Huddersfield opens new centre for pharmacy policy and practice research

The Department of Pharmacy at the University of Huddersfield has been focusing on a number of strategies to enhance high-quality research in pharmacy practice. A pharmacy practice research retreat was organised in May 2017 and a research strategy was developed through a conceptual framework adopted from Nagy and Fawcett’s (2016) model of vision, mission, objectives, strategies and action plan.

The vision and mission of the strategy include promoting pharmacy practice research with pathways to deliver optimal patient outcomes through excellence in collaborative research. The objectives of the pharmacy practice research strategy include:

• To establish and strengthen links to drive collaboration with external and internal partners;
• To create a supportive environment and inclusive culture, which facilitates opportunities for excellence in pharmacy practice research;
• To generate evidence to influence policy and practice for the benefit of patients and the profession.

To achieve these objectives, a new centre for pharmaceutical policy and practice research has been established at the University of Huddersfield. The centre aims to achieve recognition through the quality of its research as well as further development of its global linkages, and by providing training opportunities for postgraduate students. The centre’s research is around two main themes.

Primacy care pharmacy research involves research that aims to understand and improve medicines-related patient outcomes and access to medicines research at primary care level. This includes access and affordability of medicines, medicines utilisation, pricing, economic evaluation of pharmacy services, as well as health services and pharmacy practice research in low-, middle- and high-income countries.

The second theme, medicines use research being undertaken at the institutional level, includes medicines compliance and optimisation, as well as barriers to achieve optimal pharmacotherapy.

The centre’s future activities will include planning a writing retreat and organising a research symposium in July 2019. For those wishing to know more or be involved, further details can be found at: https://research.hud.ac.uk/institutes-centres/centres/pharmaceuticalpolicyandpracticeresearchcentre/

Tweet the Centre at: @CPPPRHUD

Professor Zaheer-Ud-Din Babar

Director, centre for pharmaceutical policy and practice research, and professor in medicines and healthcare, University of Huddersfield. Correspondence to: z.babar@hud.ac.uk

Professor Barbara Conway

Head, Department of Pharmacy, University of Huddersfield