The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 268 No 7193 p509-516
13 April 2002

Society summary

British pharmacists take their medicines information expertise to pharmacists in Indonesia

Sadia Khan, one of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's information pharmacists, was among a team of British pharmacists who visited Indonesia in February. The pharmacists were there to deliver a five-day intensive training course in medicines information and clinical pharmacy at Surabaya University.

As part of the visit, Ms Khan, together with Dr Chik Kaw Tan, senior pharmacist at North Staffordshire Hospital, and Alison Eggleton, principal pharmacist education and training at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, were invited to speak at a national seminar in Jakarta promoting the role of the pharmacist in medicines information and clinical pharmacy.

The seminar was attended by more than 150 people, including hospital and community pharmacists and representatives from the Indonesian National Agency of Food and Drug Control. Topics covered included how to answer queries, antibiotic counselling and clinical pharmacy in the United Kingdom.

In addition, Adji Prajitno, director of the centre for medicines information and pharmaceutical care at Surabaya University, and Aziza Nuraini, of the Indonesian Food and Drug Information Centre, provided participants with an Indonesian perspective on medicines information and described the work conducted at their own recently established information centres.

Speaking about the seminar, Ms Khan said: "The national seminar was hugely successful. It stimulated a lot of lively debate and provided the ideal forum for pharmacists to discuss the impact of clinical pharmacy and the importance of adopting a systematic approach to medicines information provision.

Ms Eggleton said: "There was a great deal of interest in antibiotic counselling. Pharmacists can sell medicines over-the-counter and we were able to supply information about how this can be done more safely. The types of questions we were asked demonstrated the real need for improved training in this area, particularly in a country with widespread resistance problems".