Page 38 - Retail Pharmacy Magazine October 2020

36 BUSINESS THROUGH INNOVATION COMPOUNDING IT’S TIME TO GIVE VIRTUAL CONFERENCES A TRY t goes without saying that 2020 has been a challenging year for many, and that we’ve had to become flexible with many of the usual processes that occur. Compounding pharmacy has had its challenges, too, and for me the biggest has been the disruption to face-to- face training classes and how to keep providing pharmacists with ongoing training in compounding to meet their CPD requirements. Depending on when you’re reading this, you may still be planning your CPD activities for the new training year 2020/21. It’s part of the requirements of pharmacy re-registration that we have a CPD plan, and that it focuses on our specific area of practice. In the past, I’ve encouraged pharmacists to come back for refresher training, or to attend an annual conference, but for the most part this has gone by the wayside. Many pharmacists will find it adequate to read some journal articles, but I believe this is the perfect time to consider attending a ‘virtual’ conference, run locally or from overseas. For many years, I’ve heard pharmacists lament the fact that they “can’t get away” for that conference overseas, or “plan to get there one day”. Well, now those conferences are available for you to attend, because many are being prepared in a format easily accessible to all attendees, irrespective of time zones. Even if you can’t ‘attend’ the ‘live’ sessions, most sessions are usually available to watch for a certain period afterwards, allowing participants to log in at a more appropriate time. I’ve always loved attending international conferences, which is one of the big things I’m missing this year. While reading articles is quite satisfactory to ‘tick the boxes’, logging into a streamed conference, or even local webinar or Zoom meeting, has some added advantages. Firstly, you’re hearing a speaker. Those chosen to deliver presentations at compounding conferences are passionate speakers who just want to share their knowledge on their allocated subject. Presentations given are usually well referenced and this can help get pharmacists involved in a new topic. Many of the speakers have blogs or web pages that are regularly updated, but the conference setting offers a chance to get a good feel for the ‘personality’ and the ‘passion’. I love hearing their voices, and while the presentation slides are great, it’s usually the side stories and real-life examples that you can hear live, that you don’t always get a feel for in written articles. Virtual conferences often provide the opportunity to connect with the wider compounding community. With some conferences, there are chances to attend virtual networking sessions, where you can connect with compounders from overseas. There is so much opportunity to listen and learn, and should you decide to contribute to the discussions, they will “just love your accent” and will want to share so much information with you. You might, for example, want to explore a new area of practice, such as compounding for chronic disease states, or be keen to learn more about new trends that are dominating the compounding marketplace overseas. Most virtual seminars include an opportunity for attendees to log questions, which are read out and answered at the end of the presentation. Even if you don’t listen in real time, I think it’s so valuable to hear questions that other people ask, which might not have occurred to you. I recently logged in to a webinar covering a topic I thought I more or less understood. I’d already read a journal article on the subject and believed I had quite a clear picture. While I listened to the webinar, I was nodding my head in agreement and confirming to myself what I knew. However, when it came to question time, the questions were so varied, about points that hadn’t been addressed at all in the body of the webinar. For me, these questions moved the subject from theory into practice, which helped me get a clearer understanding of potential issues. I was glad to have taken the time to hear other people’s contributions. I encourage all pharmacists to throw their learning net just a little wider this year and strive to connect with at least one overseas training session. You might be surprised how far virtual learning might take you. “I encourage all pharmacists to throw their learning net just a little wider this year and strive to connect with at least one overseas training session.” By Marina Holt. Education and Training Manager PCCA Australia Marina Holt BPharm Dip Quality Auditing Cert IV TAE is the Education and Training Manager at PCCA Australia. Her main role is to give training on all aspects of compounding pharmacy to registered pharmacists and students, and to increase awareness of health professionals on the benefits compounded medications may have for their patients. Inquiries: marina@pccarx.com.au RETAIL PHARMACY • OCT 2020