The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 280 No 7491 p243
1 March 2008

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• Retention fees
• Contracts
• Prescription charges
• Responsible pharmacist
• Community pharmacy (4)
• Emergency contraception (2)
• The Society (2)
• Drug addiction

Letters to the Editor

Responsible pharmacist

Importance of pharmacists undermined by new roles

From Mr A. J. T. Low, MRPharmS

I would like to add my support to the letter in The Journal of 19 January 2008 (p50) by D. R. K. Brown, in which he writes in praise of the article by Steven Curtis on the “responsible pharmacist” (PJ, 8 December 2007, p652).

Recently I attended a talk on diabetes given by the Harrow and Hillingdon branch of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, of which Mr Curtis is the chairman. Before the meeting itself, we were asked by a pharmacist giving a slide demonstration on Pharmacy 2020 what our views are for the future of pharmacy.

I tend to favour the traditional model of pharmacy, but this speaker was proud to say that she has broken free of the dispensary role and is employed in expanded services. I was, however, grateful that at least we were being asked our opinions.

Pharmacists need to wake up and see that our importance is being undermined by fanciful talk of new roles. It is a “springe to catch a woodcock”, to use a phrase from Shakespeare, a trap or snare for a simpleton. We will end up by totally devaluing the significant work we already do, and being hoist by our own petard.

There is no shame in asking the Government to be paid more for what we already do in increasingly busy dispensaries, facing an increasingly demanding public, and we do not need to support any new roles or quixotic castles in Spain.

As Mr Brown says, we really need level-headed people to direct the way forward. We really need those brave people to engage with and confront the reality of our situation.

Andrew Low
Harrow, Middlesex

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