Australian College of Pharmacy


The Australian College of Pharmacy is one of three major providers of continuing professional development programmes for pharmacists in Australia—the others being the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia and The Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia. The college has been educating Australian pharmacists since 1978. The college is the third largest organisation in the Australian industry, behind the PSA and The Pharmacy Guild of Australia.
Members of the college are entitled to use the postnominal MACP, associate fellows AFACP, while fellows of the college use the FACP.

History

The Australian College of Pharmacy was established in 1978 as The Australian College of Pharmacy Practice. Since 1978 the college has absorbed the Australian Institute of Pharmacy Management in 2004 and The Australasian Compounders Association in 2011.

Structure

The college is governed by a board of eight directors, five elected from the general membership, two appointed by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia and the president of the National Australian Pharmacy Student's Association. The board meets monthly, a smaller executive meets when required to deal with more administrative matters.
The college's constitution provides for the establishment of various state-based chapters:
The educational offering of the college is overseen by an academic board chaired by Professor Mike Roberts. Other members of the academic board include the deans of the college's faculties together with the president of The Pharmacists' Division of APESMA.

Faculties

The college is divided into three faculties, each responsible for accrediting CPD and developing the postgraduate qualifications required to register with the college as a specialist in each field.
The Young Pharmacists' Group of Australia is a wholly owned subsidiary of the college. The YPG is governed by the college's only standing committee of the board. The YPG Committee comprises a representative from each chapter and is chaired by a representative of the executive.

Registered Training Organisation

The college is one of the profession's limited number of training organisations registered with the Commonwealth of Australia's Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. National Training Information Service College Registration.
The college is accredited to provide nationally recognised training, including the awarding of diplomas in both the Retail Services and Business Management Training Packages. The college's "jewel" Diploma of Retail Management was initially established under the AIPM, and is industry-renowned for nearly twenty years. From 2011 the college has offered the following nationally recognised courses:
The college is one of only a handful of organisations is Australia to offer an accredited Medication Management Review Stage 1 course that enables graduates to apply for the Association of Australian Consultant Pharmacists' Stage 2 accreditation. Pharmacists wanting to increase or update their pharmacotherapeutic and pathophysiological knowledge may be interested in enrolling in Patient Care modules; each module is based around a major organ group, e.g. Cardiovascular and Renal Therapeutics. Pharmacists wishing to complete a set number of units may qualify for the Award of ‘Fellow by Examination’ of the college.

Annual conference

The college's Conference & Exhibition is an annual event attended by just under 1,000 members and industry representatives. The conference runs concurrent Business, Compounding, Clinical and Consultant Pharmacist streams, delegates have the option of either stream or a combination of both.
The college prides itself on its practical and workshop-based learning.
The 2014 Annual Conference & Exhibition is from 29th to 31 August at The Hotel Grand Chancellor Hobart Tasmania.