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Letters to the Editor
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Regulation
Northern Ireland should have its say
From Mr T. Maguire, FPSNI
A long time ago the Government decided on the form of regulation it wanted
for pharmacy. Since then it has sat back, pulled the strings and watched
pharmacy go about the hard work of bringing this Government vision into
being. This effort has created chaos and mayhem; it has resulted in “bloodletting”,
has destroyed relations and will cause friction within the profession for
years to come. This destruction has been costly and unnecessary. In this
strange, perverse drama, the profession has brutalised itself, surrendering
professional self-regulation, while implementing a regulatory system dominated
by lay people.
Of course, this has nothing to do with shortcomings in pharmacy regulation
or public protection. Rather it reflects the arrogant ideology of the ruling
political party. Forget evidence-based professional regulation, Andy Burnham
(and his good friend, Paul Googins in Northern Ireland) has been given
the job of doing a job on the pharmacy profession.
Had we been honest about this, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s
Council debate might have been more productive (PJ, 16 December 2006, p750).
The report
on the debate was, sadly, far from inspiring. I did not attend,
of course, but then, no one from Northern Ireland did — were we invited?
Some might say that, since I am from Northern Ireland and a member of the
Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland, this debate is none of my business.
Yet Northern Ireland was mentioned twice in the report and whereas these
were well meaning references, the way they were reported merely reflected
a patronising attempt at accommodating a difficult family member.
Decisions to do with the regulation of pharmacy in Northern Ireland, with
respect to all Council members, is a matter for pharmacists in Northern
Ireland. This might come as a surprise to many in Lambeth but there you
have it. There are other models to be considered. The PSNI has been an
independent body for over 80 years and before that we were members of the
Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland. There is a real sense that any merger
would destroy local leadership for the profession at a time when devolution
is really getting a hold. This would not be in the best interests of pharmacy.
Terry Maguire
Belfast |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal