NEWS


SCOTTISH PHARMACY FORUM TO SPOTLIGHT INTEGRATION


Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer is to be the keynote speaker as the annual Pharmacy Management Forum in Scotland focuses on integration. Dr Catherine Calderwood will be explaining the government’s ambitions for ‘realistic medicine’ as part of a day-long conference on the role of pharmacy in the partnership working of Scotland’s health and social care professionals. The workshop in Dunblane on 24 August will be chaired by NHS Dumfries and Galloway’s Chief Pharmacist Michael Pratt.


Places are still available. For more details, go to


pharman.co.uk/events.


COMMUNITY PHARMACY SUPPLEMENTARY AND INDEPENDENT PRESCRIBING CLINICS FUNDING FOR 2016-17


The Scottish Government has just announced the latest batch of funding for Supplementary and Independent Prescribing Clinics for 2016-17. Circular PCA (P) (2016) 6 indicates that funding will be confirmed at £1m, which is similar to recent years and each Health Board is allocated its share based on previous years' funding.


To promote stability in funding, the Scottish Government has indicated that, at this stage, it is likely that funding will also remain in place for 2017-18. This will be followed by a review of the funding of Supplementary and Independent Prescribing Clinics to determine how clinics will be funded in the future. Each NHS Board has been asked to prepare a report by 28 February on how the funds will be deployed.


'During the current situation of a GP recruitment and retention crisis it is key that Supplementary and Independent Prescribing clinics are funded,' said Campbell Shimmins from Doune Pharmacy - a recipient of funding, 'and I welcome that the funding has been committed subject to a review. The funding has allowed me to work jointly with my GP colleagues to jointly support patient care whilst allowing my pharmacy to function in my absence.'


4 - SCOTTISH PHARMACIST


RGU SCIENTISTS HOST MAJOR MIDDLE EAST


CONFERENCE A team of scientists from Robert Gordon University (RGU) recently hosted a major health conference in the Middle East. Lecturers from the university’s School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences organised a patient safety conference which was held at the Sheraton Hotel, Doha, Qatar on Friday, April 22 and Saturday, April 23.


More than 300 delegates attended the two-day event which was aimed at pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmacy academics and students in Qatar. The inaugural conference was a joint project between RGU, Hamad Medical


Corporation (HMC) and Qatar University and, funded by the Academic Health System of HMC.


Dr Moza Al Hail, the executive director of pharmacy at HMC and a visiting professor at RGU was instrumental in driving forward the event. RGU’s Professor Derek Stewart chaired the scientific committee, which also included RGU pharmacy lecturers Dr Scott Cunningham and Dr Katie MacLure, while Professor Donald Cairns, Head of RGU’s School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, gave the opening addresses alongside


colleagues from Hamad Medical Corporation and Qatar University.


‘The patient safety conference was a resounding success,’ said Professor Stewart, ‘and encouraged greater collaboration between pharmacy professionals from different organisations to further improve patient safety. Our workshops focused on highlighting the role of pharmacists in patient safety, medication safety and other issues and were greatly received by the delegates.’


BREAST CANCER CARE - SCOTTISH PHARMACY SHOWS IT CARES!


Following the recent Scottish Pharmacist Awards and Ball, Scottish Pharmacist presented a cheque for £4048, which was raised on the evening, to Breast Cancer Care.


Pictured at the presentation are (l-r): Professor Harry McQuillan, CEO, Community Pharmacy Scotland; Ali Reade, Breast Cancer Care, Community Fundraiser (Scotland); Maureen Delaney, Director, Profile, and Nicolas White, Breast Cancer Care, Head of Scotland.


RPS LAUNCHES NEW INITIATIVE ON DRUG DRIVING


The changes to drug-driving laws, which came into effect in March 2015, saw new road-side drug screening devices introduced, alongside new drug limits for both illegal and prescription drugs.


Rather alarmingly, new research by insurance comparison site Confused. com has revealed that, in 2015, 1686


motorists were charged with drug driving, compared with just 691 in 2014! Even more alarmingly, of the one in seven (fifteen per cent) drivers who admitted to drug driving, the majority were taking prescription medication rather than illegal drugs.


Now, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has combined forces with


Confused.com to raise awareness of the law around drug driving and how pharmacists can help drivers stay safe on the road.


While most motorists may be aware of the obvious implications of driving whilst under the influence of illegal class A drugs, many are unaware of how the law applies to driving when using prescription drugs, with many motorists unaware that driving mixed with some over-the-counter remedies could result in serious consequences.


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