The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 269 No 7220 p585
19 October 2002

Society summary

Conference media coverage will raise profession’s profile, says Society

Substantial media coverage given to the 2002 British Pharmaceutical Conference will help raise the profile of the pharmacy profession, says the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

Hemant Patel, a member of the Society’s Council, who was interviewed extensively about a pilot bone-scanning programme described at the conference (PJ, 12 October, p534), said: “The coverage generated about the project will help to highlight to the public at large the role that pharmacists can play in providing extended health care services.” The osteoporosis project was covered by BBC Television News and BBC Radio 4 and was the subject of a half-page feature article in the Daily Mail.

Other conference topics that attracted the media’s attention included breakthroughs in genetics prescribing, studies into the use of emergency hormonal contraception and research into a toothpaste derived from crab shells.

Coverage appeared in national, regional, international and specialist media during the three days of the conference.

The head of the Society’s public relations unit, Jean-Pierre Moser, said that the media coverage would help raise the profile of both the conference and the profession. The 35 news releases issued ahead of the conference generated substantial interest in both the science and practice elements. He added: “The challenge now is to build on the BPC brand for Harrogate in 2003.”