ULSTER CHEMISTS’ ASSOCIATION IN FOCUS
Welcome
t is all change at the UCA this month. Our new education and training programmes are being finalised and will soon be rolled out. New courses will add and complement our learning and development portfolio. New courses on 'managing difficult situations' and 'working in a successful team' will be added to the level 5 management and training programme and first aid courses.
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We have also launched our pre-registration training programme for 2016-17, which represent the gold standard for pre-reg training in Northern Ireland. The programme has been designed to not only prepare the students for their exam, but also to deliver the practical skills necessary to be a well-rounded pharmacist once qualified. Watch out for the brochure being delivered soon and get your pre-reg signed up early, as demand will be even higher than normal!
I recently spoke to a group of students who had just taken their final exam. It was interesting to note how clinical their degree and pre-reg had become. I certainly feel that the courses UCA will offer next year can only be useful for them as they begin their career in community pharmacy.
At Urban Pharmacy we have had our fair share of 'incidents' recently ranging from abusive addicts to a full-on fight between two members of the public. No amount of learning makes you ready to deal with this, but I know we will be looking at the 'managing difficult situations' course with interest. Dealing with conflict is, unfortunately, something we need to deal with on a daily basis in community.
With that in mind, I was delighted to have the opportunity to meet the Substitute prescribing team at Dunluce Health Centre recently. We had requested the meeting after a noticeable change in behaviour of some of our Substitute prescribing clients. The team at Dunluce listened to our concerns and acted upon them. This really makes us feel part of the care team now, where we are all responsible for - and involved in - the patient’s treatment. It would be great to think that this 'team work' will be the norm when GP pharmacists are in position and are providing a link between prescriber and pharmacy, and between commissioner and service provider, with the patient at the centre of our decisions and community pharmacy at the decision-making table!
In between refereeing instore boxing matches, I have recently been made to feel very welcome by the CPNI board, taking the UCA seat at the monthly board meetings. With all the talk of team work in this article, I hope that this will continue the close working relationship between the two organisations for the benefit of all of us involved in community pharmacy: contractors, pharmacists and staff alike. The recent consultation paper on the future of pharmacy regulation in Northern Ireland looks like it was designed to further change the workplace for community pharmacy, so it is imperative that all of the representative and statutory bodies in Northern Ireland - more than ever - are advocates for community pharmacy, and work together to deliver strong leadership and a strong future for all. I know that the UCA will be striving to work with any organisation that can forward the community pharmacy agenda.
Cliff McElhinney President, UCA
Tel: 028 9065 6576
www.uca.org.uk
Inside this issue:
• Representation Pharmacist blog by Mairead Conlon
• CodeWord – Appliances are not on the zero discount list
• Health Promotion Kits - find out how you can run your own day with help from the UCA
• Launch of the NEW look Pre-registration Training programme
PROMOTING AND PROTECTING COMMUNITY & PRIMARY CARE PHARMACY IN NORTHERN IRELAND
• News • Views • Information
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