The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 279 pp665-698 No 7482
15 December 2007

Jobs and Classified advertising

Leading Articles   666

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Clouds and silver linings 666
Two different — but related — articles in this week’s issue explore various aspects of the pharmacy workforce. The first, the Special feature, looks at what the current job opportunities are and what employment trends are likely to emerge in 2008. The second, an Article, analyses the make up of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s Registers as at August 2007 — the third successive annual snapshot of the pharmacy workforce
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Watchful waiting will not please all 666
The Office of Fair Trading has made its pronouncements about the new distribution models that some pharmaceutical companies — led by Pfizer’s direct to pharmacy scheme — have been adopting throughout the year
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News & Features   667-676

News summary, including R&D  667-673
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Headlines   PDF (170K)

Lead stories
-OFT sets out plan to limit impact of supply changes
-Professional body needs authoritative voice
-Council supports two-hour maximum absence for responsible pharmacists
-Authentication systems could reduce error rates
-Educate parents and children about atopic eczema
-Former PMI manager claims the business is worth much more than the NPA has offered to pay for it
-Patients links morphine with death
-Parents rate honey for children's night-time cough
-New alternatives to imatinib emerge for CML patients

OFT suggests a measured response to distribution changes — not a halt 674
There is nothing extraordinary within the long-awaited Office of Fair Trading report into UK medicines distribution. Rather, the OFT seeks to assure stakeholders that the Government has the power to minimise the impact of direct-to-pharmacy and other new supply models. Matthew Wright reports
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Independent prescribing
Prescribers reflect on their first year 675-676
In this final feature in a series following four pharmacists as they develop as independent prescribers, Dawn Connelly asks them how the first year has gone and what advice they have to offer those thinking of following in their footsteps
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POEMs   672

POEMs series

Topiramate may be effective for alcohol dependence 672
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Products   677

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Products   677
-SPC changes
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Drug tariff updates   677
-England and Wales (December prescriptions)
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Broad Spectrum   678

Can pharmacy have a public health role? 678
By Terry Maguire
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Letters   679-683

-NHS
-Retention fees
-Postgraduate education
-Independent prescribing
-Registration
-The profession
-Pack sizes
-Retirement
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Agenda for 2007   684-685

Agenda articles

Yes! Minister — the story continues 684-685
By way of counterpoint to my letter entitled “No! Minister”, let me take up the challenge of surmounting “the perceived barriers to pharmacists’ greater clinical involvement, delivery and health involvement” and propose solutions so “pharmacists can plan, develop and invest with confidence” as reported in the PJ
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Vision for pharmacy   686

Vision for pharmacy articles

Four years’ experience of providing a PCT-wide minor ailments scheme 686
In December 2003, Nottingham City Primary Care Trust began its Pharmacy First minor ailments scheme. Tom Moberly reports on experiences of running the scheme and on how the service has expanded and developed over the four years it has been in place
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Articles   687-693

Careers
Young pharmacists are starting to develop cross-sector portfolio careers 687-690
Locum pharmacists are riding a booming market, with more and more community pharmacies planning extended hours, writes Debbie Andalo
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Summary   PDF (110K)

National workforce census
Workforce update — joiners, leavers, and practising and non-practising pharmacists on the 2007 Register 691-693
In this article, Elizabeth Seston, Karen Hassell and Ellen Schafheutle present demographic data extracted from the 2007 Register of Pharmacists covering those who have joined and left the Register in the previous 12 months and differences between practising and non-practising pharmacists
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Summary   PDF (50K)

Ginger snaps   694

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When the oyster will offer the world 694
True oysters are considered to belong solely to the family Ostreidae, with the common European oyster (Ostrea edulis) the best known here. However, other varieties have proved palatable, most notably the American oyster, Crassostrea virginica. The oyster has provided sustenance to those prepared to run the slight risk of food poisoning from a “bad” one (usually arising from an unexpected decrease in water quality — oysters insist on unpolluted water to filter feed) for thousands of years
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The strange tale of the straight banana 694
Of all the many substances investigated over the centuries for possible psychotropic properties — mushrooms, toads’ backs, nutmeg, cow dung (don’t ask) — the strangest of all has to be the banana skin in 1966
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Making “green” tea 694
In a bid to reduce this column’s carbon footprint, we turn over this section to the eminent environmentalist, Sigrin Incorruptible, for some helpful hints…
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Erratum 694
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Society’s president calls for assessment into role of polyclinics 695
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Michael Schofield made honorary member 695
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The Society’s Christmas and New Year closures 695
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Fitness to practise declaration reminder 695
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myRPSGB functions extended to offer more services 696
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society recently extended the range of services available on myRPSGB, the password protected area of its website, which has been designed as a means of providing services to pharmacists and pharmacy technicians
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Law and Ethics Bulletin 2001 to present
Changes to the arrangements for dealing with Controlled Drug requisitions — Part I 697
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Official notices 2001 to present

Disciplinary Committee decision 698
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Disciplinary Committee: interim order 698
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Obituaries & tributes 698

Obituaries
-Cram
-Fraser
-Galbraith
-Leung
-Tandy

Tribute
-Smith

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Diary
Diary / Health events 

Resources 677
-Controlled Drug SOPs
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