PJ, June 2016, Vol 296, No 7890

Deaths: Robin Seetulsingh

On 14 April 2016, Robin Seetulsingh, aged 55, of Barnet, north London. Mr Seetulsingh registered with the Society in 1983 and left in 2012. …

WHO guideline offers advice for when child-friendly medicines are unavailable

The first-ever global guideline governing the prescribing and supply of children’s medicines when no authorised product exists has been developed by the World Health Organization and the International Pharmaceutical Federation.…

NICE scrutinises community pharmacy’s role in health promotion

A consultation on the role and cost effectiveness of community pharmacy and its contribution to the promotion of health and wellbeing has been launched by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.…

Understanding models of error and how they apply in clinical practice

Models of human error can be helpful in determining why errors have occurred in the past, where future vulnerabilities may lie, and how healthcare professionals might take action to make clinical practice safer.…

Community pharmacy plans must be reconsidered in light of Ridge’s inaccurate claims

Reports that the chief pharmaceutical officer in England made inaccurate claims to the All-Party Pharmacy Group regarding dispensing error rates and hub-and-spoke dispensing is deeply worrying. The General Pharmaceutical Council’s (GPhC) ‘Standards of conduct, ethics and performance&rsqu…

What I do as a pharmacist expert witness

Advising a solicitor about a drink driving case led Graham Mould to become a pharmacist expert witness.…

Deaths: Maurice Peston

On 23 April 2016, Maurice Peston, aged 85, of Mile End, London. Professor Lord Peston was made an honorary member of the Society in 1996. Originally a professor of economics at Queen Mary College, University of London, he first came to prominence in pharmacy when he was appointed a member of the Nuf…

Inaccurate claims about dispensing error rates are unacceptable

The news that Keith Ridge, chief pharmaceutical officer for England, has admitted that he misled the All-Party Pharmacy Group (APPG) by overstating the accuracy of currently available technology driven dispensing systems is shocking. Ridge cited evidence from literature that the error rate in …

All-Party Pharmacy Group calls for action on drug shortages

The All-Party Pharmacy Group has repeated its call for more to be done to tackle medicines shortages, after over half of community pharmacists responding to a survey said they dealt with drug shortages on a daily basis.…

Developing gene therapy to treat cystic fibrosis: challenges and successes

More than 25 years after the gene for cystic fibrosis was discovered, there are signs that correcting this genetic deficit could soon be possible.…