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Abstract

Pharmacy professional services evolve over time in response to social needs and in tandem with developments in technology, regulatory and economic forces. Failure to respond and adapt may result in the profession�s loss of efficacy. Hence, innovative processes within pharmacy professional services to ensure individualized patient care are essential. Focal contributions of the pharmacists in the different healthcare delivery settings are ensuring access to medicinal products, collaboration with other healthcare professionals in disease management to ensure rational, safe and effective use of medications, risk management with pharmacotherapy, and patient advocacy. From an education perspective, the challenge is to drive academia to also move in tandem with the developments in the profession. How do we integrate pharmaceutical sciences with clinical pharmacy education? Concepts of establishing the developments in innovative medicinal products and medical devices and how these are used within an interdisciplinary care model to ensure safe, rationale and effective patient care are presented. Different methods of teaching can be adopted to ensure clinical pharmacy education that is relevant for contemporary needs and which empowers graduates to deliver care with a vision for future innovations. How can pharmacy education support the delivery of innovative pharmaceutical services for individualized patient care? Examples of activities in clinical pharmacy education and research are reviewed. Models of supporting practicing pharmacists within post-graduate education programs are presented.

Biography

Lilian M Azzopardi completed her PhD in the area of Validation of Community Pharmacy. She is Professor and Head of Department of Pharmacy at the University of Malta. She coordinates the teaching of pharmacy practice and clinical pharmacy for undergraduate and post-graduate students. Her research is developing and evaluating clinical pharmacy interventions. She has published several papers and has been invited to give lectures and short courses in several universities. She has received research awards by the International Pharmaceutical Federation and the European Society of Clinical Pharmacy. She is the President of the European Association of Faculties of Pharmacy.

Email: lilian.m.azzopardi@um.edu.mt