The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 269 No 7229 p886
21/28 December 2002

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  Period-of-treatment fee
  Patient packs
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Letters to the Editor

CPD

Community pharmacists should do less CPD

From Mr F. A. Yusuf, MRPharmS

Regarding the debate on continuing professional development and its possible mandatory imposition, I would like to make the following observations.

Most, if not all, pharmacists are or have been doing CPD or continuing education without the need for mandatory formalisation or old-fashioned handwritten records. Further, I would contend that the need for mandatory CPD in community pharmacy should be exempted or reduced compared with hospital, academia, industrial or administrative work. Not only are the hours in community pharmacy longer but the postbag is inundated with new drug information, monographs, etc.

Additionally, in any one year, many people may visit the premises, including Society, police, Home Office and Council inspectors and representatives, doctors and district nurses. Could a nurse, a GP or a dentist currently claim such a high level of regulation?

Has community pharmacy become a victim of its own accessibility?

Faiz Ahmed Yusuf
London E17

Should we hang up our pestles and mortars?

From Dr S. R. Axon, FRPharmS

How disappointing it was to read Dr Robert Dewdney's dismissive and unhelpful response to the letter from Dr G. B. Drummond (PJ, 14 December, p846). Here was an expression of genuine concern from a member who has paid his retention fee for over 73 years. Notwithstanding that the Government is considering removing the compulsory retirement age, to most pharmacists of over 90 years of age, continuing professional development should indeed be "irrelevant".

To save Dr Drummond the trouble of looking up the Pharmacy Act 1954 or reading the Kennedy report he might take comfort from the fact that other learned professions such as solicitors and barristers allow members to remain on their respective rolls in a non-practising capacity. If the pharmacist membership does not recognise this when consulted then we might as well all hang up our pestles and mortars.

Stephen Axon
Amersham, Buckinghamshire

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