. As for the new members commencing in 2025, one must be a lay member, and the other must be a registrant member." The members will be initially appointed for a three-year term, with the option to extend their position for a maximum of eight years, GPhC added. The council, which serves as the regulator's governing body, currently comprises 14 members. Half of the council consists of lay members, who bolster public confidence and infuse novel viewpoints into the GPhC, as highlighted by the regulator. "This council will play a pivotal role in shaping the regulatory body's future strategic goals," the regulator added. "These members must contribute positively to patients and society, ensuring the benefits of secure and efficient pharmacy care."