Collaboration, patient outcomes and change were the buzzwords at this year’s Association of Pharmacy Technicians UK (APTUK) conference, which took place at Aston University earlier this month.

As some 150 delegates gathered at the two-day event, speakers including NHS England chief pharmaceutical officer Keith Ridge, Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) president Ash Soni and Dr Ravi Sharma, head of Primary Care Integration and lead GP practice pharmacist at Green Light, stressed the essential role of pharmacy technicians in providing patient-centred care. They also highlighted the need for technicians to adapt to meet the growing demands that are currently being placed on the sector.

“The world is changing and pharmacy has to keep up,” said Dr Ridge, with Dr Sharma echoing these sentiments with the warning: “If we fail to adapt, we are unlikely to survive.”

One way to weather these changes, urged the speakers, is to work together. During his speech, Dr Ridge promoted the need for integration across the healthcare system and collaboration between healthcare professionals – a thought that was reiterated throughout the conference. “Progression of roles can only work with collaboration between doctors, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, who need to work effectively
to deliver what is right for patients,” said Mr Soni.