| · Drug administration
· National boards
· Controlled drugs
· The Society
· Supermarket pharmacy (2)
· Birdsgrove House (2)
· New pharmacy contract (2)
· Prescribing
· Education
Letters to the Editor
|
Birdsgrove House
Let one problem solve the other
From Mr M. Anisfeld, MRPharmS
Many letters published in the PJ recently have focused on two subjects;
the financial health of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, as witnessed
in the vociferous discussion on the 2005 membership fee structure, and
the future of Birdsgrove House.
It seems to me that the two issues can neatly solve each other. In this
modern age of virtual companies, where instant electronic access to information
has rendered company location irrelevant, surely there is no need for
the Society to be based in Lambeth. With Lambeth’s high real estate
potential, I suggest that the Council seriously consider selling the
headquarters and relocating most, if not all, of the office functions
to Birdsgrove House.
Funds from the sale of the Lambeth property, a prime London real estate
location, could more than pay for the renovation of Birdsgrove House,
to make it a premier national care centre for all allied health professionals
(if it is deemed an essential service to members), meeting all required
standards. This would also pay for expansion of the site, to accommodate
those ex-Lambeth offices that need to be under one roof (perhaps as a
separate building from the convalescence centre, but still at the Birdsgrove
site).
Out of all the functions performed at 1 Lambeth High Street, I cannot
think of a single one that must be performed at Lambeth, or indeed in
London itself. So, and this is a serious suggestion, let the Society
devolve. Use the proceeds from the sale of the Lambeth property to fund,
for example, relocating the library to the Society’s Edinburgh
site, perhaps in an expanded facility. Relocate the administration functions
to Ashbourne, Derbyshire (the site of Birdsgrove House), where Society
office staff can benefit from the added perks of cheaper housing, cheaper
transportation and working in environmentally healthy surroundings. As
for the conferences — if they have to be in London, then there
are any number of adequate hotels, convention centres, and other learned
societies with the requisite facilities only too willing to make space
available for rental. Rotate Council meetings among major centres around
the country, such that local pharmacists can be invited, meet with, and
watch the Society’s leadership in action.
And if we are thinking outside the box, this is a perfect opportunity
to reassess just how many staff are really needed to run the Society.
The recent annual report shows staff costs contribute most to the Society’s
fiscal problems. Truly an exercise needs to be performed to justify current
Society directorate staffing levels. From a historical perspective, what
is the Society’s membership size versus the Lambeth staff ratio,
in say the years 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000, and now, and do members
feel that they are getting value for money (fees)?
Michael Anisfeld,
Deerfield,
Illinois
Ripe for debate
From Mr I. M. Caldwell, FRPharmS
While I can well appreciate E.
P. Crabtree’s desire to retain Birdsgrove
House in its present form at any expense (PJ, 7 May, p544) it would appear
that he missed my letter on the subject and on which Bill Brookes suggested
that I had presented a strong case. Neither Mr Brookes nor I are opposed
to the concept of convalescence but our views on how it should be best
delivered are subject to shades of opinion, although we agree that the
matter is now ripe for debate.
Mr Crabtree’s suggestion of funding the changes necessary to bring
Birdsgrove House into line with the requirements of a nursing home, by
remortgaging the property, is interesting but ignores two facts. First,
commercial mortgage rates are currently between 2 per cent and 4.5 per
cent above base rate and, secondly, it is unlikely that residents’ contributions
would meet the interest costs let alone pay off the capital debt that would
be incurred by using this approach.
The current costs of Birdsgrove House, tax, rates, insurance, staff, maintenance
etc, exceed £1m per year. The occupancy rate is in between 30 per
cent and 40 per cent, a level which would cause bankruptcy in a commercial
operation. The facility is a charitable concern and is free from such a
fate, but one must question the value per charity pound. The cost per visit
in 2004 averaged around £8,000 per stay. Being an indolent, old,
non-practising pharmacist with nothing better to do with his time, I found
out what this sum would bring in terms of a “day’s stay” at
some of our well-known four or five star hotels, based on the daily rack
rate rather than any lower contractual term rate. My findings were interesting
and are listed below:
Hilton Park Lane, London, 40 days
Savoy London, 35 days
Hilton Aberdeen, 100 days
Hilton Aviemore, 62 days Wellhouse Cornwall, 64 days
I do not suggest for one moment that these hotels provide the ambience
required for convalescence but they do represent the top end of the residential
costs in the UK. The type of accommodation required by our members is available
all year round, throughout the country, at a much lower cost, without the
necessity for lengthy journeys.
The income of the Birdsgrove House Fund from donations, legacies and investments
currently covers only about two-thirds of the costs of provision. The present
annual shortfall must be made good from other sources. It does not have
to be this way. Many other organisations appear to have solved the problem
and may provide answers for us. Mr Crabtree and I have offered two alternative
models of provision but it is clear that it is in the interests of the
many generous donors that the future of the fund’s activities is
resolved by open debate.
It may be worthwhile to extend the discussions to include the investigation
of novel ways of allowing the benevolent Society to further help impoverished
members, without infringing governmental rules on recovery of state benefits.
Ian Caldwell
Larkhall,
South Lanarkshire |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal