Claire Anderson elected as president of Royal Pharmaceutical Society

Long-standing English Pharmacy Board member Claire Anderson is the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's new president.
claire anderson

Claire Anderson has been elected as the new president of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS). Anderson was voted in by members of the RPS Assembly at a meeting held on 13 July 2021.

There were three nominations for the post of president: Anderson, Sibby Buckle and Andre Yeung.

Anderson, a Fellow of the RPS, has been a a member of the English Pharmacy Board (EPB) since 2012. Latterly, she was the EPB’s chair, from 19 June 2019 until 22 June 2021, and prior to that held the position of vice chair between 2015 and 2017. She is associate director and lead for academic and institutional capacity for the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) Workforce Development Hub, and a Fellow of FIP. In 2018, Anderson chaired the host committee of the 2018 FIP World Congress, which was held in Glasgow on 2–6 September of that year. She is also a trustee of the Commonwealth Pharmacists’ Association.

Anderson, who registered as a pharmacist in 1982, initially worked in the hospital and community sectors before moving into academia. She is currently professor of social pharmacy at the Pharmacy Practice and Policy Division at the University of Nottingham’s school of pharmacy.

In an address prepared before the election, Anderson said that having served as chair of the EPB “over this difficult period” she was well placed to “understand the challenges ahead”. If elected, she pledged to “expand our membership to all health professionals who are involved in the medicine use continuum” and to strengthen and build new relationships with other pharmacy organisations, as well as medical and nursing royal colleges and organisations. She pledged to “always be equitable in my decision making, to stand alongside all our members and be an ally, to amplify the voice of pharmacy, to advocate for change and to support future generations of pharmacists”.

Anderson also thanked outgoing president Sandra Gidley “for her leadership and passion for our profession, particularly for leading our response to the pandemic”.

After being elected president, Anderson told the meeting that “I can only do this with all of you”.

“It’s not about me, it is about the RPS: it’s about working together with the boards, the staff and of course with the members. I hope I will live up to your expectations.”

At the same meeting, Andre Yeung was reaffirmed as RPS Treasurer for a second year.

Last updated
Citation
The Pharmaceutical Journal, PJ, July 2021, Vol 307, No 7951;307(7951)::DOI:10.1211/PJ.2021.1.96161

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