Letters

Letter

Take a bold step forwards and vote ‘yes’ to a royal college

Pharmacy is my passion. Across community, hospital, primary care and industry, I have witnessed firsthand the evolving role of our profession and its impact on patients. Like many of you, I entered pharmacy not just to dispense medication, but to make a difference — to be a trusted expert, an advo…

Published: 20 February 2025

Letter

Increasing diversity in pharmacy senior leadership: the ENIGMA mentoring scheme

Diversity in leadership positively impacts teams and organisational productivity, as well as supports the improvement of health inequalities in the population1. Despite this, diversity remains limited in pharmacy leadership. The Inclusive Pharmacy Practice (IPP) is a joint initiative between 1…

Published: 14 February 2025

Letter

Where are the voices of pharmacy professionals in the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill?

As Kim Leadbeater MP’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill proceeds through its committee stage, the pharmacy professions are among the key stakeholders whose voices are notably absent. The committee process should provide a rigorous examination of draft legislation, not only listeni…

Published: 11 February 2025

Letter

Look out for PANDAS in the UK

'Paediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder associated with streptococcal infection' (PANDAS) is a neuropsychiatric disease found in children. The onset is sudden and is characterised by symptoms akin with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), such as tics and anxiety (including separation anxie…

Published: 29 January 2025

Letter

Enhancing medicines safety for people with learning disabilities and autism through STOMP

Healthcare professionals will be familiar with ‘The Oliver McGowan mandatory training on learning disability and autism’. This training serves as a powerful reminder of the devastating consequences related to inappropriate prescribing and emphasises the need for reform in how we manage medicines…

Published: 20 January 2025

Letter

Reframe project: ensuring diverse images for healthcare

Many healthcare images do not represent the communities we serve. Medical conditions can look different depending on a person’s skin tone. Generally, in healthcare resources, there are very few pictures of people with different skin tones. An audit of the NHS Health A to Z website found that out o…

Published: 17 January 2025

Letter

Why England’s Pharmacy First sore throat service needs point-of-care testing

Over the past few years, there has been a sore throat test-and-treat service implemented in Wales and, more recently, in Northern Ireland, based on their pilots. In England, we still have a sore throat service that does not include a point-of-care test (POCT) component. Results from pilots in Nor…

Published: 14 January 2025

Letter

The royal professor of pharmacy

On 26 November 2024, I had the privilege of attending the prestigious Regius Professorial inaugural lecture of Ian Wong at Aston University. I was invited in my capacity as deputy chief scientist at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS). This was a particularly special occasion for me, as Wong was …

Published: 6 January 2025

Letter

Using digital tools to support clinical pharmacist HRT reviews in primary care

A three-monthly review is recommended after starting hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to assess menopausal symptom control, side effects and bleeding patterns. These factors are also evaluated during an annual review, as well as any changes in medical history1. A programme was design…

Published: 3 January 2025

Letter

Supporting palliative and end-of-life care in Welsh community pharmacies: a pilot study

The demand for palliative and end-of-life care in Wales is projected to almost double by 2040, increasing from 25% to 47%1. This underscores the increasing importance of community pharmacies in supporting patients with life-limiting illnesses. Palliative and end-of-life care is vital because i…

Published: 20 December 2024