COVID-19 has forced the pharmacy profession to embrace the 4th Industrial Revolution much quicker than was anticipated. The Pre-registration examinations have been no exception. Due to the national lockdown and the risks of hosting examinations at physical venues, the SAPC embraced the opportunity to fast-track the sitting of virtual examinations for interns during 2020.
The South African Pharmacy Council (SAPC) has published, for implementation, the Guidelines for registration of persons who hold a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree as pharmacist’s assistant post-basic through Board Notice 138 of 2020 in the Government Gazette, No. 43934 on 27 November 2020.
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is evolving and as such, the systems used to record CPD must evolve too. In 2020, the SAPC launched a new CPD system and encourages all interns registered in and before 2019 to complete their CPD entries on the old system as of 31 December 2020 or face losing the entries already submitted.
As of 2020, all practising pharmacists registered with the SAPC must complete Continuing Professional Development (CPD) entries online to remain designated as practising on the register of pharmacists. To ease the process and to make the CPD system more accessible to all, the SAPC has launched a Registration App for mobile devices.
