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Pharmacy Show sets new record
As pharmacists braced for the impact of sweeping changes brought about by the Government’s healthcare reforms and coming just days after the introduction of the ground-breaking New Medicine Service, community and hospital pharmacists gathered in record numbers for the 2011 Pharmacy Show - cementing its status as the UK’s most attended and important education and sourcing event.
More than 6,100 hospital and community pharmacy, healthcare and industry professionals – an increase of 28% over 2010 - travelled from across the UK to attend the two-day event held at the NEC in Birmingham(October 9th – 10th) at a time when the role of pharmacy in the delivery of patient care has never seen more debate.
Concerns over implementation of the NMS, debate around the future Pharmacy contract funding and declining retail revenues and opportunities in clinical services topped the agenda at the Pharmacy Show for the thousands who packed both the six conference theatres and 10,000sqm exhibition floor.
Boots’ Health and Beauty Chief Executive Alex Gourlay said debating the big issues at the Pharmacy Show was an important role for the show to play. “The Pharmacy Show brings the whole industry together in one place and allows pharmacy professionals to feed off one another’s ideas - that’s vital for the future of the pharmacy industry.”
Key contract negotiator Sue Sharpe, Chief Executive of the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee said pharmacists needed the Pharmacy Show now more than at any other time. “The Pharmacy Show is as important as ever. A lot of pharmacists operate in isolation so it’s hugely beneficial for them to come here listen to talks and meet people who can help them - the industry needs this show”, Sharpe commented.
Celebrated pharmacy entrepreneur and founder and CEO of the Day Lewis Group, Kirit Patel, said: “The Pharmacy Show is a one-stop shop. It’s particularly useful for independent pharmacists who don’t have time to talk with reps in their shop. Pharmacists not only leave the show with new products and services, but they leave knowing they have learned something too.”
In response to demand from pharmacists, the show’s organiser CloserStill Media Healthcare introduced two new conferences this year - the Technology Forum with the business accelerator theatre, and the Clinical Forum, which featured some of the UK’s top clinical pharmacy specialists and proved an additional draw for delegates.
The show featured more than 65 hours of business and clinical education delivered by an impressive line-up of speakers in six conference streams making it the UK’s largest source of live CPD. The event featured more than 27 other education and networking events led by industry associations and leading companies.
As pharmacists in hospitals and community look to work closer together to ensure better patient outcomes, the show saw a marked increase in hospital pharmacists this year. “The new clinical forum is a great addition to the show. It’s the main reason I’m here”, says David Preece, Clinical Pharmacist, United Lincolnshire NHS Trust who attended the show for the first time.
Nice doing business with you
A record of over 300 UK and international suppliers showcased the latest equipment, technologies and retail solutions at the event creating the largest ever Pharmacy Show exhibition. Exhibitors ranged from large, multi-national organisations to independent suppliers providing an exciting range of goods and services to meet the needs and aspirations of pharmacists.
“The Pharmacy Show is the show for the pharmacy industry and we need to be here. It delivers a lot of leads, allows us to meet up with our members and is great for networking” says Natalie Smith, Head of Communications Services at the National Pharmacy Association.
Meanwhile, The Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s Head of Membership Services, Victoria Bytel, added: “No other event gives us access to the volume of pharmacists that we get here at the Pharmacy Show.
Exhibitors were impressed by the range and quality of visitors at the show. Frank Lodge, National Pharmacy Manager at Pfizer who exhibited at the show, commented: “Pharmacists travel from all over the country to be here and were through the door the minute the show opened. The Pharmacy Show is a must-attend event for Pfizer. We have a responsibility to be here.”
“We came back to the Pharmacy Show to show our new products and have picked up Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Boots, Asda as well as numerous independents. We’ve been so busy that we’ve run out of literature,” says Stephen Dickson, Director of Methameasure.
By attracting the key players in the industry, the Pharmacy Show is the ideal forum for making new contacts and catching up with existing clients. “This show is all about networking for us. 70 per cent of our customer base is here under one roof for two days. We could travel the length and breadth of the UK and not see the amount of people that we see here,” says Matt Jelley, Head of Business Development, Nova Laboratories.
Pharmacy Show event director Matthew Butler commented: “There was a great buzz at the show this year. There are 10,500 community pharmacies in the UK, and more than 75% of these were represented at the show this year. We were pleased to see so many hospital pharmacists attending this year too for the first time, as a result of our focus on clinical education in the wake of the New Medicines Service and the demand from pharmacists for both clinical and business education and ideas.”
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