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by The Pharmaceutical Journal in association
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The Sunderland branch is medium sized, with just over 300 members,
many of whom are active. As well as educational meetings, the branch enjoys
a vibrant social calendar. The annual dinner dance is extremely popular
and each year there is always a waiting list for tickets.
In 2004, the Society announced the Future Branch pilots to be conducted
across Britain. The Sunderland branch was one of the pilot sites. This
provided a major impetus for the branch to review its functions and look
to meet the needs of the membership more effectively. Additional funding
was provided, which allowed the branch to function without the need to
obtain pharmaceutical industry sponsorship. Although this project made
little difference to operations of the branch in the long term, it initially
allowed the committee to focus on developing its educational infrastructure.
Some investments were made, such as the purchase of a data projector, and
the branch committee decided to adopt a policy for partnership working
with the industry. This policy sets out the branch’s terms for this
work, and was based on that used by the NHS. The Industry funding stream
has enabled the branch to continue to provide high quality educational
meetings without influence from outside.
The Future Branch pilot provided a clear direction for the branch through
the aims and objectives. These objectives have been met: providing local
leadership, promoting continuing professional development (CPD), communications
with the membership and supporting prescribing. The branch website is the
focus of communications with the membership. This is maintained by the
branch vice-chairman, David Carter, who is also now a member of the Society’s
Council. Included in the website are news and announcements, a history
of the branch and copies of presentations given at meetings.
The branch programme is structured into two series of three meetings each
year, with other ad hoc meetings as necessary. The local CPD facilitator,
Raminder Sihota, has been particularly valuable to the branch. She has
helped organise a number of CPD events using the information technology
facilities at the School of Pharmacy in Sunderland. There is also a joint
meeting with pharmacy technicians. The topics of the meetings are usually
clinical and are aimed to support CPD within the membership. Meetings are
planned to be relevant to the needs of members, as well as taking into
consideration educational support provided by other organisations such
as the Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education. Attendance has grown
steadily and significantly since the Future Branch pilot began. Around
a third of the local membership attends each meeting and many use this
as the basis of their CPD planning.
The Future Branch pilot has been a huge success for the Sunderland branch.
It has provided an impetus for the branch to develop into a major provider
of high quality educational material and a focus for CPD in the area. |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal