RGU has revealed that it is launching a new “BSc Clinical Practice” degree for pharmacy technicians in September - “the first of its kind in the UK”.
Sharing the news exclusively with C+D, the university said that the “top-up degree” will take place online and run for three years on a full-time basis, or with the time from enrolment to final assessment depending on the point of intake and scheduled breaks.
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The course “is designed to bridge the knowledge gap identified by UK practising pharmacy technicians to enhance their scope of practice and contribution to patient-centred pharmaceutical care and clinical pharmacy”, it added.
“With the expanded role of pharmacists now including independent prescribing, there is a growing need for pharmacy technicians to undertake more clinical responsibilities,” RGU told C+D.
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This degree will “equip pharmacy technicians with the necessary clinical training and knowledge to confidently and competently take on these expanded clinical roles”, it added.
“This pharmacy related degree qualification will also align pharmacy technicians with the rest of the healthcare family who typically enter to practice with a degree qualification,” it said.
“Ongoing dedication”
According to the university, key features of the course will include:
- A “wide range of topics essential for advanced clinical practice”, including patient-centred pharmaceutical care, clinical therapeutics and health promotion
- “Flexible learning” to “accommodate the needs of working professionals”, offering “fully online learning to balance work, life and study”
- Delivery via RGU’s online “virtual learning environment”, allowing students to “study at their own pace and schedule” across three semesters each year
- Teaching by “experienced academics” from RGU’s school of pharmacy, applied sciences and public health, including “several GPhC-registered pharmacists”
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Dean of RGU’s school of pharmacy Professor Susannah Walsh said that the new degree is “a testament to our ongoing dedication to advancing healthcare education and supporting the professional growth of our students”.
And course development lead Dr Betty Dube said that the pharmacy school is “excited to launch this new course, the first degree of its kind in the UK, that will address the ever-evolving needs of the pharmacy profession”.
It comes after Scottish Labour’s deputy leader slammed the government and NHS Education for Scotland in February for failing to plan for increased pharmacy student numbers.
Read more: Bangor University set to offer ‘exciting’ new MPharm degree
In September, Aston University’s pharmacy school unveiled a new “state-of-the-art” £3.3 million pharmacy training laboratory and the University of Sheffield announced that it would open its new pharmacy school to students in September 2025.
Meanwhile, Bangor University announced last July that a new four-year MPharm undergraduate degree course is set to take on 35 students from this September.
And Plymouth University announced in January last year that the University of Bath MPharm pharmacy course “will also be delivered at the University of Plymouth” from September 2024.
