Hospital Pharmacist
Vol 10 No 9 p374
October 2003

News summary

Related websites
Neonatal and Paediatric Pharmacists Group (www.nppg.demon.co.uk)

Call for new National body to accredit specialist pharmacists

A national body is needed to provide accreditation for specialist pharmacists working in all fields and to oversee a national career path, Graham Davies, academic director of clinical studies, school of pharmacy, University of Brighton has suggested. He made these comments while at the Neonatal and Paediatric Pharmacists Group annual conference in Cardiff on 20 September. He was presenting work that he has undertaken on competencies, together with the United Kingdom Clinical Pharmacy Association and the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists in the south east region of England.

He described a system of assessing practitioners competency in areas such as practice, research and education, and management and leadership. All competencies are scored at one of three levels: mastery, excellence and foundation. This scoring grid can then be used to define a level of practice: consultant, advanced practitioner or someone working at a foundation level. At the moment, they have not defined how the grid score could be directly converted into a level of practice.

Dr Davies then suggested a career structure for clinical pharmacists. A protected title of general pharmacy practitioner would be used by pharmacists working at the entry level. This level could be achieved by providing evidence of practice, and by passing a hurdle such as a knowledge and skills test.

The general pharmacy practitioner would then move into specialist training, and would have to demonstrate competence before being able to move to an advanced practitioner post. Further progression to consultant level would also depend on an appropriate position becoming available.