Princess praises pharmacists
Pharmacists were warmly praised by the Princess Royal
during her address to the British Pharmaceutical Conference in Glasgow
on 25 September. She said that the profession needed an outsider to come
along to remind them what a good job they do and that, in future with
closer collaboration with other health care professionals, their role
will be seen to be even more crucial.
In a wide-ranging talk on the importance of preventing
disease, the Princess Royal concentrated on issues where pharmacists could
make the biggest impact. She spoke about the diseases of poverty and how
the health of many children in the developing world is a great deal worse
than it was 20 years ago.
She also pointed out that few pharmacists in the
poor world had any influence on government policies on the effective distribution
and use of medicines — an area where they could make a difference. She
urged pharmacists to travel and help train local staff.
The Princess Royal also told the audience that through
her work with the Save the Children Fund she realised that there were
parallels between countries in the developing world and the United Kingdom
and that pharmacists had an important role to play in improving services
here. She specifically mentioned health education and promotion and the
fact that pharmacists were seen by many members of the community as an
invaluable source of information and advice.
Marshall Davies, President of the Royal Pharmaceutical
Society, in his “state of the nation” address at the opening ceremony
on 23 September, urged members to put aside their different agendas and
to concentrate on ensuring that they continued to justify the public’s
confidence in them.
He accepted, however, that in taking up new roles
in medicines management, pharmacists might find tensions between what
care and support they give to individual patients and their responsibilities
to the health needs of populations.
Mr Davies also warned the Government that, as they
pushed through reforming the National Health Service with the aim of making
the service patient-centred, ministers must not forget they had a responsibility
to the professionals providing the service. They, too, had needs that
had to be met.
The President also mentioned the part that pharmacists
could play in public health debates both abroad and at home and where
the voice of pharmacy needs to be heard more clearly. The HIV pandemic
and care of the elderly were two examples where pharmacy had a part to
play.
In conclusion, Mr Davies said that the profession
needed four things to succeed in the future:
- a modern regulatory framework
- support for continuing professional development
- robust professional and political partnerships
- enough financial security to allow continuous
service improvement
See also
President’s address
Princess Royal’s address
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