The GPhC is responsible for setting standards and requirements for pharmacy education, and then making sure these are met through a quality assurance process. A key part of this is the accreditation or recognition process of education and training providers.
Proposed enhancements to this quality assurance process have now been approved by the General Pharmaceutical Council’s (GPhC) governing body. These include:
- Carrying out an annual survey of students and trainees about the quality of education and training they are receiving.
- Making better use of internal and external data to enhance the evidence base for reapproval events. Accreditation teams would be able to consider data such as student performance in the Oriel foundation training year National Recruitment Scheme (NRS) application tests, and graduate performance in the GPhC Registration Assessment.
- Aligning reapproval cycles across all pharmacy education and training provision so that all pharmacy technician, support staff, independent prescribing and overseas pharmacists’ assessment programmes (OSPAPs) will be on a 6-yearly reaccreditation cycle with a 3-year interim event.
The proposals come after a consultation on the changes.
Chief Strategy Office at the General Pharmaceutical Council, Louise Edwards, said:
“Our overall aim is to ensure pharmacy education and training providers continue to deliver high quality education and training that meets our standards and requirements, and gives students and trainees appropriate knowledge, skills and experience to provide high-quality care to patients and the public.
“The changes we’re planning to make to our quality assurance of education and training represent a shift in our way of working with education and training providers. This updated approach will increase our engagement with the providers and give us and them more opportunities to discuss challenges and opportunities to raise the quality of their courses.
“Through collecting and analysing more data on a regular basis, including introducing an annual survey of students and trainees about the quality of their education or training, we will have more evidence to provide ongoing assurance that our standards and requirements are being met, as well as to highlight potential areas of concern that would trigger further inquiry with the provider.”
The changes will be implemented in the 2025/26 academic year.