New integrated pharmacy programme heralds transformative change

Our Department is the sole provider of pharmacy education in Singapore and therefore we have a duty to ensure that our flagship programme is at the leading edge. Associate Professor Chui Wai Keung and Professor Paul Gallagher who joined us in September 2018 conducted an evaluation of the current programme between October and December 2018. An important part of this exercise was interviews with our alumni. The results of this evaluation was that our programme needs to change in order to prepare our graduates for the evolving complexity of the Singaporean healthcare system.

Our strategy to address this challenge is to transform our B.Sc. (Pharm.) programme through a three-pillar framework that integrates the basic, clinical, and systems sciences (Figure below). In this inter-dependent framework, our students will not only learn the interconnectivity in the basic, clinical and systems sciences but also uncover relevance and meaning in their education through authentic, value-added, and person/patient-centred roles.

This new programme will be an exciting and ambitious undertaking by the Department that will touch every aspect of pharmacy in Singapore. We would like to invite you, our alumni, to play a huge part in shaping that future. In fact, this new programme will only be successful if we can grow the partnership between you and your alma mater.

Once we obtain the approval for our new programme from the Ministry of Education, we will engage with you more closely through PharmConnect and other fora so that together, we can be an unstoppable force in renewing our profession.

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Article by Professor Paul Gallagher (NUS Pharmacy Deputy Head (Clinical) and Co-Chair of the new integrated pharmacy programme)