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We can manage patients’ moves off the bipolar treatment Priadel successfullySubscription
The imminent withdrawal of the most popular UK brand of lithium is causing confusion and distress, but this can be managed successfully if pharmacists take a strategic approach.
Evidence shows the antibiotics market is failing, but here is how it can be revivedSubscription
A core group of pharmaceutical companies are making progress in tackling the spread of antimicrobial resistance, but change is not happening at the scale needed to radically impact the threat from drug resistance.
For community pharmacists to be treated as equals after the COVID-19 pandemic, they must become paid employees of the NHSSubscription
COVID-19 has exposed the vulnerabilities of having separate health and social care systems, but pharmacy can only help fill this gap if it is more embedded within the NHS.
We must tear down the barriers to equality for BAME communities highlighted by COVID-19Subscription
There are two ways that we can begin to address the long-running health disparities between different ethnic groups, which have been highlighted by the disproportionate effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Roger M. Perlmutter: 'The free flow of scientific talent in and out of the UK is incredibly important'Subscription
Roger M. Perlmutter is the executive vice president of Merck Sharp & Dohme, and president of MSD Research Laboratories. On a visit to London, he caught up with Gino Martini, chief scientist at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, for a chat about the future of pharmaceutical research and his experiences of the industry.
Elsy Gomez Campos: 'There are too many excuses justifying the unjustifiable'Subscription
The president of the UK Black Pharmacists Association speaks about the discrimination her members face every day and how pharmacy can tackle it.
Harry McQuillan: 'Pharmacy First is the art of pharmacy' Subscription
Scottish community pharmacy is about to enter a new phase as the Pharmacy First service aims to position it as the first port of call for common clinical conditions.
Richard Hobbs: ‘This trial has been a monumental task’
A principal investigator in one of the UK-based COVID-19 treatment trials speaks about his hopes for the study and the controversy surrounding hydroxychloroquine.
Every pharmacist should have the time to develop their skillsSubscription
In a profession that supports the health and wellbeing of the public, pharmacists must have regular protected learning time to enable them to carry out their crucial roles.
Warm words are not enough for community pharmacySubscription
Community pharmacies have worked tirelessly during the COVID-19 pandemic; it is time they were given additional funding to help them prepare for the next wave.
Replacing the preregistration year could prove transformativeSubscription
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the pharmacy profession in many ways, but perhaps the longest-lasting could be the planned changes to the preregistration year.
NOW EXTENDED: A brave new world? Share your ideas on post-pandemic pharmacy in our writing competitionSubscription
Flex your creative skills and enter our annual writing competition this year.
Why ‘epidrugs’ will be the next major focus for precision medicineSubscription
It is not just our genes that dictate how our bodies cope with disease and respond to drugs — by identifying the modifications to our DNA strands, and the histone proteins that regulate gene expression, we can uncover a whole new direction for diagnostic biomarkers, therapeutic biomarkers and drug targets.
Down, but not out: hydroxychloroquine could still have a role against COVID-19
Ongoing research may yet prove that the 4-aminoquinolones are an effective prophylactic medication in those at risk of developing COVID-19.
Access to contraception in primary care leaves much to be desired — community pharmacy should prescribe, as well as supply, pills and patchesSubscription
Pharmacists can do more than just dispensing contraceptives; by prescribing and monitoring them in the pharmacy, they can free GPs to provide women with a wider range of contraceptive choices.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the government to allow medicines reuse: we must not waste this opportunity to counter our throwaway cultureSubscription
Fears over drug shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic mean that, in care homes and hospices, costly medicines prescribed but unused by one patient can now be given to another, rather than destroyed. This formerly illegal practice should stay long after we recover from the pandemic, and be extended to other healthcare settings, so we can reap the financial and environmental benefits.
The Paralympian who taught me I had a lot to learn about inclusion and diversity as a pharmacist
An encounter during the Paralympic Games in 2012 proved eye-opening and taught a lesson about how important it is to try to imagine the experience of others.
What my deaf daughter taught me about PPE and communicating with the hard of hearing in the pharmacy
Facial coverings are helping us to limit the spread of COVID-19, but for people who rely on lip reading, communication just got harder. Consultant pharmacist Karen Miller, whose daughter is deaf, says we could all rethink how we interact with our patients and each other.
How our trust's pharmacists are leading, not just validating, pharmacogenomics testing
Senior cancer pharmacists like Catherine Chaytor at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust are at the forefront of new technology using patients’ genomes to identify their risk of chemotherapy side effects.
What community pharmacy access to shared health and social care records could mean for patient care
Community pharmacies in Dorset could soon have access to system-wide health and social care records. Robin Mitchell, owner of Victoria Park Pharmacy in Dorchester, explains why pharmacists should jump at the opportunity.
Sponsoring pharmacy students in sub-Saharan AfricaSubscription
While the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed weaknesses in public health policies and healthcare services, it has also demonstrated how pharmacists can have an increased role in delivering healthcare. This is true for both developed and developing countries, but for the latter, a shortage of healthcare personnel is limiting this role.
New pharmacist-led network is sharing best practice in medicines for neurodiverse patientsSubscription
As pharmacy professionals, we work across a wide range of sectors in various locations, within different clinical specialities and teams to deliver best practice in medicines optimisation.
Mixed feelings about prescribing studies for pharmacy undergraduatesSubscription
In July 2020, the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) proposed major reforms to the initial education and training for pharmacists, which included replacing the pre-registration year with foundation training and subsequent plans to
Investigating the use of plant-based artemisinin against COVID-19Subscription
In May 2020, the health secretary, Matt Hancock, hailed the use of remdesivir in NHS treatment of patients with COVID-19.
Peter Hylands (1946–2019) Subscription
As the first pharmaceutical scientist member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, Peter Hylands’ respected and varied career specialised in natural products research.
Stewart Adams (1923–2019)Subscription
Having fallen into the pharmacy profession “purely by chance”, Stewart Adams OBE went on to discover ibuprofen, one of the world’s best selling anti-inflammatory painkillers.
‘Pioneer of pharmacy’: Graham Calder (1933–2018) Subscription
Described as a ‘pioneer of pharmacy’, former chief pharmacist of Scotland Graham Calder has been an inspiration for many pharmacy professionals during, and since, his varied career.
William Charles Evans (1924–2018) Subscription
Author of Trease and Evans’ Pharmacognosy, a seminal text on the chemistry and uses of medicinal plants, William Charles Evans was a prolific researcher and educator throughout his 60-year career.
