GHP National Professional Committee – The Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists

Nathan Burley

President

I work in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde as a pharmacist in public health and sexual health and have a small clinical remit alongside governance roles. I advocate for service users who experience systemic difficulties in accessing seamless healthcare with a recent focus on trans healthcare issues. I understand the pressures and workforce issues that frontline staff face after much experience as a hospital pharmacist. I regularly meet with the CPO for Scotland alongside engagement with the GPhC and organisations such as the RPS and EAHP. I can always be contacted on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/NathanBurley4 or via president@ghp.org.uk

Roisίn O’Hare

Immediate Past President

I have been a clinical pharmacist and educator working in a hospital environment for over 20 years. As one of the first independent prescribers in NI, I established pharmacist-led clinics to managing CVD and now lead the NI Universities Teacher Practitioner Pharmacist Team, across hospital Trusts and Schools of Pharmacy. I’ve proudly served as President of the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists from 2019 to 2022 and represented GHP members in diverse workstreams as Inclusion and Diversity, Sustainability, Bullying and the Review of Initial Education and Training.

Greame Richardson

Professional Support

I am the Chief Pharmacist at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust and the Immediate Past President of GHP, but will be stepping down from that role at the end of June as that term of office ends. From that point, although I do not officially have a role on GHP Council, I will be remaining on Council to support the Immediate Past President and the rest of Council as we navigate through the current hiatus without a President and the Vice President.

Colin Rodden

Professional Support

For 28 years (until I retired from the NHS) I was the Regional Member and National Secretary for Scotland. I now work on the National Organising Professional Committee (NOPC) of the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists in a role supporting the Executive and the work of the Committee. Prior to retiring in 2021, I was a senior clinical trials pharmacist in Glasgow. In my clinical role, I worked on a vascular surgery ward and, previously, care of the elderly and ophthalmology.

Aamer Safdar

Chair of Education

I am an experienced pharmacist with over 25 years in the NHS. I have spent most of my career working in some of the largest NHS Trusts in the country. I am a registrant member of the GPhC council where I co-chair a post-registration assurance of practice advisory group. I was a board member for the RPS English Pharmacy Board and, before that, was on the UKCPA General Committee. I am a lay member for NHS Blood and Transplant.

Barry Melia

Chair of Sustainability

I am a Principal Pharmacist in Public Health Scotland, Scotland’s lead public health organisation. My background includes community pharmacy, academia and primary care. I completed my MPH, receiving the John Last Award. My research explored the relationship between environmental pharmaceutical pollution and prescribing activity in Scotland. With two children, I am passionate around environmental sustainability and social justice for this and future generations.

Mahendra Patel

Chair of EDI

I am pharmacist academic of national and international profile with roles in the UK, Malaysia and USA. I served the RPS as national board member and Treasurer. I am also a member of UNESCO’s Teaching Faculty and Patron of Commonwealth Pharmacy Association. My work includes improving health, health inequalities in disadvantaged communities. I am the national lead for University of one of Oxford’s Covid-19 clinical trials. I have received national and international awards including OBE in 2022.

Heather Weaver

Unite National Industrial Sector Committee

My role on the GHP executive committee is to attend the Regional Industrial Sector Committee (RISC) meetings of Unite the Union, the parent union for GHP as well as the Unite National Industrial Sector Committee (NISC) meetings representing GHP and our members. We focus on the Terms and Conditions of members including pay and pensions

Amandeep Doll

Vice Chair of EDI

Miss Amandeep Doll is our second Vice Chair of EDI on the GHP NOPC. Aman works in two roles; she is the Head of Professional Belonging at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) and she also works as a specialist clinical pharmacist in Medical Admissions at Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham. Aman has already demonstrated her commitment to EDI in her role at RPS, and she hopes to bring some of her experience to her work for our members in GHP.

Ojali Yusuff

Vice Chair of EDI

I work as a Primary Care Network and Integrated Urgent Care pharmacist in the East Midlands. I am also Independent Prescriber and currently a Health Education England Population Health Fellow. Prior to these roles, I worked in the secondary care setting as a specialist HIV and sexual health pharmacist.

I believe that representative leadership is one which is as diverse as the people it serves and I am passionate about seeing inclusive, diverse and effective leadership structures serving our profession!

Min Na Eii

Vice Chair of Sustainability for GHP

I am currently working full-time as an Advanced Pharmacist Practitioner (Acute Medicine) at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust. I also work as a bank Urgent Care NHS 111 Pharmacist at North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust. I am one of the co-founders of an environmentally conscious pharmacy group Pharmacy Declares. Soon, I will be starting my Masters in Environment & Human Health as a full-time student in Cornwall.

Callum Garner

Early Careers Pharmacist

Hi I’m Callum, the Early Careers Pharmacist for the Guild Council. In my day job I’m an Acute Med/PCN pharmacist. Also studying a Masters in Public Health alongside. Passionate about climate action and health inequalities and how medicines affect both of these issues.

Martin Pratt

Recruitment Officer

My role of GHP executive is as the Recruitment Officer. I develop strategies to increase membership to GHP and also work with Unite the Union to establish strategies to increase membership and provide member benefits. I monitor membership trends and gaps. I also attend Pharmacy conferences where necessary and ensure that supplies of GHP merchandise are created and available in order to raise the GHP profile. My day job is that of Chief Pharmacist at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, a large 900+ bedded acute trust which includes Gloucestershire Royal and Cheltenham General Hospitals. I don’t think there is an aspect of hospital pharmacy that we don’t provide, we have aseptic services through to radiopharmacy, and everything in between. Always a challenge, always different, that’s what makes it a great job.

Desmond Gourly

Member for Northern Ireland

My role on Guild Council is to represent the GHP members who work in N Ireland. I attend regular meetings of the national Guild Council and facilitate local meetings between Guild reps and activists in N Ireland. I communicate to members on national and regional GHP issues and organise networking, educational and collaborative events. I also respond to consultations and meet with key stakeholders in the profession on behalf of GHP members

Rob Connah

Member for Wales

I’m a specialist pharmacist in liaison psychiatry, working across Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board in North Wales. After completing a postgraduate diploma in clinical pharmacy, I went on to become an independent prescriber and have since established this novel role in Wales’ largest Health Board.

Pharmacists work in a highly dynamic profession and as the regional member for Wales, I am building a network to support the challenges and pressures we face daily.

If any members within this region are interested in supporting the Guild by participating in this network, then please email me at: robert.connah@unitetheunion.org

Diolch yn fawr

Alison Smith

Regional Member for the West Midlands

My roles on the GHP NOPC are as Regional Member for the West Midlands and also Joint Chair of Terms and Conditions. I represent Pharmacists at the Unite in Health West Midlands Regional Industrial Sector Committee (RISC) meetings, and also attend Unite in Health National Industrial Sector Committee (NISC) meetings, representing GHP and focusing on Terms and Conditions (including pay and pensions). It’s very important that pharmacists join a union and get involved, in order that we can access support with employment issues and that our profession is heard and represented. My day job is as Medicines Safety Officer (MSO) at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust, leading on medicines safety and governance. I am an active member of the MSO network both locally and nationally, and a longstanding member of both RPS and UKCPA. I have been a member of GHP since 1994 and became a rep in 2012. I regularly support GHP members with employment concerns and am also Vice-Chair of the Staff Side of the Trust, working with colleagues from other trade unions to consult and negotiate with managers on local workplace issues.

Hazel Kirwin

Regional Member North East and Yorkshire

I am the Regional North East and Yorkshire Member of the guild council, representing any issues occurring in the region. I am an Advanced Practitioner Pharmacist working in both Primary care and Acute Medicine at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS trust. I am a keen activist within Unite the Union and the Labour party, and I am chair of Whitley Bay Labour, the largest branch in the constituency. I am the GHP representative on the national Inclusive Pharmacy Practice Best Practice and Engagement Group. I have a built a strong local network which I use proactively to identify any areas where my support will be required.

Rameez Nawaz

Regional Member North West

I represent the GHP members who work in the North West of England. This involves ensuring that my members are informed of the work that the GHP council do (that they may find relevant) and to invite participation from GHP NW Members. It’s incredibly important for me to ensure that I am able to communicate the views of the GHP members to the council. To that end, I’m obligated to attend the relevant GHP council meetings and attend GHP or related conferences pertinent to the aims of our council and members. Due to the GHP’s close links with Unite the Union, I’m also an attendee to monthly meetings within my locality and therefore able to relay the work the GHP is doing or concerns members have. A significant area of interest for the GHP council is the promotion of BAME members’ equality and inclusivity in various pharmacist positions. Being a voice for improvement and ensuring this is upheld is at the core of the GHP’s ambitions. I (along with other council members) therefore am required to play a more active role in highlighting the difficulties being faced by BAME members. We work with several organisations and individuals (who are also prominent advocates of these issues) to push for improvements. I am also involved in the reverse reciprocal mentoring programme, where BAME NHS employees mentor senior and executive non-BAME employees. My primary care career began within a GP Federation. Part of the GHP’s work plan involves monitoring this new and developing role as well as understanding the organisational structures that pharmacists in this role may be employed within. I’m currently an NHS employed Clinical Pharmacist in Primary Care in Salford. Apart from my conventional duties, I am also involved in other projects including helping to develop the job functions for new supportive roles in primary care (for example, for pharmacy technicians).

Seema Varma

Regional Member London & Eastern

My name is Seema Varma and I’m the London & Eastern representative for the GHP. I have worked across most sectors of pharmacy, apart from industry. This gives me an appreciation of the challenges faced by pharmacists in each sector. I currently work as a PCN Pharmacist and am part of a small sub-group looking after the interests of Pharmacists in primary care. I also have an interest in EDI and have responded to consultations on this on behalf of our members and GHP. Pharmacists are at the frontline of healthcare, and were moreso during the recent pandemic. I’m also passionate about the mental wellbeing of my fellow colleagues in the daily challenges they face.

Kevin McAdam

Unite the Union Official

I am the Unite the Union Official with responsibility for the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists. I attend GHP executive meetings, providing support, assistance and backup from Unite the Union