28 June 2011

EAHP GENERAL ASSEMBLY – 2-5 June 2011- DUBLIN, IRELAND

The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists held its annual General Assembly in Dublin, Ireland, from 2-5 June 2011. 60 representatives from 24 member countries of the EAHP gathered to discuss relevant issues related to the further development of hospital pharmacy in Europe.

During the 2 day long assembly, EAHP’S board members and delegates of each member country shared their point of view on hot topics of the health system in Europe and discussed EAHP’s active role in European projects and working groups as well as the association’s educational activities.

This year’s assembly, chaired by EAHP’s President, Roberto Frontini, set a milestone in the history of the association as the legal status of EAHP was changed to an International not-for-profit organization (AISBL). The “new” EAHP AISBL consists of 31 member associations of hospital pharmacists from different European countries sharing the same goals of developing and establishing a common hospital pharmacy policy in Europe. The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists was founded on 6 March 1972, when the representatives of six European countries signed the first Statutes of the EAHP, in The Hague, The Netherlands. EAHP membership is open to countries belonging to the Council of Europe. EAHP’s headquarters is located in Brussels, Belgium, from where the EAHP fosters its efforts at EU level.

For further information on the history and status of EAHP please click here

The delegates of the member associations approved in Dublin the Statements on Patient Safety and Hospital Pharmacist specialisation, which both serve as a fundamental point of reference for promoting a common hospital pharmacy policy across Europe.

Please visit following pages for downloading the statements:

Statements on Patient Safety

Statement on Hospital Pharmacist specialization

Tajda Miharija Gala and Juraj Sykora, both of whom are EAHP Directors of Professional Development, presented the EAHP Survey 2010 preliminary results, which will be officially presented to the public at the next 17th Congress of the association to be held in Milano, Italy, March 21-23, 2012 and at other national and international events. The survey will reveal how hospital pharmacy is practiced in different European countries and show the trend of development of the services across Europe.

For further information on the EAHP Survey click here

Projects in which the EAHP is involved at the European level:

The EAHP PHARMINE working group met several times in 2010 and 2011 with the purpose to promote specialization in hospital pharmacy. Beside the approved statement on Hospital Pharmacist Specialization, the group also created a comprehensive document on competencies in hospital pharmacy. The competencies listed in the document are built upon the foundation level for early year practitioners and are intended to provide direction for those practitioners entering into hospital sector or those who wish to demonstrate evidence for a period of workplace learning and training in a hospital setting.

Future activities of the PHARMINE group will involve the establishment of centers of excellence in hospital pharmacy, the promotion of e-learning programs, and the creation of an accredited pan-European specialization in Hospital Pharmacy.

PHIS (Pharmaceutical Health Information System)

Elfriede Dolinar, EAHP Vice President, introduced the work carried out by the participating stakeholders to the project which took place from September 2008 to April 2011 with the aim of increasing knowledge and exchanging information on pharmaceutical policies. Of particular interest was pricing and reimbursement in the EU Member States, covering both the out- patient and the in-patient sector. The core achievement of the working group was the creation of a glossary, a database which is now in the process of being filled with data from the PHIS Pharma Profiles - and of a WP library including national PHIS Hospital Pharma Reports and country specific posters.

Further information on the PHIS Project: http://phis.goeg.at/

EDQM (European Directorate of the Quality of Medicines and Healthcare)

Vagn Handlos, EAHP Director of Education Science and Research, reported on the results from EDQM by introducing the EDQM working group representing various countries from the Council of Europe. Vagn Handlos reported that the resolution has been accepted by the Council of Ministers in the Council of Europe and thereby all the member countries. Five other resolutions within the profession have been developed by the Council of Europe, without major influence on the hospital pharmacy profession. It therefore important that EAHP and it’s members are going to use the resolution if we want to influence local or international legislation in the field.

EAHP is currently in the process of creating a working party to prepare a guidance document for hospital pharmacy preparation based on the EDQM resolution. The use of the document will be for the daily practice of the hospital pharmacist also covering the negotiations with the national authorities.

Link to the resolution: https://wcd.coe.int/wcd/ViewDoc.jsp?id=1734101&Site=CM

EAHP has approved the establishment of a new working group to focus on information technology in the frame of the IHE project Connectathon, where last April 2011 in Pisa, Italy, 13 Member States of the European Union exchanged patient information to prepare for a large-scale cross-border pilot program.

For further information on the project: http://www.ihe-europe.net/

For further information and/or material, please visit EAHP website at:

www.eahp.eu

OR

send an e-mail to coo@eahp.eu

EAHP Secretariat

European Association of Hospital Pharmacist (EAHP)

Rue Abbé Cuypers, 3
B - 1040 Brussels, Belgium
Tel: +32 (0) 2/741.24.36

Fax: +32 (0) 2/734.79.10