By Neil Trainis

The new chair of Kent Local Pharmaceutical Committee Amish Patel has said he is looking forward to leading the body into a new era of representation for local contractors but insisted he will step down if he does not feel he is being challenged in the role.

Mr Patel (pictured), who was announced as chair on Friday and comes into the position having been a member of the LPC for 12 years and an independent contractor for 14 years, told Independent Community Pharmacist that his immediate task is to ensure the LPC’s new team gels effectively following the departure of its CEO Shilpa Shah, who has taken over the reins at North East London LPC.

Under her leadership, Kent LPC won the Best Supporting LPC award at the Independent Pharmacy Awards in the House of Commons last year.

Mr Patel, who is also a National Pharmacy Association board member and the managing director of Hodgson Pharmacy, takes on the role of chair just as proposals to reform the PSNC and LPCs are being formulated. The review steering group (RSG) overseeing the process said it will publish the proposals after Easter and hold a contractor vote next month.

He said it was unclear what impact the reforms will have on Kent LPC as well as his position as chair but insisted he welcomed “any challenge” and hoped he could “do justice” for the LPC in “ensuring we come through in a great position.”

“There is still a lot of unknown with the RSG and I will take it a day at a time. I am elected for a year so there is no telling what will come or happen,” he said.

When asked how he would feel if the RSG’s proposals simplified or made his job easier in some way, he said: “If the job becomes easy, I am likely to get bored and then step down. I get motivated and thrive on a challenge.”

Mr Patel said he was the right choice to lead Kent LPC given the time he has spent as a member and experience of leading a team which he has done effectively at Hodgson Pharmacy.

“I have been on the LPC for 13 years. I am someone who always strives to be the best I can be, challenge myself to grow and learn. I also like to explore opportunities to see where it could take me next,” he said.

“I have built up years of knowledge and experience of the LPC. Our LPC has recently gone through a transition and it felt like a great opportunity to lead the LPC with a fresh start and outlook. We have a whole new office team, from CEO to administrator. The most immediate challenge will be getting LPC operations up and running for a smooth and efficient working environment.

“I think this kind of thing is something I am particularly good at; exploring ways of working, refining operating procedures to find efficient ways of working that also allows for growth and business continuity and building a strategy for development.”