Thoughts

Believe Poster Series Development

Times are tough for pharmacists. Especially community pharmacists, but I’m sure that every type of pharmacist feels it. There doesn’t seem to be a day that goes by without some form of mass media criticism or other. If it isn’t Good Morning Britain providing a high profile platform for mis-informed individuals to share outdated and ignorant ideas about pharmacists, it’s the Daily Mail raising the hackles of the easily influenced around ‘internet chemists’.

I won’t share any links to these examples. If you really want to you can go and look for them yourself. Much better to focus on something positive. To think about what is good about pharmacists and pharmacy. To think about the reasons we have to believe in ourselves. It seems to me that having confidence in ourselves is a key to carving out the future that we would like for pharmacy. Believing in ourselves is the first step to convincing others to believe in us.

To provide a little balance and to remind us all about how pharmacy serves society in a positive and constructive way, much as it since before any of us were born, the believe poster series was born. Put them up in your pharmacy staff room, in the corridor, in your head office, wherever you and your team need reminding that being involved in pharmacy is something to be proud of and the future is ours to design.

The Believe Poster Series

The concept is simple. A triptych of posters with messages that we all need to hear as often as we can. To inspire us and set us free from our own anxieties and to hold a mirror to the criticisms of others.

The process began with an idea. As most creative pursuits do. Pretence is a funny thing and while I believed myself to be immune to challenges to my professional identity, it must have bounced around my mind. It kept coming back to the edge of my thoughts and calling for attention. Something had to be done. It incubated and then the words flowed, hastily captured in a notebook before a meeting with a client. The idea and words for the two accompanying posters followed shortly afterwards.

From those notes the design process developed naturally. As always, simplicity helps strong messages to shine. I set to work.

The outline designs were drawn up. Much tweaking ensued, as is the want of designers when working on self-initiated projects.

The designs were initially developed side by side as a triptych and then separated into three files. A little experimentation was had with alternative colours as you can see from the set of project files below. Pink and blue just weren’t right and green, long associated with pharmacy, was the final choice for the full set. Files were processed ready for print and all three sent for production.

Finally a mock up of the posters hanging from a Victorian conservatory wall was created for promotional purposes.

Join in. Share belief in yourself, your colleagues and your profession. Do it so that other people can see it.

Buy the Believe Poster Series | Triptych or individually

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Bernadette Brown reviews the Pharmacy Marketing Formulary

Bernadette Brown is a a real pioneer in community pharmacy delivering ground breaking clinical care for the community around her pharmacy in Scotland and integrating with local NHS care pathways.

She is the owner of multi-award winning pharmacy, Cadham Pharmacy Health Centre, in Cadham, Fife and is driven by a desire to deliver excellent, accessible healthcare.

‘We need the Pharmacy Marketing Formulary. As a profession times are changing and they are changing fast. For us to succeed and survive we need more education on something that is very alien to most of us (Marketing).

What the PMF helped me understand was that I needed to get my head around this new changing world and it helped me to be inspired to feel and believe that I could do it. That I could gain the skills and confidence to take control of my business and life.‘

Bernadette Brown.

Learn more about Bernadette.

Read all reviews of the Pharmacy Marketing Formulary (PMF).

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Pharmacy Trumps Card Game Development

Here it is. From top to bottom. The journey of developing the Pharmacy Trumps card game.

Having an idea is great. Humans are constantly coming up with new ones. An idea for that. An idea for this. If only I could…

Turning ideas into something tangible is a whole different ball game. How many times have you had a wonderful, world-beating, something new under the sun idea and done a total of nothing about it?

The Pharmacy Trumps Card Game

Our latest product, Pharmacy Trumps, a fun card game for people interested in medicines, is unlikely to be one of those wonderful world-beating, something new under the sun ideas but it is pretty awesome if you do happen to have a fondness for medicines and want to think about them when you are relaxing. Learn more about Pharmacy Trumps and how you play here.

It started a few years ago. The precise moment is lost to history but it was most likely when playing yet another game of this trumps or that trumps with my son and or daughter. They were pretty keen on them and it was a good way to spend some time together. As usual most things that enter my brain end up passing through the ‘pharmacy filter’ and this one came out with ‘I wonder if anyone has produced a pharmacy version of this?’

Some research later and without being able to find the kind of thing I had in mind the idea gained momentum so I started asking myself questions. Would people be interested in this? Was anyone else out there geeky enough about medicines to want to play a trumps style card game about them? Could I gather decent data that would work? Which medicines should I choose?

Questions led to answers led to actions and before I knew it I had roped in some people who are far cleverer than I to work on the data with me. The choice of medicines wasn’t too difficult – The top 32 medicines by prescribing volume in primary care (UK – NHS) seemed obvious. These are the ones prescribers prescribe, pharmacists dispense and patients take in good faith every day. They are part of our lives. We spent what seemed like forever gathering it and checking it and swopping categories in and out and then back again. When we finally decided to say it was done it was a good moment. We made every effort to pull together data that was accurate allowing learning while playing, but it is a card game so it’s about gameplay too. Selecting the categories was interesting and we wanted to include a range of category types: annual prescribing volume, annual prescribing cost, molecular weight, plasma protein binding, half-life and number needed to treat. There is also info about body system, class of drug and year of origin. A wealth of information allowing direct comparison.

Sourcing print suppliers at a sensible price that then allows a sensible price for customers was a key job and producing a quality product that warrants the retail price an important consideration. That meant working hard with our illustration and design to produce something smart that represents the profession well and promotes the role of pharmacy and the pharmacist. A set of bespoke body system illustrations were produced with another set of chemical structures to peek the curiosity of even the most jaded player. All in the DOSE Publishing house style.

It was a labour of love. It was. It took an inordinate amount of time considering what was involved and I got to know the 32 most common medicines in a whole new way, appreciating the beauty of their molecules. Metformin Hydrochloride, Gabapentin and Mirtazipine are my favourites. Fumarate is particularly pleasing. Who knew? However it was exciting to see the test pack arrive in the post and even better to hold the cards in my hands. The print and production quality were great. Result.

Testing the gameplay was pretty important and luckily I had the same son and daughter who started this whole thing at my mercy. Along with my wife, who is astute at spotting errors, omissions and improvements we set to with the first game ever of Pharmacy Trumps. Some time, much giggling, learning and mispronunciation later we had all learnt something, stopped staring at screens for a bit and had a list of amends.

Amends were made. Orders were placed. Packaging (there is always nice packaging from DOSE Publishing!) was sorted. Website pages were built and here we are. Pharmacy Trumps lives. Idea made flesh. Well, not flesh but 305gsm Heretic black cored playing card board. Ready for you to join in and play Pharmacy Trumps!

Buy yourself a pack. Buy a couple and give one to a friend. Buys lots and give them to your colleagues. Test each other with them and see who knows best. Use them to have a rest from revising for your MPharm finals while still, errr, revising for your finals. Build a card tower. Do some card tricks. It’s up to you.

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Five reasons why leaders are readers

Much has been written about leadership. A lot of it by pretty amazing people to whom we all probably ought to listen. Here are a few examples:

‘Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right thing’.

Love that one. Peter F. Druker.

So leadership is about choice. Selecting from the infinite possible futures the one that helps to achieve whatever is closest to your heart. Whenever we make a decision, large or small, we like to have as much relevant information as possible to aid us. Leaders build up their understanding of the world to help them make the best decisions they can.

‘The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers’.

That one is Ralph Nader.

So leadership is about sharing. Sharing the future, sharing information, sharing responsibility and sharing the understanding that makes a leader in the first place. It’s about inspiring people to learn, know and do things they otherwise wouldn’t.

‘Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other’.

Getting closer with this one from John F. Kennedy

So learning is key to leadership. It’s about fathoming out the safest, fastest, surest, (insert your adjective of choice here) way into the future. Now, we can’t know the future. Not yet – see what I did there? The next best thing is to arm yourself with as much information about the present and the past as possible and infer potential outcomes of the various ways forward. Then it’s basically like chemotaxis. Move towards the good stuff.

So to our final and most pertinent quote for today from Harry S. Truman.

‘Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.’

This one is close to my heart as an author. Here are five reasons why I think this makes sense.

When we read we multiply our own experiences by those of others – Most things in life that are worthwhile take time. We experience life one moment at a time and are limited to experiencing and learning what we can as we go. Reading allows us access to the experiences of others and at a much faster rate than a measly one moment at a time.
When we read we can choose who we spend time with – You are the sum of the six people you spend most time with. Apparently. Not verified or anything but is seems to make some sense. Spend time with smart people and you’ll be smarter and so on. You might never meet your heroes or those that know about something you are interested in, but you can read and re-read their words as often as you like. It’s a bit like time travel albeit into the past.
When we read we receive considered wisdom – Unless you are reading the comments on (any site you like) or much written on social media, a good book will represent the author’s considered thoughts and analysis about the subject, not just experiential data. That saves you the job of interpreting the data yourself and trying to put it in an order that makes sense. Authors often do that for you too.
When we read we transcend the day to day – Getting the kids to school, looking after the pets, fitting in some exercise, remembering to eat well, oh and actually doing the work people pay you for is enough to cause the days to blend into one. Reading allows us to step back and look at things from a broader perspective. Things often look better from there.
When we read we escape – Leaders often like to read things about leadership. Naturally. However, many enlightened people understand that reading widely and deeply outside of your (current) area of interest is very productive and can give you the next idea you never knew you had in you. It also allows you to journey beyond to other realms – doesn’t have to be time travel. Just a literary device.

With all of the above in mind I have sought to follow Druker, Nader, Kennedy and Truman and suggest that you read The Pharmacy Marketing Formulary. You can buy a copy by clicking ‘Add to basket’ below.

It is the right thing as Druker points out. Pharmacists and their teams need to understand marketing better. It is known. Sharing the knowledge and experience I have in pharmacy and marketing will help you become pharmacy marketing leaders yourself. I’m sure Nader would approve. The Pharmacy Marketing Formulary is full of information that may be new to you. Kennedy would like that you are learning. Finally, well, almost, Truman would wholeheartedly compel you to read if you want to lead. Lead in your own community, in your region, your profession, your country. Whichever arena in which you choose to carve out a new and better future.

I’ll leave you with a final quote from possibly the most influential of thinkers in recent decades. He has something useful to say about getting better at pharmacy marketing and buying a copy of The Pharmacy Marketing Formulary.

‘Try not. Do or do not. There is no try’.

Master Yoda.

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‘What is a pharmacist?’ research

Professions change and adapt as the years go by. At this time of uncertainty and rapid development within the pharmacy profession, it seems more important than ever that we can fully and collectively articulate exactly what a pharmacist is. Not just for ourselves but also, more importantly, for our stakeholders. Without a clear idea in our mind we will struggle to convince patients, commissioners and politicians of our value and the contribution that we make.

With the ever expanding role of the pharmacist there is more than one answer to the question, or at least there is more than one facet to the answer. Never before has there been so much opportunity for pharmacists to work in a range of settings, as part of widely differing teams or to specialise in so many ways. These opportunities herald a great future for the profession. They also present a challenge when we seek to describe, in a way that anyone can understand, what a pharmacist is. The answer is becoming more complex and we are predisposed to ever increasing complexity. We are naturally inclined to focus on detail and accuracy. Capturing what is common amongst pharmacists irrespective of setting or specialism is an important step towards being able to communicate that coherently and consistently to society.

While the specific contribution of pharmacists working in different settings and specialisms is distinct and important to us, we may find that it is less important to our stakeholders. Brand owners often apportion a much higher level of importance to their brand than their customers. Of course they do. They think about it day in day out. However, to customers it’s often a small part of their world. Important perhaps, small definitely. The brand of pharmacists is no different. To us the intricacies of our differences seem vitally important. To others they are less so. We are much better seeking to understand what is common to the idea of a pharmacist, what underpins our value and focus on communicating that in a way that any member of our family could grasp.

This is a critical point. To win over the public to our view of what a pharmacist is and can do we need to be able express what that is in a way that anyone can understand. That precludes highly detailed, technical descriptions and requires us to use the right kind of language and concepts that resonate with everyone in society. A short look at data from the National Literacy Trust and this becomes clear.

It may be stating the obvious however it is the view of most people within the profession that others don’t understand what pharmacists do. They don’t value us highly enough. They don’t commission us enough and they don’t pay us enough. This appears to be the broad consensus and we are and have been striving to redress this balance for a long time. Value, commissioning and payment all stem from an understanding of what we are and what we can do to help. At present there may be a gap between what the public, and I include commissioners and politicians in this group, think of pharmacists and what pharmacists think of themselves.

The challenge is that no one person has the answer to the question ‘What is a pharmacist?’ We as pharmacists have many answers, some of which relate to what we are now and some of which relate to what we can be and aspire to be in the future. Our patients have a whole range of answers themselves based on their current experience.

Understanding the thoughts of different groups is the beginning of understanding how to lead people towards our thinking and support a healthy future for the profession.

To this end a research project is underway that seeks to understand how people from differing stakeholder groups would describe a pharmacist. How they would answer the simple question ‘What is a pharmacist?’ By gathering and analysing the thoughts of as many people as possible the hope is to shed some light on brand pharmacist and facilitate work to manage that brand. Results and analysis will be published as part of a forthcoming book from DOSE Publishing.

With responses from ten different countries and a significant interest from members of the public the quantum of data is growing. Responses are sought from pharmacists of all types, pharmacy team members, a wide range of healthcare professionals and members of the public.

An edited version of this article appeared on The Pharmaceutical Journal website in February 2019.

Contribute to the research with your description of a pharmacist here.

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The Pharmaceutical Journal Reviews the PMF

The Pharmaceutical Journal is the publication of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. Its mission is threefold:

First, to inform pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists of the latest advances in any branch of pharmacy practice and pharmaceutical science throughout the world. We are to provide a forum to pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists to discuss the most pressing issues affecting their work and research.

Second, to place before healthcare professionals, scientists and the general public the results of advancements in pharmacy practice and pharmaceutical sciences in order to achieve a more general recognition for the pharmacy profession and pharmaceutical sciences.

Third, to be the main source of career information and advice for pharmacy professionals and pharmaceutical scientists, providing them with timely and important information to support career progression.

So it is with great pride that we tell you that The Pharmacy Marketing Formulary has been reviewed by the Pharmaceutical Journal. The review itself was completed by Rod Tucker, a pharmacist researcher and visiting research fellow, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, UK.

‘At a time when commissioners are looking to cut back on community pharmacy services, and given the current financial climate, I think the Pharmacy Marketing Formulary will be of interest to community pharmacists. Successful marketing can help the pharmacy profession to rebrand itself to convince not only the general public, but also those who control the NHS purse strings, that community pharmacies should become the first port of call for clinical healthcare on the high street.’

Rod Tucker

Read the full review here.

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