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Patient safety commissioner pushes government on valproate redress almost two years after report

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 39m

In exclusive comments to #ThePJ, #HenriettaHughes, the patient safety commissioner, has urged the UK government to provide a full response to her #valproate recommendations in report published nearly two years ago

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Henrietta Hughes, the patient safety commissioner, has urged the UK government to respond to her recommendations on redress for patients and families affected by the anti-epileptic sodium valproate,…

Medicines are a primary treatment tool for many mental health conditions. For pharmacists to use their expert skills to help patients who have mental health challenges, it is vital for them to have a…

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 20h

For pharmacists to use their expert skills to help patients who have mental health challenges, it is vital for them to have a good understanding of those conditions

Read our wide collection of mental health resources here 👇

#ukpharmacy #mentalhealth

Mental health

Two early-career pharmacists named joint winners of OPERA 2025

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 21h

A flashback to our 2025 ‘Outstanding Pharmacy Early-career Researcher Award’ for early-career researchers, celebrating the work of researchers working within pharmacy who demonstrate potential to achieve world-leading status

#OPERA2025 #pharmacyresearch #ukpharmacy

A pharmacist developing microneedle patches, and another who produced a model predicting the risk of medicines-related harm in older patients, have been announced as joint winners of the 2025…

RPS appoints new chief scientist

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 1d

#RPS appoints new chief scientist

#royalpharmaceuticalsociety #rpharms

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The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has appointed Amira Guirguis as its new chief scientist. Currently professor of pharmacy, deputy pro vice chancellor and the MPharm programme director at…

CPPE launches training for pharmacy staff to support patients with long COVID

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The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 1d

The Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education has launched an e-learning programme for pharmacy staff to support patients with managing symptoms of long COVID

@cppeengland.bsky.social #longcovid #publichealth #pharmacytraining

The Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education (CPPE) has launched an e-learning programme for pharmacy staff to support patients with managing symptoms of long COVID. In a statement published on 3…

Less than half of pharmacists who can prescribe do so daily

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The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 1d

Exclusive: Responses to #ThePJ 2025 salary survey have revealed that less than half of pharmacists who can prescribe do so daily

#independentprescribing #ukpharmacy
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Just under half (48%) of pharmacists who hold an independent prescribing (IP) qualification use it daily, responses to The Pharmaceutical Journal 2025 salary survey suggest. Of the 581 pharmacists…

Time to approve UK clinical trials has more than halved, says MHRA

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 1d

MHRA announces fall in average time taken to approve the set-up of clinical trials in the UK, from 91 days to 41 days

#MHRA #clinicaltrials #clinicalresearch

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The average time taken to approve the set-up of clinical trials in the UK has fallen from 91 days to 41 days, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has announced. In a…

Pharmacy Inside Jobs: prison pharmacy

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 1d

#PJJobs — Our dedicated job board helps pharmacists and pharmacy technicians to find their perfect role

Post a premium job ad and reach over 40,000 pharmacy professionals, with a 17% job response rate ⬇️

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The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 1d

Here, as part of our special #PJPod career series 'Pharmacy Inside Jobs', prison pharmacist Kaniksha Aggarwal talks about her career path and the opportunities and challenges
#ukpharmacy #prisonpharmacy #pharmacyjobs

Our new PJ Pod series — Pharmacy Inside Jobs — has been developed to inspire you to take the next step in your career. Whether you are a pharmacy student or a seasoned pharmacy professional, our goal…

Test your knowledge of dermatological conditions

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 2d

*❓📝 Test your knowledge 📝❓*

One in four people in England and Wales visit their GP about a #dermatologicalcondition each year. Here, test your knowledge of these common conditions and their management 👇

#dermatology #ukpharmacy

Dermatology presentations are common in primary care, with one in four people in England and Wales visiting their GP about a dermatological condition each year. Several relevant conditions —…

Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors and B-cell malignancies: a guide for pharmacists

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 2d

This interactive learning article, supported by #BeOneMedicines, provides an overview of the available Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors for the treatment of B-cell malignancies to support pharmacists with their use in practice

#BTKIs #cancercare #cancertreatment #pharmacy

Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) is a protein that plays an important role in the signalling, proliferation, migration and survival of B-cells. For this reason, medicines that target BTK — known as BTK…

Pharmacy teams facing abuse after ‘high numbers’ of ineligible patients book COVID-19 vaccinations

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 2d

#CommunityPharmacyEngland has reported "major issues" with COVID-19 vaccinations booked via the national booking system, as patients take anger out on pharmacy staff over eligibility changes

#covid #covidvaccination #ukpharmacy #CPE

Pharmacy teams have experienced anger from patients following “major issues” with booking COVID-19 vaccinations via the national vaccinations booking system, Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has…

Digital skills should be a ‘core competency’ for all healthcare staff

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 3d

Attendees at a #RPS roundtable have reiterated the need to upskill all healthcare workers in digital in AI tools

#artificalintelligence #digitalpharmacy #rpharms
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Attendees of a roundtable hosted by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) agreed that there is an “urgent need” to upskill the current workforce in digital and AI tools. A report on the roundtable…

Beyond GLP-1: the next wave of weight-loss medication innovation

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 3d

In this feature, #JoannaRobertson takes an in-depth look at the drug development pipeline has highlighted several promising new potential weight-loss medicines

#ukpharmacy #weightlossmedication

“There is a real sense now of a rapid expansion in the area of novel medications in the area of obesity,” says Hannah Beba, pharmacist and clinical lead for obesity at West Yorkshire Integrated Care…

Preferences and newsletters

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 4d

Be the first candidate to apply by signing up for daily job alerts from #PJJobs ⬇️

#pharmacyjobs #pharmacycareers

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The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 4d

Interested in our latest content? Subscribe now to our PJ Daily newsletter for everything published in #ThePJ, delivered straight to your inbox 📨

#dailynewsletter #PJDaily

After logging in, you can set your preferences and subscribe to newsletters from the ‘Preference centre’ by following the steps below: Once you have successfully signed in, click on ‘My account’ in…

September 2025, Vol 315, No 8001

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 5d

Click below to access #ThePJ September issue, featuring an in-depth analysis of protected learning time for pharmacists, #antibiotic #prescribing in children and a guide high-risk medications

#ukpharmacy #pharmacynews #rps #rpharms

Table of contents Top news stories Features Opinion Learning & CPD Your RPS Letters Tributes

Around half of pharmacies are not delivering ambulatory blood pressure monitoring

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 5d

Pharmacists are increasingly likely to encounter people with #diabetes and should be able to recognise red-flag symptoms and provide medicines advice. Access our collection of dedicated resources below 👇

#pharmacy #type1diabetes #type2diabetes
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The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 5d

Our #QuoteoftheWeek is from #UzoIbechukwu, director of pharmacy and medicines optimisation at Royal Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, on early career pathway opportunities for pharmacists

#ukpharmacy

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The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 5d

Around half of community pharmacy contractors are not delivering ambulatory blood pressure monitoring consultations each month, an analysis by The Pharmaceutical Journal has shown

#ukpharmacy #bloodpressure #hypertension

Around half of community pharmacy contractors are not delivering ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) consultations each month, an analysis by The Pharmaceutical Journal has shown. The…

GPhC proposes increasing pharmacy technicians' level of study

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 6d

The General Pharmaceutical Council has proposed updated initial education and training standards for pharmacy technicians, which include increasing their level of study

#ukpharmacy #pharmacytechnicians

The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has proposed updated initial education and training standards for pharmacy technicians, which include increasing their level of study. In a consultation…

Health news round-up: mosquitos, new HIV guidelines and research into cannabis and psilocybin

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 6d

A round up of health news from the week, including new health challenges related to dengue and chikungunya, updated HIV guidelines and new research that suggests cannabis could be effective for chronic lower back pain

#ukpharmacy #HIV #medicalcannabis

In the past month, The Pharmaceutical Journal has continued its campaign for pharmacist workforce development, with an investigation into protected learning time for hospital pharmacists; opinion…

Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors and B-cell malignancies: a guide for pharmacists

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The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 6d

Our latest learning article, supported by BeOne Medicines, provides an overview of the available Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors for the treatment of B-cell malignancies to support pharmacists with their use in practice

#ukpharmacy #cancer #bcelllymphomas

Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) is a protein that plays an important role in the signalling, proliferation, migration and survival of B-cells. For this reason, medicines that target BTK — known as BTK…

A quest for hope: is endometriosis finally being taken seriously?

The Pharmaceutical Journal @pharmaj.bsky.social · 6d

*A quest for hope: is endometriosis finally being taken seriously?*

This feature highlights that although years of underfunding has left women with endometriosis facing long waits for answers, a focus on the disease offers renewed optimism

#ukpharmacy #endometriosis

“My symptoms began shortly after I reached puberty,” says Ashita, a 29-year-old applied behaviour analysis tutor. “I recall episodes of severe pain and heavy bleeding during my early teenage years.”…