The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 274 No 7333 p86
22 January 2005

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· The Society (23)
· Overseas pharmacists (2)
· Fellowship (2)
· Diamorphine
· Morphine sulphate
· Chloramphenicol
· Drug donations
· The Journal (2)

Letters to the Editor

Chloramphenicol

A timely reminder

From Mr J. D. Thomas, MRPharmS

Over the past 18 months, I have had the enjoyable experience of supervising and working with seven preregistration trainees in and around rural Staffordshire and Shropshire. They were all prime examples of the present knowledge-based educational system. But they were lacking in the realities of modern-day community pharmacy procedures.

Undertaking the final check of a prescription for gutt chloramphenicol, I was presented with eye ointment. When I asked the trainees, who had all studied at different universities, if they were aware of the three external preparations, they told me that they were not. Neither had they heard of or been taught about gutt (eye drops), occul (eye ointment) or aurist (ear drops).

Surely their academic tutors must be aware that most of their students will practise their profession in community pharmacy and so they should be endowed with a sufficient depth of knowledge of the necessary realities and not pure academia with just a veneer of the mechanics of original pack dispensing.

Thus the information published recently (PJ, 1/8 January, p27), on the problems associated with these external chloramphenicol preparations, is a timely reminder and warning.

David Thomas
Patshull, Shropshire

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