Accreditation Council for
Pharmacy Education:
International Services Program
 
  
Quarterly Newsletter: November 2014
  
Volume 3, Issue 2
ACPE's International Services Program (ISP) Exhibits at the 2014 FIP Annual Congress in Bangkok, Thailand

ISP is very pleased to announce our participation in the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) Annual Congress held in Bangkok, Thailand at the beginning of September 2014. Among many other participants from all over the world, ISP was given the unique opportunity to proudly showcase its services, activities and international collaborations so far. Our exhibit booth offered information regarding every aspect of our program and welcomed many visitors who expressed interest in our services, such as consultation, training and certification. ISP staff was readily available to answer any questions, with the hopes that anyone who joined us at the booth left richer in knowledge regarding our mission and vision. If you did stop by our booth, we would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank you. Also, special thanks go to the members of the International Commission and International Services Program Advisory Group (ISPAG) who attended the FIP Congress and for their contribution in the activities hosted during the week. 

 

 Booth

ACPE Booth at the 2014 FIP Annual Congress in Bangkok, Thailand


 
In addition, ACPE hosted a reception at FIP to express our appreciation for all the hard work from our colleagues located in different parts of the world. The reception was very well attended.  

 

Reception
 From left to right: Suresh Bhojraj, Arijana Mestrovic, Peter Vlasses, David Hill and Mike Rouse

 

Updates on International Collaborations

You many find the links to the press releases for the MOU's at: 

 

https://www.acpe-accredit.org/international/newsletters.asp

Upcoming Meetings

 The International Commission will hold its ninth meeting on May 3 - 5, 2015 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. The ACPE Board Meeting will take place in San Diego, CA from January 21 - 25, 2015.

ISP General Information

You may access the ISP brochure, past newsletters and press releases and other information about the International Services Program on the  ACPE website.

ISP Staff: Questions and Comments

Mike Rouse, BPharm (Hons), MPS

Assistant Executive Director, Professional Affairs, and  Director, International Services
mrouse@acpe-accredit.org
 

  

Silvi Kastrati

International Coordinator

International Services

skastrati@acpe-accredit.org 
 

International Consultants

If you are interested in becoming an international consultant or a member of on-site evaluation teams, or know someone else that might be interested, please contact Silvi Kastrati.

 

International Commissioner Feature: George Spratto, PhD. Connecticut, USA stated:


 

"As a former member of the ACPE Board of Directors, it has been a distinct pleasure to have also served on the International Services Program's International Commission. It has been exciting and productive working as a member of a team of outstanding international and U.S. pharmacy educators and practitioners whose goal is to assist our international colleagues to improve and enhance their pharmacy curricula. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to travel to three countries in the Middle East several years ago to work with Ministries of Higher Education, as well as various colleges and schools of pharmacy, to evaluate their pharmacy programs. It has been gratifying to observe the interest that has been generated in this area and throughout the world to enhance pharmacy education. Such efforts will undoubtedly improve patient care which is a primary objective of improving both pharmacy education and practice."

 

 

Summary of decisions for the International Services Program (ISP) from the ACPE Board Meeting in Chicago, Illinois - June, 2014

The ACPE Board Meeting took place on June 18 - 21, 2014, in Chicago, Illinois. During this meeting, the Board members approved the recommendation from the International Commission to appoint Dr. Magaly Rodriguez de Bittner (USA) and Dr. Suresh Bhojraj (India) to the International Commission for a three-year term (initial appointment) beginning on February 1, 2015.

Certified Programs

In 2014, ISP was able to successfully complete four on-site visits to colleges of pharmacy in Saudi Arabia, Northern Cyprus, India, and United Arab Emirates (UAE). As of now, ISP has granted Certification to Jagadguru Sri Shivarathreeswara (JSS) University College of Pharmacy in India, King Saud University College of Pharmacy and King Faisal University College of Clinical Pharmacy in Saudi Arabia, and Provisional Certification to Near East University Faculty of Pharmacy in Northern Cyprus. The application from the program in the UAE will be considered at the January 2015 meeting of the ACPE Board. For more details, please see the "Directory of Certified Programs" located on our website:                              

 

https://www.acpe-accredit.org/pdf/DirectoryofCertifiedPrograms.pdf 

 

ISP staff looks forward to helping other schools that are interested in our services. 

Current Projects and Presentations

ISP staff presented at or visited the following conferences and institutions:

 

June 2014:

Mike Rouse, Assistant Executive Director, Professional Affairs and Director, International Services at ACPE attended the "Life Long Learning in Pharmacy Conference" in Orlando, Florida, USA. The conference was hosted by the University of Florida and had as its theme: "The Magic of Discovery: What Lies Ahead."

 

July 2014:

Peter Vlasses, ACPE Executive Director, and Prof. Jean Pierre Grégoire,Université Laval, Quebec, Canada, spent a week in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where they met with representatives of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kinshasa, and the Ministries of Health and Education. Vlasses and Grégoire finalized a report on their findings at the University of Kinshasa. The report focused on a 7 year plan to re-organize the curriculum.

 

September 2014:

Mike Rouse attended the Turkish Pharmacists Association Conference in Ankara, Turkey, where he presented the concept and components of the CPD (Continuing Professional Development) approach to self-directed lifelong learning.

 

October/November 2014:

Mike Rouse spoke at the "International Symposium" of the Korean Pharmaceutical Association; his presentation focused on quality assurance aspects related to experiential education in the pharmacy curriculum and criteria for the selection of practice sites and preceptors.
Release of Two Key Reports by FIP

In September 2014, the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) released two key reports at their World Congress held in Bangkok, Thailand. The first report, called "Quality Assurance of Pharmacy Education: the FIP Global Framework 2nd Edition," focuses on the core principles and quality criteria for  pharmacy education worldwide. This framework is designed as a tool that can be used at a national level in relation to quality assurance or by local institutions in efforts to self-assess and improve quality of eduation. ACPE recognizes the valuable contribution from its own staff to this report: Peter Vlasses, Jeffrey Wadelin, Associate Executive Director, and Mike Rouse (Author). Also, we recognize the efforts of our International Commissioners: Janet P. Engle, Chair of ACPE's International Commission (IC), Patricia Acuña Johnson, Vice-Chair/Chair Elect of IC, Claude Mailhot and Azza Agha. Also, we thank the International Services Program Advisory Group (ISPAG) members for their contributions: Arijana Mestrovic (Co-Author), Alan Lyles, Suresh Bhojraj, Bronwyn Clark,  Mahama Duwiejua, Nahoko Kurosawa and Timothy W. Rennie.

 

The second report, "Continuing Professional Development/Continuing Education in Pharmacy: Global Report", reports the status of continuing education and continuing professional development in pharmacy around the world. The report emphasizes the key components for the development of CPD/CE. ACPE acknowledges the input from its own staff: Mike Rouse (Co-Editor), Dimitra Travlos, Assistant Executive Director and Director, CPE Provider Accreditation Program, and Jennifer Baumgartner, Assistant Director, Continuing Pharmacy Education Provider Accreditation Program. We appreciate the efforts of our International Commissioners: Patricia Acuña Johnson, Vice-Chair/Chair Elect of the International Commission. In addition, we recognize the input of the International Services Program Advisory Group (ISPAG) members: Arijana Mestrovic, Leonila M. Ocampo and Timothy W. Rennie.

 

These two reports can be accessed here: http://www.fip.org/educationreports