The overall purpose of professional leadership is to influence, promote, and support the delivery of the highest possible standards of professional practice to continue to drive up the quality of patient care.

Here, the co-chairs of the UK Commission on Pharmacy Professional Leadership discuss their roles, the current Call for Evidence and what they hope to achieve.

Nigel Clarke, former chair of the General Pharmaceutical Council

“The Commission has set out to work collaboratively to help shape the future of pharmacy professional leadership in the UK, and the current Call for Evidence – which is open until Wednesday, 28 September 2022 – is a crucial opportunity for people to influence the work. It’s really important that people engage with our online survey and give us their thoughts.

“I was chair at the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), the regulator for the pharmacy professions in Great Britain, for eight years. That experience, and the many pharmacy professionals with whom I have worked over that time, have given me a major interest in working to see how we can best determine the pharmacy professional leadership needed for the future, as an effective partner to regulation. One of my main priorities at the GPhC was patient safety and we all know that good pharmacy professional leadership is vital for safe and effective pharmacy care.

“I think it is proportionate to say that pharmacy professionals owe it to the public, patients and carers, as well as themselves, to make sure their leadership is providing the right direction, helping develop careers, and underpinning first class practice. Pharmacy encompasses rapidly changing and developing professions with increasing clinical responsibilities and opportunities, and that’s why the Commission’s work and the Call for Evidence are so important.”

Professor Dame Jane Dacre, professor of medical education, University College London Medical School

“I’m delighted to have been invited to co-chair the Commission; it is a tremendous honour to be involved in another profession’s important work.

“One of my proudest moments was being the third woman in 500 years to have been elected to the role of president of the Royal College of Physicians. That experience emphasised to me the importance of professional leadership in the world of healthcare. I am also a professor of medical education at UCL, and former director of the Medical School, with wide-ranging experience in the training and education of doctors at all stages of their careers. My role is to bring that expertise in professional leadership to the world of pharmacy technicians and pharmacists, and to contribute to setting a direction for the future. 

“Good and inclusive leadership is vital for any profession, especially when that profession is undergoing significant change. Although I am not a pharmacy professional, I understand what’s needed to ensure the pharmacy professions can benefit from the many opportunities in the years ahead.

“This is a vital moment to take stock, to really think about what kind of professional leadership the pharmacy professions need. And the role of this Commission is to take forward that work and make recommendations.

“The independent Commission is made up of highly experienced and qualified people, but it can’t do anything without the feedback provided by people completing the online survey. Your contributions will be independently evaluated and a summary report will be shared with the Commission and its five working groups at the start of October, so your views will form the bedrock for the final Commission report.

“We want to engage with a wide range of people across the UK and hear your views on pharmacy professional leadership.”

You can find out more about the UK Commission on Pharmacy Professional Leadership and take part in its Call for Evidence here.