The inauguration of the National Clinical Pharmacy Train the Trainer Program organized by the Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences (FAHS), took place on the 7th of August 2023, at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura in the presence of the Vice Chancellor, Senior Prof. M.M Pathmalal, the Dean of the Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, Prof. Inoka Uluwaduge, Director of Colombo South Teaching Hospital, Dr. Sagari Kiriwandeniya, and other distinguished invitees.
This marked the beginning of a four-day workshop for trainers in clinical pharmacy (7th to 10th August 2023) in USJ and Colombo South Teaching Hospital resourced by seven eminent Australians led by Prof Ian Coombes who represent the (CASPPER). The resource persons who participated in a volunteer teaching capacity were Prof. Ian Coombes – Director of Pharmacy Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, Academic Professor School of Pharmacy University of Queensland (UQ), Associate Professor Griffith University and CASPPER Director, Dr Judith Coombes, Conjoint Pharmacy Educator Princess Alexandra, Brisbane, Australia, Senior Lecturer of UQ and CASPPER Director, Prof. Amanda Wheeler – Professor of Mental Health, Griffith University, Queensland Australia, Hannah Knowles, Senior Pharmacist Emergency and Trauma Centre in Royal Brisbane Women’s Hospital and Pharmacy Society of Australia Board member, Tara Van der Vliet, Clinical Pharmacist Princess Alexandra, Brisbane, Australia, Paul Firman, Assistant Director of Pharmacy and Society Hospital pharmacist of Australia, and Yashani Algama, Clinical Pharmacist of Princess Alexandra, Brisbane, Australia.
Guided by the immense support of the Vice Chancellor of USJ and Dean of the FAHS, the University of Sri Jayewardenepura took the initiative to host this essential training program, offering a unique opportunity to Sri Lankan academics, and selected hospital pharmacists who are potential preceptor teachers for B.Pharm undergraduates. This was the third train the trainer program in clinical pharmacy organized by USJ in collaboration with CASPPER, 13 years after hosting the first train the trainer program in 2010, and a workshop for over 50 graduate hospital pharmacists in clinical pharmacy in 2022. This time the aim was to up-skill and update already trained university academics in teaching clinical pharmacy from all Sri Lankan Universities, and to orient selected graduate pharmacists working in hospitals to practice and support in teaching clinical pharmacy to undergraduates who come for training at their respective hospitals.
The event was a great success and a full-house of trainees attended this training program. The number of participants given this wonderful opportunity had to be limited to 20 participants who attended on an invitation basis. Academics representing the University Sri Jayewardenepura, University of Jaffna, University of Peradeniya, Sir John Kothelawala Defence University, and graduate pharmacists working at Colombo South Teaching Hospital, National Dental Hospital, Teaching Hospital Kandy, Apeksha Hospital, Base Hospital Wethara, Lanka Hospital, and Asiri Hospital were invited and participated.
This collaboration of CASPPER which is a not-for-profit organization, and University of Sri Jayewardenepura in upgrading and upskilling the pharmacy work force in Sri Lanka is an ongoing process and will continue with the goal of improving the quality of life for Sri Lankan patients. This Train the Trainer program has also enabled the initiation of further collaborative research to continue to demonstrate the positive impact of clinical pharmacists when added into the multidisciplinary team. The next program of research will involve the Department of Psychiatry with Prof. Wheeler and Prof. Coombes collaborating with Dr. Wass and Prof. Samaranayake.
