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EAHP - Aspects of Compounding Summit
23-26 September, The Hague, The Netherlands
Background
The Aspects of Compounding Summit is the third in the BEAM series of projects by the European Association of Hospital pharmacy. (see http://www.eahp.eu/BEAM-Summit) It is under the auspices of the Academy which is part of the educational ‘arm’ of the EAHP.
The BEAM project is series of sponsored training and facilitation events (Summits) based on the cascade principle of dissemination. Specifically Aspects of Compounding is the ‘A’ of BEAM, the remaining letters representing Biotechnology, Evidence-based medicine and Management. The EAHP funds all participants to the event including airfare, hotel, meals, transport to the venue and registration.
Introduction and short description of the course
The aim of the Aspects of Compounding Summit is to, ‘provide participants with opportunities to learn from a structured experience that will enable them to advance compounding practice in their respective countries’.
The summit brings together expertise able to train participants from fundamental concepts to the realisation of a state-of-the-art facility for a compounding process in a European hospital pharmacy. There will be eight groups of eight participants from 31 countries and competition between groups will be encouraged.
Prior to the summit, participants will elect to participate in four purposefully devised topics according to which will provide the most useful learning for dissemination to their respective countries. In devising the topics there is a realization that Compounding varies considerably across the States of Europe. There will be two groups for each topic and with common learning needs they will work under expert guidance and with local resources. Each group will appoint a secretary and a president. Commonly groups will, for example; specify the organization of a compounding facility and a products list, design lay outs and describe processes and the compounding facility. Plenary sessions from subject experts will provide instruction on core subjects.
An expert panel will assess learning across topic pairs and overall as groups compete for prizes.
Supporting material, relevant literature and resources will be available on the EAHP website. Participants will take home all results and present them in their own country at the level they deem appropriate and to advance local practice. The website of the EAHP will be open for a compounding forum on which participants can report their progress and exchange ideas.
For more information, please contact em@eahp.eu
EurAHP Evidence Based Medicine Educational Summit
The EurAHP's 2nd educational session of the BEAM Summit took place at the Loughborough University in the United Kingdom in May 2009. Evidence Based Medicine (the E in BEAM) was the theme of the summit and the event was completely interactive and met with great satisfaction by participants.
This ACPE accredited meeting was attended by 42 hospital pharmacists from 23 European countries. Professor David Gerrett, along with three Course Directors - presented along with other leading experts on a variety of key issues in evidence based medicine with the goal assisting hospital pharmacists with their daily practice.
There is a fundamental evolution in Hospital Pharmacy, indeed for all health care professionals. Neither will society pay for the luxury of individuals repeatedly synthesizing the same 'evidence' nor will it sanction a single person's assessment. The new skills learned at the EBM summit are to efficiently assess existing quality summaries of drug therapies made available in electronic format and to determine how to produce a patient specific application of knowledge and understanding that will facilitate the transfer of EBM to Evidence-Based Practice (EBP). Harnessing these skills will ensure the valued and continued contribution of Hospital Pharmacy in health care.
This Summit is about developing these skills and qualities as they might be applied in various countries. Disseminating the experience and refined abilities learned within their respective countries is the subsequent task asked of participants.
The preliminary step before attending the summit was for participants to complete a survey of their current EBM knowledge and understanding. The next step was to read and become familiar with the workbook by Glasziou P, Del Mar C, Salisbury J. Evidence-based Practice Workbook (2nd ed). Blackwell Publishing:BMJ Books 2007.
For the duration of the Summit participants worked as a group with five other participants from different countries. Each group worked daily using a personal laptop computer with access to the Internet and a wide range of on-line medicines database resources. Each group was then allocated cases derived from one of the following seven topic areas:
- anti-coagulants in atrial fibrillation;
- cardiovascular risk reduction in type two diabetes mellitus;
- chronic obstructive airways disease;
- depression;
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs;
- rheumatoid arthritis and monoclonal antibodies; and,
- venous thromboembolism prophylaxis.
In addition, each group had a dedicated case-based learning facilitator who was trained specifically in the development of the required EBM skills. Acknowledged experts provided state-of-the-art International overviews ensuring that they gained an appreciation of the global direction of EBM. However, it was the engagement of the participants with the practical aspects that was truly a unique and valued learning experience.
Finally, participants competed as groups after having been given a topic-specific scenario, and judged in each group's ability to transfer EBM to EBP.
Dissemination will be facilitated with the online web casts of each presentation and discussions within the group.
To learn more about this summit, please use the links below.
EurAHP Biotechnology Educational Summit
EurAHP's first educational meeting, the EurAHP Biotechnology Educational Summit was held at the Radisson SAS Bay Point Resort in Malta, in October 2007.
This ACPE accredited meeting was attended by 37 hospital pharmacists from 18 European countries. Professor David Gerrett, Professor Daan Crommelin and Professor Wim Jiskoot – the Course Directors – presented along with other leading biopharmacists on a variety of key issues in biotechnology as it pertains to pharmacy practice now and in the future.
Having attended the meeting the delegates are expected to teach various aspects of the biotechnology module to hospital pharmacists in their own countries so that they in turn will have an understanding of the implications of these advances, thus guaranteeing a smooth transition into this new era of pharmacy.
In order to facilitate learning, delegates were involved in case studies and breakout sessions throughout, sharing their own thoughts and expertise.
The information collated from these and the other sessions will be integrated into the final training tool that the delegates will use to help train other hospital pharmacists in their local regions across Europe.
Please use the links below for further information:
© European Academy of Hospital Pharmacy 2007
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