The ACPE Board Meeting took place on January 21 - 25, 2015, in San Diego, California, USA. During this meeting, the Board members approved the recommendation from the International Commission to award Certification to Al Ain University of Science and Technology College of Pharmacy located in the United Arab Emirates (see "Certified Programs" post below for more information). In addition, the Board appointed Dr. Lori Duke, Athens, Georgia, USA, to serve as the ACPE Board Liaison to the International Commission for a one-year term. 

At the January Board meeting, the ACPE Board extended the mandate of ISPAG for a further three years, based on the recommendation of the International Commission (IC). The new ISPAG team, appointed by the IC, now comprises the following members: 

* Yousif Abdu Asiri, MS, PhD, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
* Lilian Azzopardi, BPharm (Hons), MPhil, PhD, MRPharmS, Msida, Malta
* Tina Penick Brock, RPh, MS, EdD, San Francisco, California, USA
* Robert W. Brueggemeier, PhD, Columbus, Ohio, USA
* Bronwyn Clark, MClinPharm, FPS, Canberra Area, Australia 
* Ildikó Csóka, MS, PharmD, PhD, Szeged, Csongrad, Hungary 
* Mahama Duwiejua, BPharm, PhD, Kumasi, Ghana
* Rosa Issel Acosta González , MSc, PhD, Tamaulipas, Mexico
* Lorraine Horgan, BSc, MEconSc, Dublin, Ireland 
* Rosalyn Cain King, BS, PharmD, MPH, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
* Nahoko Kurosawa, PhD, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
* Roger Lander , PharmD, FASHP, FCCP, BCACP, Birmingham, Alabama, USA 
* Alan Lyles, ScD, MPH, RPh, Baltimore, Maryland, USA 
* Arijana Mestrovic, MPharm, DrSc, Zagreb, Croatia
* Leonila M. Ocampo, RPh, MS, Manila, The Philippines
* Tarcísio José Palhano, Brasília, Brazil
* T.K. Ravi, MPharm, PhD, FAGE, Coimbatore, India
* Timothy W. Rennie, MPharm, PhD, MRPharmS, Windhoek, Namibia 
* Chuthamanee C. Suthisisang, BPharm, PhD, Bangkok, Thailand
* P.T. Thomas, BPharm, MS, PhD, Subang Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia 
* Fe-Lin Lin Wu, BS, MS, PhD, Taipei, Taiwan

ISP looks forward to sharing ideas, exchanging experiences, and receiving feedback and recommendations from this diverse group of individuals within ISPAG.  

• Patricia Acuña Johnson, Vice-Chair/Chair Elect of ACPE's International Commission, attended the "II Triple Helix in Pharmacy: Partners in the Development of Human Resources for Health in Pharmacy" Conference in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The conference was organized by the Mexican Association of Schools of Pharmacy and the Mexican Accreditation Body of Pharmacy Education. Johnson gave a presentation on behalf of ACPE's International Services Program.

• Mike Rouse and ISPAG Member, Arijana Mestrovic, presented the "Innovation Workshop" for the Turkish Pharmacists Association (TPA) in Ankara, Turkey. The workshop brought together leaders in the Pharmacy profession to discuss a major initiative of the TPA to advance pharmacy practice in Turkey. More details will be provided in future newsletters as the project is implemented. 

• Rouse gave a presentation at the "Oman Pharmaceutical Conference", hosted by the Ministry of Health in Muscat, Oman. He also co-chaired and presented at the Deans' Forum that was held in conjunction with the conference, and that brought together deans and academic staff from schools of pharmacy in Oman and other countries in the region.

• ACPE and the Indian Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (IACP) hosted a two-day workshop in Bangalore, India, on March 17-18, 2015. Peter H. Vlasses, ACPE Executive Director, and Mike Rouse, Director, International Services, provided details of the certification process and requirements, including an overview of the Certification Quality Criteria, which are designed to be applicable to a range of professional degree programs in pharmacy. In attendance were deans, academic staff and university administrators representing 27 schools and colleges of pharmacy in India and one from Malaysia. 

• Members of the ACPE Board and Staff were present at the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) Annual Meeting and Exposition that took place in San Diego, California, USA. The aim of this meeting was to convene together pharmacy professionals to learn, network, and engage with peers. ACPE had a booth in the exhibition where interested parties could find out more information about the services that ACPE offers. 

ACPE's International Services Program, in collaboration with the University of Belgrade, Serbia, and Pharma Expert, Croatia, will contribute to the convening of the first Quality in Pharmacy Summit in Belgrade, Serbia, on October 23-25, 2015. The SEE Quality in Pharmacy Initiative aims to bring together key stakeholders responsible for the advancement of pharmacy practice and science, provide a platform for exchange of ideas and experiences, and promote regional cooperation in all areas of the pharmacy profession: education, research, science, pharmacy services, patient care, and regulation; ultimately to better serve patients and provide safe and effective care in communities. This one-and-a-half day summit will provide an insight into the current state of affairs with regards to different topics of interest.

All stakeholders in pharmacy profession in the region will be invited to join the Summit about quality in pharmacy and participate with their ideas, experience and motivation. Participants from countries in the region and further abroad, including Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Hungary, Kosovo, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia and Slovenia, are expected to attend.

We will keep you updated as more information becomes available in regards to this Summit.