International International Pharmaceutical Pharmaceutical

Students’ Students’ FederationFederation

AnnualAnnualReportReport

2006-20072006-2007

Table of Contents

President’s Message 3IPSF Executive Committee 2006-07 452nd IPSF Congress 7Education and Practice 8Public Health 12IPSF Promotion 14Student Exchange Programme 15Publications 16Regional Offices 17Allied Organisations 19Acknowledgements 19

IPSF was founded in London in 1949 with eight member countries. The Federation has grownto represent over 350,000 students and young pharmacists from 68 countries worldwide. IPSFis a non-profit, non-political and non-religious volunteer organisation. It is the leading inter-national advocacy organisation for pharmacy students, promoting improved public healththrough provision of information, education, networking and a range of publications and pro-fessional initiatives. The Federation has its secretariat located with the International Pharma-ceutical Federation (FIP) in The Hague, The Netherlands. IPSF holds Official Relations with theWorld Health Organization (WHO), Operational Relations with the United Nations Educational,Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and Roster Consultative Status of the Economicand Social Council of the United Nations (UN ECOSOC)

IPSF represents pharmacy students from:

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ArmeniaAustriaAustralia Bangladesh Bosnia

-HerzegovinaBrazilBulgaria Canada CroatiaCzech RepublicDenmarkEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEstoniaFinlandFranceGermany

GhanaGreeceHaitiHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIran IrelandIsraelItalyJamaicaJapanJordanKenyaKosovo UNMIKKuwaitLatviaLithuania

Macedonia FYRMaltaMozambiqueNepalThe NetherlandsNew ZealandNigeriaNorwayPeruPolandPortugalRomaniaRwandaSerbiaSingaporeSlovakiaSloveniaSouth AfricaSpain

SudanSwedenSwitzerland TanzaniaThailandTunisiaTurkeyUnited Kingdom TheUnited States

of AmericaVietnamTaiwan, China

President’s Message

In the past 58 years IPSF has grown from eight countries to almost70 countries, and today the Federation represents more than350,000 pharmacy students and recent graduates. There have beenmany challenges and opportunities each year and 2006-07 has beenmarked with many exciting progresses and developments in thework of the Federation amongst its members and partner organi-sations.

IPSF has been granted Roster Consultative Status by the Economicand Social Council of the United Nations (UN ECOSOC) and it hasmaintained its Official Relations with the World Health Organiza-tion (WHO) and Operational Relations with the United Nations Ed-ucational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).WHO/IPSF collaboration this year was marked with a Joint State-ment on Tobacco Control, creating more internship opportunitiesfor IPSF members and developing a joint initiative on Counterfeit and Substandard Medicines.IPSF has been invited to take part in the preparation of Non-Formal Education Day in UNESCODecember 2007.

Many new agreements to strengthen collaboration with other partner organisations were signedduring the year such as with the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP), the EuropeanPharmaceutical Students’ Association (EPSA), and the International Federation of Medical Stu-dents’ Associations (IFMSA). A Joint Project with IFMSA in the Asia Pacific Region was launchedto evaluate the needs of pharmacy-medical students’ collaboration in the region. The prepa-ration of the 2nd World Healthcare Students’ Symposium (World HSS) in Portugal, November2007, together with medical and nursing students has been going well. IPSF has also activelytaken part in the Informal Forum of International Students’ Organisation (IFISO) to support itsdevelopment. A new collaboration with the Commonwealth Pharmaceutical Association (CPA)has also been discussed.

New contacts have been established during the year with the International Alliance of Patients’Organizations (IAPO), the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), and the United NationsChildren’s Fund (UNICEF). More opportunities to develop the Federation in the future havebeen created.

A new version of the fortnightly newsletter has been designed and a new website has been cre-ated; all IPSF mailing-lists will also be provided on this website. Many developments have beenmade within the Student Exchange Program to support a more extensive program. The resultsof Moving On I have been published in the journal Pharmacy Education. A new program on to-bacco control is going to be launched in the 53rd IPSF World Congress. This year, IPSF memberassociations have also been actively involved in many IPSF initiatives.

The IPSF Executive Committee is pleased to present this 2006-2007 annual report and believethat you will enjoy reading the committee’s work and dedication to the Federation.

Audrey ClarissaPresident 2006-07

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Audrey Clarissa, Indonesia President

Audrey started in IPSF as contact person of HMF ‘ars praeparandi’ ITB, In-donesia in 2004-05 and then continued to be involved actively in IPSF by be-coming Chairperson of 5th Asia Pacific Pharmaceutical Symposium (APPS) in2006. She graduated as a Bachelor of Pharmacy few months after her elec-tion as President and took one year off to serve the Federation before con-tinuing her education to be qualified as a pharmacist. Together with theexecutive, she has continued strengthening the Federation and developingnew initiatives during the year.

Georgina Gál, Hungary Secretary General

Georgina has just graduated at Semmelweis University in Budapest. Cur-rently she is working on regulatory affairs and pharmacovigilance. This hasbeen her fifth year working in IPSF, first as Student Exchange Committeemember, then as Chairperson of Student Exchange and in the last two yearsas Secretary General. Georgina’s tasks included managing databases of In-dividual Members and Honorary Life Members, reviewing the IPSF OfficialDocuments and implementing the changes voted upon by the IPSF GeneralAssembly. She also represented IPSF at the WHO Director General electionand at members’ events held during the year.

Juha Mönkäre, FinlandTreasurer and Vice President

Juha has finished his second year as IPSF Treasurer and he will continue in theposition until 2008. He also served as IPSF Vice President 2006-07. Beforeworking in IPSF Executive Juha has been the Treasurer and the IPSF ContactPerson in Finnish Pharmaceutical Students’ Association (FiPSA). Juha is finalyear master of pharmacy student and started his PhD studies at the Univer-sity of Kuopio, Finland. He has taken care of the financial administration ofIPSF in an exemplary manner and fervently contributed to other portfolios asa Vice President.

Mohamed Atef, EgyptChairperson of Public Relations

In 2005 along with his colleagues in the German University, Mohamed es-tablished a local pharmacy students' association, German University in Cairo– Scientific Pharmaceutical Students' Association (GUC-SPSA) that joined inIPSF in 2006. He has been the member of the Financial Committee in 2005-06, the national coordinator for Moving On III project in Egypt and also theintern at the IPSF Headquarters in May 2006. In addition, he has participatedin IPSF Congresses in 2005 and 2006. Mohamed is studying his 4th year atthe Faculty of Pharmacy & Biotechnology. He has actively spread IPSF spiritand got new people enthusiastic about IPSF around the world

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Zhining Goh, SingaporeChairperson of Education and Practice

Zhining attended her first IPSF Congress in Halifax, Canada in 2004. Sincethen, she was appointed Education Director for the National University ofSingapore Pharmaceutical Society for 2004-05 and IPSF Moving On II Chair for2005-06. Zhining graduated in June 2006 and was recipient of the Pharma-ceutical Society of Singapore Book Prize. She completed her licensure regis-tration in June 2007 and practices as a hospital pharmacist. As Chairpersonof Education and Practice she has led IPSF’s educational and professional ini-tiatives with dedication and to greater heights.

Anna Watson, United KingdomChairperson of Public Health

Anna first became involved in IPSF when she attended her first IPSF Con-gress in Hungary in 2002 – and she hasn’t missed a congress since! Anna hasserved as IPSF Contact Person for the British Pharmaceutical Students’ As-sociation (BPSA) in 2003-04. She has also been a member of the IPSF Devel-opment Fund Sub-Committee for three years, including holding the role ofDevelopment Fund Co-ordinator in 2005-06. Anna has been working as a hos-pital pharmacist in London since qualifying in 2004. Throughout the year shehas consolidated the four Public Health campaigns that have previously beenestablished by IPSF and brought IPSF members many more opportunities towork in the field of public health.

Annabelle McGowan, New Zealand Chairperson of Publications

Annabelle graduated from University of Otago,New Zealand with a Bachelorof Pharmacy in 2003 and since then has been working as a pharmacist notonly in New Zealand but also in Ireland. She first became involved in IPSF in2003 when she attended the IPSF Congress in Singapore and after that alsothe congresses in Germany and Australia. During the year, she has been cre-ating and developing IPSF means of communication, both in print and on-line.

Nataša Nikolic, SerbiaChairperson of Student Exchange

Nataša became involved in IPSF when she introduced to the IPSF Student Ex-change Programme in National Association of Pharmacy Students of Serbia(NAPSer). She was NAPSer Student Exchange Officer for two years and amember of Student Exchange Committee in 2005-06. She has participated inIPSF Congresses in 2005 and 2006. Nataša started this year her PhD studiesin pharmaceutical care, after she has finished this year at the Faculty ofPharmacy, Belgrade University. Nataša has further developed the Programmeto be stronger and wider.

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John Nguyen, Australia Chairperson of IPSF Asia Pacific Regional Office

John first became involved in 2003 at the Victorian College of Pharmacy,Monash University, Melbourne Australia. Prior to being elected as Chairpersonof APRO in 2006, he has been elected as a National Councillor for NAPSA Aus-tralia 2003, President of the Victorian Pharmacy Students’ Association 2004,Secretary General of IPSF APRO 2005 and Chairperson of NAPSA National Con-gress 2007. He has attended three IPSF World congresses and three IPSF AsiaPacific Symposiums from 2005. He hopes to spread the spirit of serving thestudent body which has been fun and rewarding over the last four years.

Karen McGill, The United States of AmericaChairperson of IPSF Pan American Regional Office

Karen first became active in IPSF at the 49th IPSF Congress in Singapore in2003. Since then she has attended IPSF Pan American Regional Symposia inPanama, Jamaica, Ecuador and Costa Rica and IPSF Congresses in Canada, Ger-many and Australia. Karen held various leadership positions in national organ-isations prior to being elected as the Chairperson of the IPSF Pan AmericanRegional Office from 2005 to 2007. Karen has graduated from the Purdue Uni-versity in 2006. As the Chairperson, Karen focused on membership promotionand increasing communication in the region.

Yu-Wen (Angela) Chang, Taiwan, ChinaChairperson of 53rd IPSF Congress

Angela attended her first IPSF congress in Bonn where she, along with otherdelegates from Pharmaceutical Students’ Association Taiwan (PSA-Taiwan), suc-cessfully bid to host the IPSF world congress in Taipei, Taiwan, China in 2007.She has been actively involved in student organisations and IPSF as the StudentExchange Officer for PSA-Taiwan. She is currently finishing her 3rd year of phar-macy education in National Taiwan University in Taipei. As the Chairperson ofthe Reception Committee Angela and her team will do a terrific job in organis-ing a congress that will highlight everyone’s IPSF memory.

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52nd IPSF Congress in Cairns, Australia

In July 2006 the National Australian Pharmacy Students’ Association washost to the biggest international pharmacy student event in recent his-tory, the 52nd Annual World Congress of the International PharmaceuticalStudents’ Federation (IPSF). Nearly 300 students and young pharmacistsfrom 36 countries converged in Cairns for an action-packed 10 days of ed-

ucation, networking, meetings and all-important pharmacy student festivities.

Social activities included Welcome Party, Outdoor MovieNight, International Night, IPSF Development Fund Auc-tion, Cairns Ultimate Party, as well as a traditional Aussiebarbeque and sports night and a pumped up beach party.Delegates were also able to take part in the ultimate an-tipodean experience Bungy Jumping where 120 pharmacystudents took turns to plummet off a 44 meter high jun-gle platform. The social program culminated at the stun-ning IPSF Gala Dinner.

Despite the all-night parties and early starts, everysession was very well attended. The majority of theofficial program focused on the annual IPSF GeneralAssembly and other related workshops, directed to-wards securing the future of the Federation and itsactivities.

During the traditional IPSF Patient CounsellingEvent, participants were divided into three groupsaccording to level of education and experience. Theevent was showcased in the final session of the con-gress where competition finalists demonstrated the

skill of the pharmacist in front of a live IPSF audience.

The program concluded with the IPSF PharmacySymposium, covering the topics “Clinical PracticeSkills and Pharmacy Education” and “Provision ofHealth Care in Rural and Remote Settings.” Lec-tures, workshops and discussion forums were led bynational and international experts in these fields.

The congress came to an end with an optional post-congress tour, after which participants returned totheir home countries with the opportunity to cometogether again at the next IPSF Congress in Taipei,Taiwan, China.

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Education and Practice

As mandated by the 51st IPSF General Assembly in 2005, the Executive positions of PharmacyEducation and Professional Development were merged into one – Education and Practice. IPSFbelieves that education plays an extremely important role in preparing pharmacy students forpractice and other professional activities. The Federation remains firmly committed to advo-cating and promoting quality pharmacy education and the role of the pharmacist as an integralmember of the health professional team.

IPSF Research Projects: Moving On I, II and III

Moving On, IPSF’s series of original questionnaire-based research projects continued to be a cor-nerstone initiative of the Federation. The results of Moving On I on Academic Mobility werepublished in the May 2007 issue of the journal Pharmacy Education. 162 academics from 24countries participated in the study in 2002-03.

Moving On II, the largest international study on the student learning experience and quality ofpharmacy education, concluded after two years of data collection. Nearly 5200 responses werereceived from 12 countries since July 2006, bringing the total number of data collected to beover 10000 from 30 countries. The project questionnaire was further translated into Chineseand Japanese, in addition to the Czech, German, Serbian, Spanish and Catalan versions. Finalanalysis and results publication are in progress as future project directions are under discus-sion.

Interim project results were presented at the 52nd IPSF Congress, Cairns, Australia in July 2006,at the 66th International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) Congress, Salvador Bahia, Brazil inAugust 2006 and at the 21st Federation of Asian Pharmaceutical Associations (FAPA) Congress,Yokohama, Japan in November 2006. An article comparing learning experiences across countriesand regions was submitted to the International Pharmaceutical Journal in June 2007.

The global crisis in human resources, further implicated by the Brain Drain phenomenon, ishindering healthcare delivery worldwide and is one of the World Health Organization’s (WHO)areas of focus. Moving On III is a collaborative project between IPSF, FIP and the University ofLondon School of Pharmacy to study the factors in the education and environments of pharmacystudents that influence the desire to migrate. It has potentially greater applications acrossmore disciplines to identify opportunities to improve workforce retention and development.The pilot study conducted in 2006 gathered nearly 800 responses from final year pharmacy stu-dents in nine countries. Qualitative analysis and questionnaire revision are underway and a fur-ther round of data collection is planned. 20 countries are expected to participate.

The pilot results of Moving On III were presented at the In-ternational Health Workforce Conference, Geneva, Switzer-land in March 2007 and will also be presented at the 67thFIP World Congress, Beijing, China in September 2007 aspart of a larger presentation on pharmacy migration andworkforce development. IPSF was also invited to presentthe results in relation to higher education at the 3rd Meet-ing of the UNESCO Global Forum on International QualityAssurance, Accreditation and the Recognition of Qualifica-tions, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, 13th-14th September 2007.

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IPSF and UNESCO

IPSF maintained Operational Relations with the UnitedNations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organiza-tion (UNESCO). An activity report describing the Feder-ation was submitted in August 2006 for distribution toUNESCO members and contacts, and a sexennial ques-tionnaire detailing IPSF’s contribution to UNESCO ac-tivities from 2001 to 2006 was submitted in September2006 for purpose of renewing our Non-GovernmentalOrganization (NGO) status. In addition, IPSF participated in numerous meetings at the UNESCOHeadquarters in Paris, France, including the second Global Colloquium of the Forum on HigherEducation, Knowledge and Research in November 2006 and Executive Board Meetings in Sep-tember 2006 and April 2007. IPSF is also part of the Joint Programmatic Commission on Youth(JPC on Youth) which unites international youth NGOs holding official relations with UNESCO andis currently involved in preparations for Non-Formal Education Day in December 2007.

IPSF Collaborates with FIP

Over 2006-07, IPSF continued to work closely with FIP. At the 66th FIP World Congress in Sal-vador Bahia, Brazil, August 2006, IPSF organised the annual FIP-IPSF Students’ Day on Commu-nity Practice – Advancing Patient Care. Joint sessions with the FIP Academic Pharmacy Sectionon Learning for Practice and with the Pharmacy Information Section on Counselling, Concor-dance and Communication were held. For the 67th FIP World Congress in Beijing, China in Sep-tember 2007, IPSF is pleased to have continued to work with the same FIP Sections to organisejoint sessions on Experiential Learning and Medication Reviews respectively, in addition to theFIP-IPSF Students’ Day on Social Dimensions of Developing the Pharmacy Profession. IPSF willalso co-host a Forum for Policymakers with the Community Pharmacy Section and the FIP YoungPharmacists Group to debate on upcoming trends and the future of community pharmacy. AllIPSF sessions are accredited by the Accreditation Council of Pharmacy Education (ACPE).

Collaboration with FIP extended beyond congress sessions.IPSF was pleased to have worked with the Military andEmergency Pharmacy Section to develop culture-specificpictograms to overcome communication, literacy and com-prehension barriers. Further development of this projectwill include pictogram validation within cultures and dis-ease-specific pictograms.

At the 14th International Social Pharmacy Workshop, Ox-ford, UK in July 2006, IPSF and the Pharmacy Information Section conducted a workshop on pa-tient counselling and concordance to gather international experts in the field and to initiatethe development of new guidelines on patient counselling that take the concordant approach.In addition, IPSF was invited to attend a number of meetings,such as the FIP Roundtable Consultation on Pharmacy Educa-tion held during the 66th FIP Congress in August 2006, launchof the WHO-FIP Developing Pharmacy Practice: a Focus on Pa-tient Care Handbook in Geneva, Switzerland in November2006, and the Board of Pharmaceutical Practice Meeting inthe Hague, the Netherlands in March 2007.

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Co-operation with Other Non-Governmental Organisations

In January 2007 IPSF was invited by the European Association of Faculties of Pharmacy (EAFP)to be a partner of their Pharmacy in Europe (Pharmine) thematic network project which aimsto harmonise goals, methods, quality assurance and outcomes in European pharmacy educationand thus link European university pharmacy education to potential employers and professionalbodies. IPSF looks forward to receiving more information on the project to provide input on im-proving European pharmacy education while offering an international perspective in our par-ticipation.

IPSF also established collaboration with the International Alliance of Patients’ Organizations(IAPO) and a press release was released in May 2007 to announce IPSF’s endorsement of IAPO’sDeclaration on Patient-Centred Healthcare. With this collaboration, IPSF re-affirms students asan important stakeholder of the pharmacy profession and joins FIP and their partners of theWorld Health Professionals Alliance (WHPA) in working towards improving healthcare deliveryand patient-healthcare professional relations.

Educational and Scientific Programme at IPSF Congress 2007

The IPSF Congress remains to be the keynote event of the Federation annually. In 2007, the Ed-ucation and Scientific Symposia have the themes Pharmacoeconomics and Financing in Health-care respectively. Plenary lectures by international speakers, interactive workshops and aposter exhibition are expected to be attended by hundreds of pharmacy students. The Congressprogramme also includes educational workshops to discuss on contemporary issues of interestin pharmacy and to introduce and update participants on the IPSF projects. Educational eventswere also conducted at regional symposia in the Asia-Pacific and Pan-American areas.

Training and Other Professional Development Activities

One of IPSF’s newest initiatives, Training provides an empowerment avenue for members toacquire skills on leadership, team-building, project management, presentation skills etc. Thefirst two Training sessions held at the 5th IPSF Asia Pacific Pharmaceutical Symposium (APPS),Bandung, Indonesia in June 2006 and at the 52nd IPSF Congress, Cairns, Australia in July 2006led to 30 new trainers returning to their own countries to conduct their own training work-shops to share their knowledge. The next Training will be held at the 6th APPS, Kathmandu,Nepal in July 2007. IPSF hopes to gain the support of UNESCO in the further development andimplementation of this programme.

Numerous patient counselling events, clinical skills events,Pharmacy Profession Awareness Campaigns (PPACs) and multi-disciplinary activities were conducted by IPSF membersthroughout the world to develop useful skills for pharmacistsand to make pharmacy a more recognisable profession. The FIP-IPSF Patient Counselling Booklet on Counselling, Concordanceand Communication – Innovative Education for Pharmacists,launched in August 2005, continued to be a valuable resource inthe initiation and organising of patient counselling events. Sim-ilar resources for PPAC are being developed.

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This year’s Phuture educational supplementary publication centred on thetheme Ethics. The issue featured a range of articles on science and health-care ethics by authors from various sectors of the pharmacy profession aswell as from the United Nations.

Interdisciplinary Collaboration

A research paper, A comparative analysis of international medical and pharmacy students' at-titudes towards interdisciplinary education, was submitted to the journal Medical Education forpublication in May 2007. The paper was based on the results of a research project conductedby IPSF, the International Federation of Medical Students' Associations (IFMSA) and the EuropeanPharmaceutical Students' Association (EPSA) in 2005. 530 medical students and 522 pharmacystudents from 69 countries completed the project questionnaire.

The 2nd World Healthcare Students Symposium(WHSS) will be held in Albufeira, Portugal in Novem-ber 2007, in collaboration with IFMSA, InternationalNursing Students’ Association (INSA), EPSA, EuropeanMedical Students' Association (EMSA) and EuropeanNursing Students’ Association (ENSA). The innovativeprogramme, lead by student leaders and world-renowned experts, will provide a forum for dialogueand action to remove barriers between the profes-sions by raising awareness of multidisciplinary teams, skills, partnerships and knowledge aswell as patient-centred care.

At Forum 10 of the Global Forum for Health Research, Cairo, Egypt in November 2006, IPSF,IFMSA and the Council for Health Research for Development (COHRED) hosted a discussion ses-sion on health research and capacity building to foster greater awareness of the increase infunding required to give young researchers the opportunity to gain practical experience and de-velop the necessary skills and leadership to target and strengthen research catered to addresslocal health needs. The collaboration is currently researching and creating an evaluative evi-dence base on existing youth health research programmes and the impact of mentorship/train-ing schemes on research capacity and productivity. Research findings are scheduled to bepresented at Forum 11, Beijing, China in October 2007.

Interdisciplinary collaboration is also conducted on a regional level as the Asia-Pacific RegionalOffices of IPSF and IFMSA embarked on a P-squared: Physician x Pharmacist project to promoteinterchange and collaboration between pharmacy and medical students.

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Public Health

IPSF and WHO

The first achievement in the IPSF public health portfolio for 2006-2007 was the formulation of the IPSF Three-Year Plan for Collabora-tion with the World Health Organization (WHO). This plan is importantin order for IPSF to maintain its status as a non-governmental organ-ization (NGO) in official relations with WHO. It outlines the way inwhich IPSF wishes to further develop collaboration with relevant WHOdepartments to strengthen the existing official public health cam-paigns of IPSF and also continue contributing to the work of WHO inachieving the health targets defined in the United Nations MillenniumDevelopment Goals and the WHO Global Health Agenda, including being prepared to respondwithin our membership population to events such as the establishment of a World Malaria Day,proposed by WHO.

IPSF participated in numerous meetings of WHO, including the election of the new Director-General of WHO, Dr Margaret Chan, the WHO Joint Working Group on Public Health, Innovationand Intellectual Property in December 2006, the 120th session of the WHO Executive Board inJanuary 2007, followed by the 60th World Health Assembly (WHA) in May 2007. During theWHA, IPSF together with the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations (IFMSA)made a joint intervention on tuberculosis that this is a global problem that requires not only

the engagement of each healthcare profession but also the need toprovide a multidisciplinary environment. As a partner organisation ofthe WHO-NGO Advisory Group on Health Promotion, IPSF activelytook part in organising the Advisory Group’s briefing, entitled FromVision to Action: Integrated Primary Health Care, at the 60th WHA.The outcomes of all such meetings are disseminated to our membersin the fortnightly electronic IPSF Newsletter, to ensure a greater andinformed understanding of the standing of IPSF within WHO, WHO’spolicies and programs and to encourage active participation of phar-macy students in promoting health.

The Federation is currently investigating developing a joint initiative with WHO on Counterfeitand Substandard Medicines. IPSF wishes to use such future collaboration to carry out the man-date of the IPSF General Assembly, for the Federation to find a sustainable, health-relatedproject in the field of access to medicines, through which our members can dedicate their ef-forts to benefit the populations of developing countries.

IPSF also continues to strengthen and expand the opportunities for IPSF members to undertakeinternships in the WHO headquarters in Geneva. At present, IPSF members are able to apply forinternships in the WHO Department of Medicine Policy and Standards and Department of HealthPromotion as well as the WHO Epidemic and Pandemic Alert and Response Department (work-ing on Avian Influenza). IPSF hopes to be able to finalise a further internship opportunity withthe WHO Department of HIV/AIDS in the near future as well as re-establishing places for internsto work at the Stop TB Partnership, housed in the WHO headquarters in Geneva.

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Public Health DaysAn additional and timely release of special editions of the electronic IPSF Newsletter, dedi-cated to each of the official public health campaigns of IPSF and World Health Day was a newinitiative for 2006-2007, to raise awareness of the public health calendar in our membershippopulation and encourage their involvement.

Following its launch two years ago, the IPSF Healthy Living andDiabetes campaign is gaining strength each year. World DiabetesDay is on 14th November and with the 2006 theme of “DiabetesCare for Everyone”, IPSF members were encouraged to holdevents to raise awareness of people in both developed and de-veloping countries with diabetes or at risk of developing the dis-ease. Member associations held such campaigns in countriesincluding Slovenia, Romania, Finland and Nepal.

Again, on 1st December 2006, to mark World AIDS Day, memberassociations of IPSF enthusiastically implemented AIDS Aware-ness Campaigns. IPSF members are encouraged and supportedto work in a multi-disciplinary environment, collaborating withother healthcare professionals in the fight against AIDS. Progressmade in this field was reflected in the campaign reports of mem-ber associations. For example, while Latvian and Slovenian phar-macy students held joint campaigns with medical students,Hungarian students joined forces with the Hungarian National

Public Health Service and Pluss Association (for patients diagnosed with HIV/AIDS).

IPSF member associations mark World TB Day on 24th March eachyear by organising campaigns and events in their own countries toimprove the public’s knowledge about tuberculosis (TB) preventionand treatment and promote the pharmacist’s role as a key memberof the healthcare team in improving the lives of those with TB. Thetheme for World TB Day 2007 was “TB anywhere is TB everywhere”.Examples of our members’ events include a one-day conference inRwanda, distribution of campaign materials and presentations in Armenia and campaigning onthe radio in Indonesia.

World No Tobacco Day on 31st May 2007 was marked in a very special way,by the launching of a Joint Statement on Tobacco Control by the WHO To-bacco Free Initiative and IPSF. The statement identifies that the WHO Frame-work Convention on Tobacco Control recognises the special contribution ofNGOs, such as IPSF, to tobacco control efforts nationally and internationally.It also reinforces the urge for all IPSF member associations to pursue de-fined tobacco control goals and principles. Inclusion in the statement of the

need to actively advocate 100% smoke-free environments was very relevant to this year’s WorldNo Tobacco Day theme: “Smoke-free inside: 100% smoke-free environments”.

On World Health Day, on 7th April 2007, IPSF members were encouraged to adapt the theme of“Health and Security: outbreaks and crises” to align with the health concerns of their localcommunity, in order to achieve the greatest possible impact on health. IPSF now eagerly awaitsWorld Health Day 2008, which, with the theme of “Integrating Primary Healthcare”, is likelyto be of particular relevance to pharmacists.

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IPSF Promotion

IPSF is a global international students' organisation, Ensuring good representation globally wasone of the main aims of membership promotion goals. The Federation is constantly looking for-ward to increase its representation in Middle East and North Africa, Central and Sub SaharanAfrica, and Central and Latin America. In that context the promotional action was focusing oncountries of these regions. Direct and indirect promotional activities were done through manyways such as establishing contacts with pharmacy students and pharmacy schools from poten-tial countries, updating and translating promotional material, distributing promotional kits,and even promotional trips. Through the promotional effort that has been done this year, IPSFis going to welcome more than 10 new member countries.

Active participation in members’ activities isan important way to build the communicationbetween IPSF and its members. This was donemainly through communication with contactpersons and also attending members’ events.

Throughout the year IPSF has also been pro-moted to many professional organisations atvarious meetings, workshops, conferencesand symposia. New contacts have been es-tablished and opportunities for the futurecollaboration are opened.

List of countries where IPSF has been particularly promoted in 2006-2007:

Australia AustriaBelgium BrazilCanada Costa RicaEgypt FinlandFrance IndiaIndonesia JapanJordan MalaysiaNepal New ZealandPortugal RomaniaSingapore South KoreaSwitzerland The NetherlandsUnited Kingdom United States of America

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Student Exchange Programme

Through the Student Exchange Programme (SEP) hundreds of stu-dents worldwide got opportunities to work in community, hospital,industrial, administrative or academic pharmacy in another countryin order to learn about pharmacy education, research and practiceoutside their home nations. During 2006-07, almost 700 studentsfrom 45 countries had applied for the Exchange Programme andmore than 500 of them had already been placed at present time.

This programme experienced a great progress during this year. Thisyear’s focus was on several issues such as developing stronger infrastructure in communica-tion, updating and reviewing necessary documents and improving promotion of SEP on both na-tional and international level.

SEP database was launched a few years ago and it allows the exchanges to be organised online.This year, it has been improved to facilitate the communication amongst national Student Ex-change Officers and within the whole programme. In this year one of the most innovative in-ventions was the new interactive map that will help in orientation on a world level. Exchangestudents now have more detailed information offered before choosing their preferred country.This gives a possibility for deeper analyses before decision. The database produces various sta-tistics such as how many exchanges are done between and within the regions, how many ex-changes in each field of work, and status of exchanges.

Promotional material was defined as a very important part of improvements and marketing forSEP. It comprised a designed poster and leaflet which will be accessible online.

The Asia Pacific Regional Office (APRO) of IPSF is going totake a more active role in helping and encouraging Asiancountries in the Programme. Promotion has been improvedthrough regional website.. It gives more information, stimu-lation, encouragement for Asian Student Exchange Officersand students to get more involved in the Exchange. It hasgiven positive results from the Region.

IPSF annually awards Student Exchange Programme Grantsto enable students with fewer opportunities to participate inthe Programme. In 2006-07 five applicants from Czech Re-public, Ghana and Serbia have received the grant.

Recently, new IPSF member associations from Egypt, Israel,Macedonia FYR, Sweden, South Africa and Tanzania have ac-tively joined in the Programme. This shows that the StudentExchange Programme keeps expanding to new regions andcountries involving dozens of active students. It enables hun-dreds of pharmacy students to gain unique international learn-ing and working experiences.

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Publications

Publications of all kinds are an important part of any organisation as they make the organisa-tion permanently visible to the world at large. They are widely distributed and available,archived and reviewed extensively. In the present they are invaluable tools of communicationwhich become a record of history and markers of progress for the future. This year there havebeen many changes to the publications issued by IPSF.

The IPSF News Bulletin- our main publication- has been reducedfrom two issues per year to one issue to allocate more efforts toonline publications. To compensate for the decline in frequencywe have endeavoured to increase the quality of the News Bulletinby adding extra pages and presenting articles more comprehen-sively. The result is a larger publication arranged into 9 main sec-tions: the executive, news and views, public relations, publichealth, education and practice, student exchange, reports, con-gresses and regional and allied organisations. By incorporating re-ports of member activities into all parts of the News Bulletin wehave been able to include more information regarding what ourmember associations have been doing, and to highlight the differ-ent fields in which IPSF is active world wide. The increase in thenumber of pages to the bulletin has also allowed for a much largernews and views section which is translated into all four officiallanguages of the Federation: English, Spanish, French and Arabic. This means a larger part ofthe News Bulletin is readable to a larger population of our members.

The annual Phuture educational publication this year focussed on the topic of ethics and wasdistributed as a supplement with the IPSF News Bulletin in June this year.

Aside from the News Bulletin, we have our Newsletter tomembers is distributed published fortnightly. A changeto PDF format was made to make it more user friendly.Certain newsletters have also been translated to otherlanguages so that theyit may better reach all IPSF mem-bers. IPSF also published special newsletters in conjunction with the public health days andstudent exchange programme.

While the News Bulletin is our most widely distributed pub-lication, our most widely available publication is the IPSFwebsite. The new website was redesigned by Yadabyte Ltdto include several new features and launched in July 2007to and included several new features. The main aim of theredesign was to incorporate a Content Management System(CMS) which allows the executive to readily update the con-tent of the website. The hosting and the managing of IPSFe-groups and email accounts were also enhanced. Throughthis reform we hope to keep members better informed as tothe activities of the Federation and its member associa-tions.

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May 2007, I ssue 37Print ISSN: 1024-0268 Onl ine ISSN: 1728-2926

IN T E R N AT I O N A L PH A R M A C E U T I C A L ST U D E N T S’ FE D E R AT I O N

Asia Pacific Regional Office

The Asia Pacific Regional Office (APRO) has developed further and therehave been many achievements during the year.

The 6th Asia Pacific Pharmaceutical Symposium (APPS) was the premierevent in APRO and was hosted by Forum for Pharmacy (FoP) Nepal in Kath-mandu July 2007. The theme was “Current Pharmaceutical Practice andIts Future Perspective”. The event was successful and gathered studentsfrom all over the region. The programme consisted of the Regional As-sembly, workshops, plenary lectures and colourful social events. Beforethe APPS, APRO organised second consecutive Training New Trainers pro-gram to further strengthen future student leaders from local communi-ties.

APRO has developed a five years strategic plan 2007-11 that will be used as a guide for futureRegional Working Groups to further develop and improve activities and students’ involvementin the Region.

Publications are an excellent way to connect students across theRegion. There have been major redevelopments to IPSF-APROwebsite which is the main public interface of the Regional Of-fice in an international setting. The rejuvenated design is mod-ern and fresh. A jam packed newsletter was released in February2007 with all updates of APRO activities for the preceding sixmonths. The unique and contemporary design boasted over 18articles from across the region and was distributed electronicallyto all IPSF e-groups.

In June 2007, it was decided that APRO would have more of a regional focus on student ex-change throughout the Region to help develop SEP on global basis. Ideas and planning are in mo-tion to promote SEP and bring more awareness to coordinate this large project which runs 365days per year

APRO continues to have a strong collaboration with its Asia Pacific counterpart in the Interna-tional Federation of Medical Students’ Associations (IFMSA). We have formed an Allied WorkingCommittee (AWC) with 3 appointed members from each Federation to collaborate and work to-gether on this approach to allied health.

APRO has represented the Federation in manyprofessional organisations’ meetings. APRO at-tended the World Health Organization - WesternPacific Regional Office Meeting in New Zealandand looked forward to the collaboration possi-bility in the Region. APRO hosted a student ses-sion at the Federation of Asian PharmaceuticalAssociations (FAPA) Biannual Conference in Yoko-

hama, Japan in November 2006 which discussed about the innovative future potential roles ofpharmacists. In 2006-07 APRO has established a good contact with FIP Western Pacific Phar-maceutical Forum (WPPF) and was invited as guest speaker at their Annual General Meeting inJapan November 2006.

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Pan-American Regional Office

Pan-American Regional Office (PARO) is the connective body of pharmacystudents between North, Central and South America.

The 6th Pan-American Regional Symposium (PARS) was held in San José,Costa Rica May 2007. There were a record number of participants at thisyear’s PARS with almost a hundred pharmacy students attending. The PARSOrganising Committee, now called Grupo Farmacia in Costa Rica, workedhard to develop the excellent programme, accommodations, and social ac-tivities for the participants. Bringing IPSF to Costa Rica was crucial to spark-ing interest and a desire to join the Federation. This is the first time in 20years Costa Rican students have had a pharmacy student conference. Dur-ing PARS, the student presidents and leaders at each university met to begin

forming one, national Costa Rican pharmacy student organisation. Costa Rica is planning to joinsoon in the future.

A major focus has been on communication. The newPARO newsletter will be available in August 2007.This is the first time articles about IPSF and LatinAmerica will be available in both Spanish and Eng-lish. Students from across the region have volun-teered to assist with translation and PARSdevelopment of regional committees.

Students from within the region can also have an in-ternational pen-pal. This is a way for students to learn about pharmacy, university life, and cul-ture without having to leave home. This pilot programme will be useful for understanding theneeds of students, maintaining contact, and encouraging participation in the Student ExchangeProgramme.

The main accomplishments of this year have been creating structure and resources. The newfive-year strategic plan will allow future Regional Working Group members to achieve goals formembership and participation in the Federation.

The 7th PARS will be held in Mexico in May 2008. Plans are already underway for an excitingand well-developed programme for PARS.

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Allied Organisations

Representatives of IPSF took part in two official European Phar-maceutical Students’ Association (EPSA) events, the 3rd EPSAAutumn Assembly in Vienna, Austria October 2006 and the 30thEPSA Annual Congress in The Hague, The Netherlands April2007. During the Autumn Assembly the Memorandum of Un-derstanding was signed between IPSF and EPSA to facilitatebetter collaboration in the future.

IPSF has maintained good relations with theInternational Federation of Medical Stu-dents’ Associations (IFMSA) and the Memo-randum of Understanding was signed tosupport further collaboration between thesetwo global health care students’ organisa-tions. IPSF was represented in IFMSA Train-ing the Trainers and the IFMSA March Meetingin Mandurah, Australia.

Acknowledgements

Commonwealth Pharmaceutical Association (CPA)

International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP)

School of Pharmacy, University of London

United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

World Health Organization (WHO)

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International Pharmaceutical Students’ FederationInternational Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation

P.O. BOX 84200P.O. BOX 842002508 AE Den Haag2508 AE Den Haag

The NetherlandsThe Netherlands

Tel: +31 70 302 1992Tel: +31 70 302 1992Fax: +31 70 302 1999Fax: +31 70 302 1999

E-mail: ipsf@ipsf.orgE-mail: ipsf@ipsf.orgWebsite: www.ipsf.orgWebsite: www.ipsf.org

Designed by Annabelle McGowan