Tomorrow's Pharmacist
2007:8-9
January 2007

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British Pharmaceutical Students' Association

Founded in 1942, the British Pharmaceutical Students' Association has just entered its 40th year of official recognition by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. It is the only national body that represents pharmacy students and preregistration trainees. Jennifer de Val, explains what the BPSA offers

Formed in 1942 and first recognised by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain as its official student branch in 1967, the British Pharmaceutical Students’ Association represents student views and highlights issues relating to pharmacy students in Britain at the Society’s annual branch representatives’ meeting.

In addition to this, members of the BPSA executive meet Council members and senior staff of the Society formally twice a year.

The BPSA is also represented on the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s Education Committee and various steering groups overseeing research into the area of pharmacy education. This allows students to have input into the decision-making process and raise issues that affect the future of the profession and, in particular, decisions regarding pharmacy education and assessment.

It also gives the association a valuable opportunity to learn more about the latest developments at the Society and the wider pharmacy profession.

As well as being highly effective at representing students at a political level, the BPSA provides the perfect platform for students to get the most from their university days. It actively encourages students to learn more about the world of pharmacy around them and what the future holds as a qualified member of the profession. The BPSA has an impressive range of events and services available to members.

BPSA representatives

Each school of pharmacy has a BPSA representative who acts as a point of contact for the association. They keep students informed about future events and activities. The country is divided into regions and each of these has an area co-ordinator who organises the events and keeps in touch with representatives and local universities.

These regions are:
Northern — Robert Gordon (Aberdeen), Strathclyde and Sunderland universities
Pennine — Bradford, Manchester, Liverpool John Moores, Nottingham, Keele and De Montfort universities
Western — Aston, Bath, Cardiff, Reading and Portsmouth universities
Eastern — University of East Anglia, School of Pharmacy (London), King’s College London, Medway campus of the Universities of Greenwich and Kent, Kingston, Hertfordshire and Brighton universities

BPSA executive

The area co-ordinators are members of the BPSA executive, a group of undergraduates, preregistration trainees and newly qualified pharmacists who volunteer to provide the services and events that the BPSA offers.

Events

Our events consist of a series of area conferences, an annual conference and a preregistration trainee conference. We also help support the Society’s “Students day” at the British Pharmaceutical Conference.

Area conferences are one- or two-day events, which combine presentations, workshops and discussions on professional or clinical subjects relevant to practice, with an evening social event.

The topics covered at these conferences are often not generally taught as part of the university syllabus, so many students appreciate the opportunity to widen their knowledge of alternative treatments, ethical dilemmas and specific patient-care issues. Over the past two years there have been days dedicated to the new community pharmacy contract, psychiatric pharmacy, substance misuse, diabetes care and alternative career paths.

Over the Easter holiday, one school of pharmacy is lucky enough to play host to the BPSA annual conference. More than 100 members from across the country spend a week debating issues of relevance to student welfare, the pharmacy profession and the work of the association itself. This provides students with a forum to discuss their future, decide official BPSA policy (to be presented to the Society) and meet the leaders of the profession in a relaxed environment.

The week also boasts an extensive social programme ranging from official receptions, themed parties, a charity pub crawl, to the grand finale of the annual BPSA ball. At the end of the week the membership elects the executive for the next academic year. In 2007, the BPSA’s 65th annual conference will be held in Manchester. Details can be found on our website (www.bpsa.com) or by contacting the annual conference organisers through conference@bpsa.com

Services

The BPSA offers a wide range of services. These include competitions, a website, undergraduate and preregistration publications, an international student exchange programme and the “Professional development certificate” scheme. It also has a representative role for its nearly 5,000 members.

There are also specific services for preregistration trainees. As part of their membership benefits, BPSA preregistration members are entitled to up to £300,000 of legal costs’ insurance and membership of the Pharmacists' Defence Association, at no added cost. Preregistration members also benefit from the preregistration graduate conference, which this year, is being held as two one-day conferences. There is also a dedicated graduate officer to help with any issues that may arise throughout the training year.

A free magazine, Graduate Link is distributed to keep graduates informed of BPSA activities and give extra insight into the preregistration year. This is complemented by the BPSA’s undergraduate publication, Future Pharmacist, which contains professional articles, approved educational exercises and updates on forthcoming association events.

The BPSA runs a number of award schemes including the “McNeil responding to symptoms competition”, the “Reckitt Benckiser student of the year” competition and the UniChem award. Each of these offer fantastic prizes, as well as being impressive on your CV.

By becoming a member of the BPSA, you automatically become a member of the International Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation and the European Pharmaceutical Students’ Association. The BPSA, working together with the IPSF, is able to offer a student exchange programme where you can spend time working abroad in over any one of 30 countries, experiencing pharmacy on an international scale.

However, by far the most successful and popular service offered is the “Professional development certificate”. Established in 2001, the PDC was produced in conjunction with the College of Pharmacy Practice as a result of members asking for accredited events, similar to the continuing education process carried out by pharmacists. The scheme works on a simple point collection system, with five points in one academic year resulting in an official Professional Development Certificate.

Points are awarded for involvement in the area conferences, the annual conference, “Credit for learning” exercises in the Future Pharmacist, local branch meetings of the Society and BPSA competitions. The BPSA has an educational development officer dedicated to managing and developing the popular scheme.

The BPSA is run by students for students and aims to provide opportunities for future pharmacists to develop a better view of, and influence, our chosen profession. To join the BPSA, please contact Heena Bhakta, the membership secretary at membersec@bpsa.com. Five years’ membership (including your preregistration period) costs £25, or £10 for one year.

Good luck with the rest of your year, and I look forward to seeing you at a BPSA event soon.