The chemist and druggist, 18/25. December 2010 (issue 6778)

C+D Awards 2011: entry now open Triple whammy Zoe Smeaton finds out how Taseen Iqbal earned three shortlistings and a win at the C+D Awards 2010, as the Community Pharmacist of the Year When Taseen Iqbal joined Modi's Pharmacy in misuse help. Taseen has played a key role Dudley, West Midlands, patients didn't know what in many of these, such as by helping to evaluate had hit them. The pharmacy went from offering a pharmacy supervised consumption services in few clinical services to being a healthcare hub for the area. the community with a new pharmacist, dedicated And the effort has been paying off, as more to his patients. services are now available and script volumes in "I've always wanted to work with people and the pharmacy have risen by 15 per cent since pharmacy was a way to do that while also being he arrived. science-related," says the C+D Community The achievements saw him shortlisted three Pharmacist of the Year 2010. And he says it is this times at the C+D Awards 2010, for Community people contact, and specifically the ability to Pharmacist of the Year as well as New Pharmacist make a difference to somebody's life, that keeps and Pharmacy Manager of the Year, him motivated. Taseen has also found time to take a clinical His favourite story is that of an 85-year-old primary care diploma. The diploma made him smoker who was finding breathing increasingly more aware of what services he could offer and difficult and was struggling even to walk to the better skills for how to give patients advice. He pharmacy. The patient didn't see the point in also works part time for the PCT. quitting smoking at his age. But Taseen didn't He believes in taking healthcare to the give up, and eventually convinced and helped community and has helped run several events, him to stop. such as those in mosques, to encourage people The patient now finds walking much easier, can from ethnic minorities to donate blood, get to the shop and back without stopping, and has And the work doesn't stop now, as Taseen has been an inspiration to other patients. been promoted to clinical services manager for It seems that this dedication to patients is the the company and will be working to improve secret to Taseen's success. This applies to service provision across the group's other everything from services to pharmacy layout. branches. For example, Taseen was responsible for steps He says healthy heart checks could be the such as moving a large gondola to open the next in line for development and another focus pharmacy up and make space for more seating will be making sure the services they have got for patients. are sustainable given the current risk of When he came to the pharmacy, it wasn't doing decommissioning. many additional or enhanced services. But since then Taseen has worked hard to develop services, Watch Taseen explain how he became C+D such as language-specific smoking cessation, Community Pharmacist of the year 2010 needle exchange, chlamydia testing and alcohol www.chemistanddruggist.co.uk/awards Taseen's 5 top tips to make your pharmacy the best 1. Scrap appointments: "We don't do organised and having some drive and appointments for things like smoking enthusiasm. Keep thinking about how you can cessation services because a lot of the time improve things rather than just accepting the patients don't come back. I always make the status quo." effort to see them there and then, even if it's only just for five minutes, otherwise you might 4. Make patients comfortable: "We used lose them." to have a big gondola in the middle of the pharmacy, but I took that out, which made the 2. Get talking: "You've got to be integrated in pharmacy feel more spacious and gave us room your local community. Collaborate with them, for more seats for patients." talk to your patients and always give them time. Brief interventions can really make a difference 5. Work with surgeries: Taseen has played an so it's worth repeated messages to people when important role in developing services within the they come in." PCT and says a vital part of this has been developing relationships with local surgeries and 3. Keep motivated: "It's all down to being telling them about services. CD AWARDS In association with •NPA National Pharmacy I Association Community Pharmacist of the Year (• ' C <• (• f» fi ^1 ^ /♦ ^ ^ Taseen Iqbal Pharmacy: Modi's Pharmacy, Dudley, West Midlands Award won: C+D Community Pharmacist of the Year 2010 Award entry: Taseen has shown a real dedication to tackling health inequalities, transforming the pharmacy's clinical services offering and boosting script volumes. What the judges said: "Taseen has provided a shining example of community-focused pharmaceutical excellence." Top award tip: "Try to get testimonials from GPs and patients as evidence that you have made a difference." Down time: Taseen does everything from jumping out of planes to half-marathons. You could be C+D Community Pharmacist of the Year 2011. Entry for the C+D Community Pharmacist of the Year 2011, sponsored byTeva UK, is now open. Co to www.chemistand druggist.co.uk/awards for full entry details, hints and tips to make your entry stand out, to enter online or to download an entry form.