Specialty recognition is here

Abstract

The attainment of specialty status for pharmaceutical medicine with its own Certificate of Completion of Specialist Training (CCST), which is expected literally within the next few days, will be a major step in the evolution of the professional standing of those who have chosen to pursue a career in either the pharmaceutical industry or the regulatory authorities. Whilst at the moment this is for the UK, it is planned to take this forward to EU wide. In order to obtain a CCST it will be necessary for candidates to enrol on a programme of Higher Medical Training (HMT), which involves demonstrating a level of competence in seven modules of work that make up the curriculum. Obtaining the Diploma of Pharmaceutical Medicine is part of the process and it is assumed that most people will sit this about two years after joining the industry. At least three of the modules must be completed within the person’s place of work and it may be that, for some individuals, all of them can be completed this way. However, it is recognized that companies vary in size and structure and there is a wide diversity of jobs within pharmaceutical medicine. Thus, the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine is arranging for a series of taught modules to be available so that people who cannot complete their training in the work place have an alternative route to obtaining all the necessary training for a CCST. These courses will be provided by a variety of organizations, such as the Medicines Control Agency, some pharmaceutical companies and some universities, and the Faculty will put in place a quality control process that ensures that the standards are maintained. The achievement of a CCST is a major step in anyone’s career development and it is important that those embarking on a career in pharmaceutical medicine have the same professional status as other medical disciplines. Getting this far is the result of a huge amount of work by a large number of people, but the two whom I would like to recognize for their skilful manipulations through the tortuous path that we trod are Professor David London and Professor Peter Stonier. It is to be hoped that future generations of patients and pharmaceutical physicians will acknowledge the service that they have done. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL MEDICINE 2002, 16:111 & 111