The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 277 No 7423 p472
21 October 2006

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New examination for registration in New Zealand

A new process for UK-qualified pharmacists who wish to practise in New Zealand has been adopted by the Pharmacy Council of New Zealand and will be implemented from 1 December. A similar process for pharmacists wishing to register in Australia was announced earlier this year (PJ, 1 July, p4).

The Recognised Equivalent Qualification Route will enable pharmacists from the UK, Ireland, Canada and the US, who hold appropriate qualifications, to register and meet competence-to-practise requirements by a shorter route than those from other countries. Pharmacists will be required to complete the competency assessment of overseas pharmacists (COAP) examination, an open-book, multiple choice test that will be offered four times a year simultaneously in New Zealand, Australia and overseas. The examination will be offered in March, June or July, September and December, and pharmacists wishing to sit it will need to register eight weeks in advance. Applicants whose first language is not English will also be required to submit an International English Language Testing System certificate or an Occupational English Test certificate issued no more than three years previously.

The COAP will focus on patient-centred care and will include questions related to medicines regimens and diagnoses, and on common ailments treatable with over-the-counter medicines and advice. It will not be related to country-specific pharmacy issues.

Pharmacists from the UK and Ireland who successfully complete the examination will be eligible for unconditional registration and practising certificates after they have satisfactorily completed a minimum of four weeks’ supervised practice in New Zealand, a law and ethics interview and a written calculations assessment.

UK and Irish pharmacists who wish to register under the current reciprocal arrangements must submit certificates of identity to the Pharmacy Council of New Zealand by 1 December and be registered no later than 31 January 2007.