New Ultimate Guide for chief pharmacists and their equivalents

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has released a new Ultimate Guide for chief pharmacists and their equivalents.

Chief pharmacists work in NHS Trusts providing leadership in hospital pharmacy services and related NHS primary care. The role has changed significantly over the years and continues to evolve.

“This guide has been developed to offer practical support and comprehensive signposting to help with the roles and responsibilities of a chief pharmacist,” said Rakhee Amin, senior professional development pharmacist with the RPS’s professional support team, who developed the guidance.

The guide contains background information and resources intended to support chief pharmacists with their decisions and responsibilities, including details of the Carter report into hospital practice and NHS England’s Five Year Forward View. It also outlines the legal requirements around governance and medicines management that chief pharmacists need to be aware of and, amongst other guidance, includes details of digital medicines strategy, financial management and workforce development.

The guidance is currently focused on the chief pharmacist role in England, and content relating to England has been developed by RPS and the Centre for Postgraduate Pharmacy Education. The Society is currently preparing additional information relevant to the equivalent roles in Scotland and Wales. This will be added to the Ultimate Guide shortly.

The Ultimate Guide for Chief Pharmacists may be downloaded from the RPS website. For more information, please email the Professional Development and Support team on support@rpharms.com.