Richard's Roundup Feb 2023

To all our members, welcome to 2023 and while it seems like the festive season was only yesterday, already the ides of March are in front of us and summer is in the rear view mirror.

One of the projects for PSWA in 2023 is an all-encompassing review of the JM O’Hara Research Fund (JMOHRF) , the Society’s research arm, which has been providing research grants to members for pharmacy based projects since 1976. You are likely aware that the JMOHRF has been structured to provide a significant grant (up to $50,000) to a successful  applicant each year. Grant applications are considered for their ability to meet the mission of the PSWA and ultimately  provide results that will benefit the health of all Western Australians.  Applications are considered by a Grants Committee appointed by your Board. The Grants Committee’s role is to provide a level of expertise in a variety of fields, including community members, to consider the merits of each application and provide a recommendation to the Board.

The review, which is already well under way, will ensure the intentions and function of the research fund serve the expectations of our members and meet the contemporary needs for innovative research and practice development. This will support its relevance and ensure that it meets the PSWA’s mission as the major facilitator of pharmacy practice development in WA through innovative research.

The review has already commenced with a survey of the Grants Committee members to gather their valuable first hand insight of the process and where improvements and streamlining can be made.

The second part of the process involves a number of identified key stakeholders which includes pharmacy researchers, community pharmacists, hospital pharmacists, and other interested pharmacists and stakeholders.  They will be invited to put forward their views through a short online survey and attendance at a face-to-face  stakeholder forum to be held in late March.

Discussions at the stakeholder forum will be centred around the key areas of:

  • how the JMOHRF could be re-shaped to be more relevant and accessible to members, 

  • the most appropriate composition of the JMOHRF Grants Committee, 

  • what types of research applications PSWA should fund, and 

  • what researchers need and how the JMOHRF could best help them in their research journey. 

The information will be used to guide the PSWA Board in making decisions to ensure the JMOHRF remains contemporary, relevant and promotes innovation. It is expected the Board will announce the outcomes of its consultation and review in the second half  of 2023.

If you would like more information on the survey or would like to be involved at the forum, please contact the PSWA Executive Officer, Jocelyn Sisson on general@pswa.org.au. We welcome and value the input and varied perspectives of all our members.

I trust we may all enjoy the cooler Autumn weather in the South and for those up North the end of the wet.

Stay safe  

Richard

Jocelyn Sisson