The school is situated in the centre of Portsmouth, in the St Michael's building, part of which was opened in March, 1997, by Professor James Watson (Nobel Laureate and co-discoverer of DNA). It is the largest school in the faculty of science and one of the largest in the university. The head of the school is Dr John Smart, who joined the pharmacy department in 1988 as a lecturer in pharmaceutics; prior to that he owned a community pharmacy in Weston-Super-Mare. His main research interest is in biomaterials and drug delivery. Dr John Wong, a pharmacologist, is the deputy head of the school.
At present, about 360 students are studying on the pharmacy undergraduate programme, more than 75 students are registered on master of philosophy (MPhil) and doctor of philosophy (PhD) degrees, with a further 120 to 130 undertaking taught postgraduate courses (postgraduate diplomas and MScs). From September, 2000, the total number of undergraduates will increase to reflect the new fourth year and one of Dr Smart's current challenges is to obtain funding and staff for what will probably amount to a further 120 students. His bid for funding - to the Higher Education Funding Council - has been prepared largely on the basis on the quality of the pharmacy pathway, and the current shortage of pharmacists within the region. This is because of the increased number of pharmacists required to cover longer pharmacy opening hours and to take on new roles, for example within primary care groups. Dr Smart told me how grateful he was for the assistance of local hospital and community pharmacists and bodies like the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee and the National Pharmaceutical Association in preparing the bid.
Dr Smart says his main achievement during his two years as head has been in successfully managing the school through enormous transition. Transference of the physics department to geology, and a much reduced chemistry section caused by a decrease in the number of applications for chemistry degrees, has effectively meant the loss of physical sciences from the school, and the university agenda has been to put the school under a health science umbrella. All the programmes offered - including pharmacy, pharmacology, biomedical science and radiography - now have an overall health science theme, Dr Smart says. Moreover, the profile of pharmacy within the school has been raised, partly by bringing key pharmacists into strategic positions on the governing body and partly by reorientating staff and resources to make pharmacy more prominent.

A class under way in the biomaterials and drug delivery laboratory

One of the main strengths of the Portsmouth school is research. A strong and wide-ranging research base is important in any school of pharmacy, Dr Smart says, simply because it helps to attract both funding and good staff. It also generates enthusiasm in the department and encourages undergraduate students, particularly in their third and fourth years, to be at the forefront of knowledge and new discoveries.
There are several prominent research groups within the school, including those concerned with biomaterials and drug delivery, natural products chemistry, biomedical science, pharmacology and pharmacy practice. Facilities include two large chemical synthesis suites, a formulation and drug delivery laboratory, a molecular biology laboratory and radioisotope, instrument and solvent preparation rooms. There has been substantial investment in equipment, including new nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometers, silicon graphic molecular modelling systems and, most recently, an atomic force microscope. Research is currently sponsored by research councils, the European Union, charities, industry, overseas governments, university bursaries or sometimes by students financing themselves.

In the molecular medicine laboratory

The other main strength at Portsmouth is pharmacy practice. Teaching in pharmacy practice covers dispensing, administration and management in the National Health Service, health economics and pharmacy law and ethics. There is also a strong emphasis on communication skills and response to symptoms, and a specially designed pharmacy counter at the front of one of the seminar rooms helps students to start to learn the art of patient counselling.
Portsmouth has six teacher-practitioners, two of whom are hospital-based and four of whom are in community practice - one sponsored by Boots, one by Lloyds, one by Moss and one by Tesco. "These individuals have revolutionised the pharmacy practice department," says Dr Smart "and thankfully, our teaching is now increasingly relevant to the real world of community and hospital practice. They also allow, in many cases, for student teaching on a one-to-one basis."
Professor Ian Jones is the director of pharmacy practice research, and he and other colleagues have attracted external funding for research into the role of the pharmacist and the pharmacy within the NHS.

Professor Ian Jones takes a class