Two FIP officers — FIP CEO Catherine Duggan and FIP vice president Ashok Soni — have been appointed to a new UK Commission on Pharmacy Professional Leadership, the UK National Health Service announced yesterday. 

They join the chief pharmaceutical officers for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, among others, to produce recommendations for the purpose and functions of future pharmacy professional leadership in the UK in order to ensure pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are “well equipped with a voice to help shape the future” and enabled to develop through sharing and learning from best practice. Near future changes predicted include:

• Expanding clinical roles and greater professional autonomy for pharmacy professionals in the NHS;
• New initial education and training standards for pharmacists, which mean they will be independent prescribers from day one of registration from 2026;
• Regulatory and legislative changes that will impact on pharmacy professional practice;
• The potential of legislative changes to increase the contributions of pharmacy technicians to patient care and service delivery; and
• The development and impact of data and technology on the delivery of health care.