PJ, September 2017, Vol 299, 7905

Tribute: John Balmford

When the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain decided to establish the College of Pharmacy Practice in November 1980, two of the signatures on the Memorandum of Association were those of John Balmford and William Darling, and I was very sorry to learn of the death of both of them (The Pharmaceuti…

How following a diet from a small Italian village could improve your health

An interesting book which explains why sugar is the real enemy and not fat, and how dietary and lifestyle changes can improve cardiovascular health.…

Concerns about GPhC consultation on ‘pharmacy team’

After only seven years, the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) appears to be using its powers under the Pharmacy Order 2010 to provide guidance for everyone whose activities affect the services provided by registrants (pharmacists and technicians). This guidance is designed to elaborate on the ex…

Tribute: Bill Darling

It’s with incredible sadness that I learned of the passing of Bill Darling FRPharmS. Bill passed away after a short illness. Bill Darling was a true giant in the profession of pharmacy and in the NHS generally. I have known him personally my entire life as he used to sit next to my late mother an…

Living in a microbial world

I contain multitudes: the microbes within us and a grander view of life, by Ed Yong.…

Adjusting the dose of aspirin may reduce bleeding risk

Aspirin is a potent drug that is still widely prescribed since the days of Hippocrates in its willow bark tea form. Recently, it has been reported that older people are at high risk of gastric bleeds when taking low dose aspirin ( The Pharmaceutical Journal 2017;298:327). Perhaps this is…

Is the future of pharmacy under threat from technology?

The future of pharmacy has been an ongoing discussion for some years. The advances in technology of all kinds, and their impact on the profession, are a serious concern. With advances in artificial intelligence and ‘fuzzy’ logic (an approach to computing based on ‘degrees of truth&…

Negative feedback from health monitoring devices

Health is more than the sum of laboratory results and monitoring figures. In the same way, quality of life needs to reflect more than just observations. I want to share my experience of a relative who is under at-home digital monitoring, which she started after she had a heart complaint. The t…

A fascinating look at the history of toxicology

Toxicology in the middle ages and renaissance, edited by Philip Wexler…

Q&A: Invest in safety and make savings overall — interview with Don Berwick

The author of the 2013 report which looked at patient safety in the NHS after the Mid Staffordshire Hospital scandal speaks to Jenny Bryan to share his thoughts on whether progress has been made.…