One thousand four hundred delegates from 19 different countries attended the 2006 FAPA Congress in Japan and half of them were foreign delegates.
The 21st Congress of Federation of Asian Pharmaceutical Associations was held between November 18th - 21st 2006 at Pacifico Yokohama, Yokohama, Japan. This year’s theme was, “ Developing a New Role for the Pharmacist and Healthcare”.
The opening ceremony was well attended and the keynote speaker was the Immediate Past President of Federation Internationale Pharmaceutique (FIP), Mr Jean Parrot, who spoke on, “Issues of the 21st Century Pharmacy”. The prestigious FAPA Ishidate Awards were given to 5 pharmacists from around the region, each a leader in their area of practice i.e. Pharmaceutical Education, Community Pharmacy, Hospital Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Research, and Pharmaceutical Industry.
The FAPA congress allowed many opportunities for networking with pharmacists from around the region. New friendships were formed and old friendships renewed through interactions at the professional sessions and social events.
The 3 main symposia, “Topics and Challenges in Pharmacy Education”, “Self-Medication and Pharmacists”, and “Establishment of New Professional Standards” drew much discussion between the delegates. In particular, the challenge to develop a education programme, that would cater to the extensive scope of pharmacy practice, and the possible harmonisation of pharmacy education in the Asia-Pacific region (of which FAPA could play a significant role). Associate Professor Li Shu Chuen spoke on the challenges to pharmacy education in Singapore; how to balance and satisfy the needs and wishes of the different stakeholders with the available resources.
Speakers from Japan, Australia and Taiwan shared their experience on self-medication. In Australia, several strategies have been are employed and resources used include, the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia self-medication guidelines, the Pharmacy Self Care health information programme, and a standards maintenance assessment process. In Japan, over the last 7 years, 671 OTC drugs were reclassified into quasi-drugs. This meant that that they could be sold by general retailers, which led to some pharmacies experiencing financial difficulties from lost of sales of these products.
There were 13 section meetings in each of the following areas; Pharmaceutical Education, Hospital and Clinical Pharmacy, Community Pharmacy, Industrial Pharmacy, Pharmacy Student, Scientific Section/Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Phytopharmacy and Pharmacopeia, Pharmaceutical Legislation, Ethics and Regulatory Pharmacy, and Drug Marketing and Socio-Economic Pharmacy. A variety of topics presented and discussed during these sessions included the following:
1. Role of Hospital Pharmacist in Palliative Care: An Experience from Thailand.
2. Japan Pharmaceutical Association Aims at Standardized Community Pharmacy Clerkship in New Pharmacy Student Education System.
3. Leading the Medication Safety Initiatives: The St. Luke’s Medical Center (Philippines) Experience.
4. Active Contributions to the Chemotherapy by Pharmacists in the Field of Orthopaedic Surgery (Japan).
5. Impact of Pharmaceutical Care on Asthma Patients in Community Pharmacies (Taiwai).
6. Detection of Counterfeit Medicines (Japan).
7. The Role of the Disaster Relief Pharmacist (Japan).
8. A public Perception Survey on Community Pharmacists (Taiwan).
9. Microparticulate Drug Delivery System for Topical Administration of Ketoconazole (India).
10. Siamese Neem Tree: An Interesting Antioxidative Plant (Thailand).
11. Cellulose Acetate Microspheres as Floating Depot Systems to Increase Gastric Retention of Antidiabetic Drugs (India).
12. Ethical Compliance Amongst Community Pharmacists in Malaysia.
13. Anti-Doping Activities by Pharmacists (Japan).
14. Pharmaceutical Wholesaling – Current Status and Future Outlook. (Japan).
A round table forum on smoking cessation on the last day provided a platform for pharmacists from around the region to share their experiences and discuss issues surrounding the pharmacist’s role in this area. Our President, Mr Ng Cheng Tiang, presented on Singapore’s efforts to curb smoking. At the end of the session, a proposal was made for FAPA to issue a statement on the role of pharmacist in smoking cessation. The statement will be formalized in due course and we will disseminate the news when it becomes available.
This year there were more than 300 poster presentations. The majority (93) were from the Hospital Pharmacy section, followed by 40 each from the Community Pharmacy and Scientific sections, 26 from the Pharmaceutical Education section, 13 from the Industry section, and 12 from the Phytopharmacy and Pharmacopeia. The poster sessions allowed representatives from the various countries to share their experiences and others to learn from them.
As per the tradition of the farewell dinner, each country was expected to put up an item on stage and our Singapore delegates were all game to put up a good show of cultural songs.
Although there were only 12 Singapore delegates, this was the highest number ever to attend a FAPA Congress. There were 2 speakers, 1 chairperson and 1 poster presentation from Singapore:
1. Dr Camilla Wong, Symposium Co-Chairperson, Topics and Challenges in Pharmacy Education.
2. Associate Professor Li Shu Chuen, Symposium Speaker, Challenges to Pharmacy Education in Singapore.
3. Mr Ng Cheng Tiang, Round Table Forum on Smoking Cessation, Speaker, Singapore Experience on Smoking Cessation.
4. Dr Camilla Wong, Poster presentation, Utilisation of the Healthprolink Software, Quantifi®, to Capture Pharmacist Interventions at Singapore General Hospital.
It is hoped that more Singapore pharmacists will participate in future FAPA congresses especially at the next FAPA Congress which will be held in Singapore in 2008.
Dr. Camilla Wong
Immediate Past President, PSS
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