The Royal Pharmaceutical Society has appointed communications agency to lead a review into how it can develop and strengthen member participation.
"We've appointed communications consultancy Luther Pendragon to carry out an independent review of the participation of members and of our communications
concerning decisions we take on behalf of the profession through our Governance boards," the Society said in a statement on Tuesday (May 10).
It added that review would examine how RPS members, elected members and stakeholders can feel engaged, informed and empowered to influence decisions about RPS policy and understand why decisions around organisational policy have been taken on their behalf by elected representatives.
It will also ensure RPS decision-making processes are open and transparent with an emphasis on evidence-based decision making, and recommend ways elected members are enabled to be publicly accountable for decisions taken by the organisation at Board and Assembly level.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has called its member to to express their views and fill out the Department of Health and Social Care's hub and
spoke survey on the proposed model of dispensing.
The Society has urged its members to fill out the survey before May 20.
RPS president Claire Anderson said: "It is vital that RPS members have their say on issue that impact you in your roles. Currently only single legal entities
can make use of this model of dispensing.
"Our survey, which opened today, seeks your views and comments and will help to inform the RPS submission to this consultation."
The consultation on the proposals to enable all community pharmacies to access hub and spoke dispensing published by the Department of Health and Social Care
(DHSC) will run for three months and will close on June 8, 2022.
Pfizer said on Tuesday it will pay $11.6 billion to buy Biohaven Pharmaceuticals, making a big bet on its ability to boost sales of the top-selling pill in a new class of migraine drugs.
The boards of both companies have approved the deal, they said. Biohaven shares jumped 70 per cent to $141.31, while Pfizer was up slightly at $48.83.
Pfizer is flush with cash from a once-in-a-lifetime surge in revenue from Covid-19 vaccines and therapeutics and has said it is looking to buy companies or drugs
that could add at least $25 billion in annual sales by the end of the decade.
"The CGRP oral medications, though still somewhat newer entrants in a deeply entrenched space, continue to make steady inroads in disrupting the broader migraine market in the U.S.," said BioHaven chief executive Vlad Coric.
Biohaven forecast Nurtec sales of $825 million to $900 million in 2022.
Pfizer said it expects the pills to eventually overtake the shots.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society has opened a survey which asks its members how they would want to take part in and learn about decisions made by the RPS.
The RPS said the survey was a core part of the independent review of member participation and communications led by communications consultancy Luther Pendragon.
It said: "We will be asking our members to join focus groups to give their opinions on how participation can be developed and strengthened, and how RPS communications
about decisions it has taken on behalf of the profession through its governance boards can be improved. We will also be asking our elected members and key external
stakeholders for their views over the coming weeks."
The Luther team will then build a series of recommendations for RPS and develop a corporate communications strategy which will include action plans to enable greater
participation.
RPS president Claire Anderson said: "We want to hear from as many of you as possible through our survey to inform how the organisation works with and engages with you,
our members.
Community pharmacies in England could soon be allowed to make cancer referrals to hospitals under new plans to improve early detection of the disease.
An NHS pilot scheme, which starts later this year as a pilot in an undisclosed number of places of England, will see community pharmacy staff spotting signs of
cancer in people who might not have noticed symptoms.
Pharmacy teams will be trained to spot red flags, such as patients with symptoms such as a cough that lasts for three weeks or more, difficulty swallowing or blood
in their urine, and send them for scans and checks without needing to see a GP if they think it could be cancer.
Amanda Pritchard, the NHS chief executive, will unveil the plans at the NHS Confed Expo conference in Liverpool on Wednesday (June 15), and say: "These plans have
the power to truly transform the way we find and treat cancer, and ultimately spare thousands of patients and their families from avoidable pain and loss."
The plans include new "roaming liver trucks" - which will be parked near GP surgeries, in town centres and food banks - to encourage people most at risk of getting liver cancer to get "on the spot scans" for diagnosis.
The chief pharmaceutical officer (CPhO) for Wales and chief pharmacists at Boots and the Ministry of Defence are among a total of 1,134 people who received
an award in the Queen's Birthday Honours list to mark her Platinum Jubilee.
All three pharmacists were appointed officers of the Order of the British Empire or OBE.
Andrew Evans, CPhO for Wales, was honoured "for services to the Covid-19 Response", Marc Donovan, chief pharmacist at Boots UK, "for services to pharmacy" and Sumeet
Kaur Matharu, chief pharmacist at the Ministry of Defence, "for services to Armed Forces Healthcare".
Giving his reaction to Pharmacy Business, Donovan said: I'm honoured to accept this recognition on behalf of the many dedicated and hard-working pharmacists and
pharmacy teams that I have had the privilege to work alongside over the years.
An oral drug combination by Novartis showed promise in treating a subgroup of patients suffering from a common childhood brain cancer in a trial.
In the mid-stage trial, 47 per cent of the patients that were given the two drugs Tafinlar and Mekinist saw their tumours shrink, far above a rate of 11 per cent
in a comparative group of participants on standard chemotherapy, the drugmaker said on Monday, June 6.
The participants, aged one to 17 years, were suffering from low-grade gliomas (LGG), the most common childhood brain cancer.
The trial only included those who were found to have a mutation known as BRAF V600, a genetic contributor in about 15 per cent to 20 per cent of paediatric LGG cases.
Among further results of the trial with 110 participants, the median time without disease progression was 20.1 months for those given the Novartis drug combo,
compared to 7.4 months on chemotherapy.
The new oral treatment candidate also caused less severe side effects than burdensome chemotherapy.
Pfizer has recalled all stocks of Accupro - including 5mg, 10mg, 20mg, 40mg film-coated tablets - as a precautionary measure due to the identification of a
nitrosamine above the acceptable limit.
"Following testing, N-nitroso-quinapril, has been observed at a level above the acceptable limit. Nitrosamines may increase the risk of cancer if people are
exposed to them above acceptable levels and over long periods of time. The recall is at pharmacy and wholesaler level," the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating
Committees (PSNC) reported.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said: "All strengths of quinapril (Accupro) tablets have been recalled with a resupply date to be confirmed. Pfizer
are the sole supplier of quinapril tablets in the UK. Alternative ACE inhibitors remain available and can support an uplift in demand."
A group of 21 community pharmacies in the Midlands and Yorkshire will have a new name - Pickfords Pharmacy.
The group has been created by combining three independent pharmacy businesses which traded as Mr Pickford's, McGills Pharmacy and D&R Sharp.
All pharmacies in the new group will be rebranded over the coming months, with a series of launch events planned by local teams.
Speaking after the unveiling of the first branch to receive new signage in Hexthorpe Doncaster, Mimi Lau, Pickfords Pharmacy's chief operating officer, said:
"This is a turning point for the group, with all our pharmacies operating under one name with a consistent, contemporary brand.
"Initial reaction has been fantastic and very soon the name Pickfords Pharmacy will be widely recognised for the great service we deliver to customers and patients
every day."
Speaking of the consolidation, Nick Yarrow, the newly appointed group chief executive officer, commented: "Since the enlarged group came together last year, we have
been striving to ensure that the best elements of each business have been retained for the benefit of our customers and team members.
"This is part of our journey to be more than just a pharmacy - we want to be a trusted source of healthcare services at the heart of each one of the communities we
serve".
The voter turnout in England for the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's English Pharmacy Board election dropped to 7.9 per cent this year.
Out of a total of 19,512 eligible individuals, only 1,534 decided to vote.
The RPS English Board received ten nominations for five vacancies this year; therefore an election was conducted. One nomination was received for the three
vacancies on the Welsh Pharmacy Board. Three nominations were received for the three vacancies on the Scottish Pharmacy Board. Therefore, no election was
conducted in pharmacy boards in Wales or Scotland.
RPS president Claire Anderson said: "It's disappointing that the voter turnout in England has dropped to 7.9 from 11.8 per cent in 2021. We have now appointed
an independent review of how RPS members, elected members and stakeholders can feel more engaged and empowered to influence RPS decisions, and eagerly await
its recommendations."
The Society appointed communications agency Luther Pendragon to lead a review into how it can develop and strengthen member participation.
Britain's billionaire Issa brothers and Indian tycoon Mukesh Ambani are preparing to face off in the final battle for Boots UK ownership, according to Bloomberg.
In the first round, Issa brothers have submitted the highest offer, the people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg.
"The brothers are going up against Ambani, who's been working on a bid together with buyout firm Apollo Global Management Inc."
The source said: "Bidders are now sizing up Boots' billions in pension guarantees - which they'll have to take on - as they figure out how much they can pay for the business."
They're also working around the clock to arrange financing in a difficult market, which has gotten that much tougher due to the war in Ukraine, soaring inflation and rising interest rates, according to the people.
From the informative to the fascinating, the collection of exhibits that make up the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's (RPS) museum collection reopened at the
Society's London headquarters on Monday (May 16).
The museum, which has been closed to the public for two years, boasts one of the largest collections of historical pharmacy exhibits in the country.
The 181-year-old museum features a host of amazing objects from the 1400s up to the present day that dramatically illustrate just how far modern medicine has come.
From poison bottles and medieval textbooks, to trade tokens and pottery, the museum is there for everybody.
Museum exhibits include finding out about ceramic 'bear' jars containing bear oil, which was once thought to be a remedy for baldness, exploring what nineteenth
Century 'asthma cigarettes' were used for, and finding out why a stuffed Nile crocodile was the symbol for the apothecary.
The museum showcases the unique history of the development of drugs for medical treatment, alongside the evolution of the pharmacy profession in Britain, and the
role RPS played in its development.
The One Show on BBC One has put community pharmacy in the limelight, showcasing the sector's vital work during the pandemic to a primetime TV audience.
The five minute segment, aired on May 10, featured Sutton pharmacist Reena Barai and a reception at St. James's Palace for around 200 pharmacists, including Barai,
hosted by the Prince of Wales on May 4.
"It was great to be part of such a positive story," Barai, who is a board member of the National Pharmacy Association (NPA), said.
"It's heartening that the national media are taking notice of the sector, because it's too often overlooked. Coverage like this both reflects public opinion and shapes it, that's why the NPA works so hard on keeping us in the public eye."
The segment told the story of community pharmacy's role during the pandemic and contained footage of a speech by the Prince of Wales, praising the sector for its
contribution to the nation's healthcare.
"Pharmacists are about people and places, not just pills, a place where science, as it were, meets society. I just want to thank you all, more than I can possibly say, for everything you do so brilliantly to keep people well, and above all, save lives. Thank you, everybody," Prince Charles is seen saying at the reception.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has appointed Professor Parastou Donyai as chief scientist. She will take up the role in June.
Parastou is a pharmacist with a PhD in pharmacy. She also has a postgraduate diploma in Psychological Research Methods as well as a degree in Psychology.
She is currently a professor of Social & Cognitive Pharmacy at the University of Reading and her research examines the psychology of medication use, discontinuation
and decision-making processes.
Prior to this, Parastou also spent more than five years as a senior lecturer in Pharmacy Practice at Kingston University and St. George's University of London. Her
longstanding research interest includes continuing professional development in pharmacy.
Commenting on her appointment, Parastou said: "It is a real privilege for me to be the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's next chief scientist.
"As a pharmacist, scientist and academic, I look forward to working with the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's members and key stakeholders to uphold the value of
science across the breadth of our profession."
Walgreens Boots Alliance has announced the launch of its new clinical trials business that aims to use patient data from its pharmacies to help drive up
recruitment in studies conducted by drugmakers.
With patient recruitment and enrollment remain key challenges in clinical trials, further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said it can proactively
match diverse patient populations to trials across a range of disease areas based on race, gender, socioeconomic status and location with its patient reach and
access to an extensive foundation of pharmacy and patient-authorised clinical data.
The Boots owner also believes that by leveraging a tech-enabled approach to patient identification and creating a large registry of clinical trial participants,
the company will be able to reduce the time it takes to match eligible patients to clinical trials.
"Walgreens trusted community presence across the nation, combined with our enterprise-wide data and health capabilities, enables us to pioneer a comprehensive
solution that makes health options, including clinical trials, more accessible, convenient and equitable," said Ramita Tandon, chief clinical trials officer,
Walgreens.
Polio has been detected in sewage samples in London, the first sign since the 1980s that the virus could be spreading in the UK, but no cases have been found,
authorities said.
The risk of infection from the disease, which causes paralysis in children in under one per cent of cases, was also low because of high vaccination rates, the UK
Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said.
The agency nevertheless encouraged parents to make sure their children were vaccinated after the discovery of the virus during routine wastewater surveillance -
particularly those who may have missed shots during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Nationwide vaccination levels are above the 90 per cent needed to prevent outbreaks, but London's coverage rates among the under-twos has dipped below that in recent
years.
NHS England will begin contacting parents of children under five who are not immunised.
Polio, spread mainly through contamination by faecal matter, used to kill and paralyse thousands of children annually worldwide. There is no cure, but vaccination
brought the world close to ending the wild, or naturally occurring, form of the disease.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has issued draft guidance on 'Evusheld' which is not recommended for vulnerable adult with high
risk of severe Covid-19 on Thursday (16 February).
The draft guidance is open for public consultation until 9 March 2023. The committee will consider any comments received at a meeting currently due to take place on
4 April 2023.
It comes after last month's decision by the US drug regulator to withdraw its emergency use authorisation for Evusheld as a preventative treatment for Covid-19,
which said there was insufficient evidence that Evusheld is effective against the dominant variants of Covid-19 in the US.
NICE's independent appraisal committee has reached the same conclusion having considered evidence which shows Evusheld is unlikely to prevent infection with most of
the variants circulating in the UK now and in the near future.
It has also announced that it is developing a new review process to update recommendations on the cost-effectiveness of Covid-19 treatments so they can be made
available more quickly to patients if they show promise against new variants and are found to be cost-effective.
Lord Markham, a health minister suggested the House of Lords on Tuesday (10 January) that plan of 'using pharmacies more for patient will put funding their
way', just like allocation of Covid vaccine provided support.
In a statement to the House of Lords he praised the sector saying they are a 'crucial part of the front line'.
His statement was in response to a question from Lord Grade, who is campaigning on behalf of the community pharmacy sector. Lord Grade warned Government that it must
take action before pharmacies start to close.
On Monday (9 January) the Health Secretary, Steve Barclay MP, commented: "There are many more things that community pharmacists can support with that can ease
pressure on General Practice. The Primary Care recovery plan will set out a range of additional services that Community Pharmacy can deliver."
Clinical trials for BioNTech's cancer vaccines should start this year in Britain, marking an important step towards their possible sale on the open market,
the German company's top executive Ugur Sahin told magazine Der Spiegel.
BioNTech, known for its COVID vaccine with U.S. partner Pfizer, is currently deciding which types of cancer it wants to test its personalized cancer immunotherapies
on and the locations where it will conduct the trials, Sahin said.
The company wants these therapies, which are based on messenger RNA (mRNA) technology similar to the one that underpins its COVID-19 vaccine, to soon become a regular
treatment for cancer patients.
"We believe that this should be possible for large amounts of patients before 2030," Sahin said.
Titan PMR, a pioneer of cutting pharmacy technology has set up additional new team of 12 staff to cater for a deluge of independent pharmacists investing in
new businesses.
The company is utilising the opportunity that is underway as large chains look to sell off or close their community pharmacies, offering an opportunity for
pharmacists looking to provide efficient dispensing and additional services.
In January this year Lloyds Pharmacy, which was bought by a private equity firm in 2022, announced plans to close all its 237 branches inside Sainsbury's stores over
the course of 2023. Currently, more than 5,500 of around 14,000 registered pharmacy premises across the UK are owned by corporates and supermarkets.
Titan PMR - an innovative, cloud-based system which manages end-to-end pharmacy workflow - has become the preferred software platform especially amongst first time
buyers who are keen to offer new services to patients. The new team at the Bristol-based company, hired to support this sector, sees its total workforce growing to
more than 50 staff.
