Robert Gordon University School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences
Aberdeenshire schoolchildren have been trained as young medicines safety champions, thanks to a new programme organised by Robert Gordon University (RGU).
Final-year students from the university’s School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences delivered safety lessons in 22 classes of 8- and 9-year-olds in the local area. Pupils were taught how to accurately count and label tablets, and learned how to measure liquids using different pieces of pharmaceutical apparatus. At the end of their lesson, each pupil received a certificate naming them as a medicines safety champion.
Alyson Brown, lecturer in pharmacy at RGU, told The Pharmaceutical Journal that the lessons were intended to “teach children about medicines safety in general, and why pharmacists give the information they do.” Their training also covered medicines safety in the home, including the importance of “not taking medicine that isn’t yours, and always asking a responsible adult to help.”
The certificates given to the children featured key safety messages to help pupils remember what they had learned and share it with their families.
Robyn York, one of the RGU students who delivered the training, said she was “surprised by how much the children knew and understood. It was definitely a worthwhile experience for everyone and I hope it continues.” Lesley-Anne Munro, head of Hillside School, which took part in the training, agreed.
“It is vital that children learn from a young age how to stay safe around medicine,” she said.
“This workshop was a great opportunity for them to learn about science in a real-life context, and develop skills for life.”
