What has been an eventful year for Council in terms of delivering on its mandate, especially as it relates to standard setting and legislative review processes, is coming to a close. As we publish this issue of the Pharmaciae, I would like to reflect on a selection of Council’s...
As we publish the ninth volume of the Pharmaciae, the current Council is in its fourth year in a five-year term and has made great strides towards achieving its five-year strategic plan. Most strategic objectives are fully achieved, with more work having been done in 2022 to ensure the...
This article presents a summary of selected matters discussed and decisions taken by the South African Pharmacy Council (‘Council’) during its meetings held on 16/17 February, 18/19 May and 27/28 July 2022. Other matters on the operations of the Office of the Registrar and Council are covered in the...
Legislation having an impact on Pharmacy and the practice environment is continuously updated in response to changing environmental and other factors. We endeavour to include all legislative amendments and new/proposed legislation and regulations in each issue of the e-Pharmaciae. This edition looks at the legislation published in 2022.
During 2022, the South African Pharmacy Council was invited to participate in the programmes of three conferences organised by the profession and other stakeholders. Council honoured the invitations to engage with the profession and stakeholders at these conferences. This article review Council’s participation in industry conferences over the...
Council robustly guards the public’s right to quality pharmaceutical services, while upholding the good image of the pharmacy profession, by investigating alleged unprofessional conduct by registered persons and bringing disciplinary processes against those found to be endangering public health and/or bringing into disrepute the good name of the pharmacy...
The Honourable Minister of Health gazetted the Regulations relating to fees payable to the South African Pharmacy Council on Friday, 2 December 2022. The regulations pave the way for the caping of annual fee increases at the rate of headline inflation, as called for by the profession both prior...
This list is no longer valid as it has been superseded by the most recent update, published on 5 Dec 2024. Click here to see the latest updated version of this list.
This list is no longer valid as it has been superseded by the most recent update, published on 5 Dec 2024. Click here to see the latest updated version of this list.
There have been notable and extensive discussions about COVID-19 over the past two years… “Be safe, mask up, and sanitise” that has become a mantra for people across South Africa as well as globally. But do we really understand how vaccines are being monitored to assess probable side-effects being...
Council is calling on all its stakeholders, including registered persons and representatives of registered entities/facilities, as well as members of the public, to participate in its 2022 SAPC Public/Stakeholder Perception Survey and Communication Audit. This survey aims to assess perceptions of service delivery and communication efficiency, amongst others. Its...
Registered persons currently undergoing immunisation and injection techniques courses not accredited by the South African Pharmacy Council have until 31 December 2022 to complete and record these. For courses completed after 31 December 2022, Council will only accept Immunisation and Injection Techniques supplementary training certificates issued by accredited providers....
Pharmacists, owners and pharmacy support personnel are required to at all times ensure that they observe the law and are ethical in their exercising their various scopes of practice; this includes observing the Rules relating to Good Pharmacy Practice and the Ethical Rules. However, should mistakes happen or the...
The #PharmacyMonth hashtag garnered over 1,6 million social media impressions during September 2022; the profession, including provincial departments of health, partook in at least 39 outreach events, and there were at least 28 traditional media activities undertaken by both the profession and the Office of Council as part of...
According to the Pharmacy Inspections and Guide to Compliance manual, the most recent inspection outcome of a pharmacy determines the frequency of subsequent inspections by Council. Depending on the grading achieved, a pharmacy may be inspected annually, once every two years or once every three years. This article provides...
Your Council website login details are as important as your bank account’s personal identification number (PIN). They should not be shared with any third party, for any reason whatsoever. They should be used to access and transact on your secure profile and all associated services only by you,...
Pharmacists are required submit at least six (6) Continuing Professional Development (CPD) entries annually, by 31 December. CPD activities that may be recorded are varied, and includes lessons/skills learnt on the job, through reading practitioner or journal articles, seminars, workshops and training courses amongst others. The CPD regime is...
Been removed from the register of pharmacists for a period longer than 12 months? If you have been removed from the register for 13 months or more, paying the restoration and annual fees is not sufficient for you to be restored to the register. Depending on your period of...
The South African Pharmacy Council congratulates the 712 Pharmacist Interns in 2022 cohort who passed the pre-registration examination. The interns achieved an 89,9% pass rate, this is slightly lower than the 2021 pass rate (93%). Three Pre-Registration Examinations were written in March (n=61), August (n=466) and October (n=265) and...
The current pharmacy support personnel (PSP) qualifications – National Certificate: Pharmacist Assistant (Basic) and Further Education and Training Certificate: Pharmacist Assistant (Post-Basic) – will be replaced with the Occupational Certificate (Basic and Post-Basic). This article explains the introduction of the Occupational Certificate, enrolment, and the teach-out period of current...
All processes relating to Pharmacist-Initiated Management of Antiretroviral Therapy (PIMART) are currently on hold, pending the outcomes of a court case and a multi-council task team on PIMART. PIMART was proposed in response to the rising HIV infections nationally, below-target viral suppression and treatment adherence rates, as well as...
A patient has just presented you with a photograph of a prescription that they have received from their doctor via WhatsApp. Can you dispense based on this prescription? This article explores the issue.
While Council exists to, amongst others, ensure that only qualified and fit-to-practice persons practise the scope of practice of any of the categories of professionals registered with itself, for the benefit of the public and the dignity of the Pharmacy profession, there are also mechanisms within Council to help...
The South African Pharmacy Council (SAPC) is happy to present to the profession nine (9) newly appointed and promoted employees, who have undergone rigorous selection processes. They bring with them a diversity of skills, experience and capabilities to help the SAPC fulfil its legislative mandate. In this period, we...
