Johnathan and Annamarie
ANNAMARIE McGregor, professional support pharmacist at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in Scotland, must be one of the most well travelled pharmacists in Scotland. This week she called in to visit my pharmacy team to share the work she had been doing to support the local practice forums (LPFs).
Annamarie was supporting LPF events this week in Elgin and Aberdeen, both of which were extremely well attended. The workshops, developed in collaboration with the Royal College of General Practitioners, focused on substance misuse and associated health. All attendees at the LPF meeting received a series of factsheets developed by the RCGP, covering the problem of substance misuse, prevention, identification as well as treatment options.
The evolving learning needs for pharmacists, especially community pharmacy independent prescribers, makes the concept of the LPF meeting ever more relevant. Sharing of ideas, shared learning and professional debate are so important, as pharmacists take on roles in which dynamic risk is a feature such as prescribing. Pharmacists will increasingly be managing caseloads and as such peer support like that provided by the LPF network is critical to our success in these new roles.
The RPS is a membership body for pharmacists in the UK that offers professional support and leadership for the pharmacy profession. Professional support is offered by various media but the LPFs remain a key support function for the society. If you are an RPS member and would like to access the nearest LPF just check out the RPS website for upcoming events.
Johnathan Laird is a community pharmacist independent prescriber with a special interest in asthma. He is based in based in Aberdeen.
Follow Johnathan @johnathanlaird
Follow Annamarie @annamariemcgre1