Dear Colleagues:

This is indeed an exciting time for the pharmacy profession worldwide. The focus of the profession is increasingly shifting from the pharmaceutical product to the ultimate beneficiary of the services pharmacists provide, the patient.

As the profession endorses this patient-oriented focus, it is presented with several opportunities including:

• Reforming pharmacy curricula to be more clinical and patient-focused than product-focused;
• Expanding roles for pharmacists in new patient care settings;
• Continuing professional development (CPD) and competencies needed to ensure proficiency in the new roles pharmacists are undertaking; and
• Establishing reimbursement for clinical services provided by pharmacists.

ACCP International Clinical Pharmacist is a quarterly newsletter intended for the international clinical pharmacy community, including clinical pharmacists, educators, and administrators who oversee clinical pharmacy practice and education. The editorial mission of the newsletter is to advance clinical pharmacy by providing a forum for colleagues to learn about and discuss issues related to clinical practice development and advancement, patient-centered services, education and training of future clinical pharmacists, credentialing, and CPD.

Articles published in the newsletter will explore topics on contemporary professional and regulatory issues relevant to clinical pharmacy practice, new clinical pharmacy roles, new practice models, health technology, patient advocacy, didactic teaching and experiential training of pharmacy students and residents, pharmacy practice and educational research, and CPD.

Most fitting for the first issue of the newsletter is the article on “The Clinical Pharmacist,” in which the definition of clinical pharmacy and the competencies of a clinical pharmacist, as defined by the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP), are presented. Future issues of the newsletter will present definitions and competencies put forth by professional organizations in other parts of the world. One issue of considerable international attention is continuing education (CE) and CPD. The article on “Continuing Pharmacy Education in Japan” represents one nation’s efforts to advance CE programs for pharmacists delivering pharmaceutical care. The third article in this issue, “Board Certification of the Pharmacist Specialist,” highlights pharmacy specialties currently recognized by the Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) and international pharmacist certifications by specialty.

The editorial staff of ACCP International Clinical Pharmacist invites international pharmacists to contribute to the newsletter; indeed, for the newsletter to serve as a true platform for the exchange of information and to stimulate a rich international dialogue on topics of importance to clinical pharmacists caring for patients around the globe, such contributions are vital.

I hope you will find the articles published in this debut issue of ACCP International Clinical Pharmacist of interest and relevance to you, and I look forward to your contributions to future issues of the newsletter.

Sincerely,

Wafa Y. Dahdal, Pharm.D., BCPS (AQ Cardiology)