The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has initiated the evaluation of its five-year strategy for changing the way it manage concerns about pharmacy professionals. It has urged people to share their experience of fitness to practice.
The evaluation will look at how the strategy has improved the experience of people involved in fitness to practice (those who raise concerns, professionals, witnesses etc.); impacted the culture amongst pharmacy professionals and their attitudes to openness and honesty; improved the process and made it fairer and changed perceptions of fitness to practice.
The first phase of the evaluation process will take place from July to September 2023.
The council said: "We are committed to making our ambitions a reality for the benefit of everyone involved and your contribution will help us to make sure patients and the public continue to be protected while being fair to pharmacy professionals."
In June 2021, GPhC published its five-year strategy- Managing concerns about pharmacy professionals: Guided by its 2030 vision and commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, the strategy outlines a programme for change.
It sets out how GPhC will take prompt action to protect patients when needed, while at the same time promoting and encouraging a learning culture that allows pharmacy professionals to deal with any concerns and go back to practising in appropriate circumstances.
The strategy also focuses on how to make sure the decisions made by the council are fair and that it eliminate any discrimination or bias in decision-making.
The council said: "We are now starting to evaluate the strategy to find out whether, and to what extent, the strategy is achieving its aims and outcomes. This will help our understanding of its effectiveness and provide vital information on where we can continue to improve our approach to managing concerns."
