Council decisions (October 2020, February, May and July 2021)

Accreditation of the Dispensing of Medicines by Healthcare Professionals short course delivered by Health Advance Institute

Health Advance Institute has, since 2015, been accredited to provide a dispensing course. This accreditation was valid until 12 August 2020. Council, at its meeting of 14/15 October 2020, resolved that the accreditation for this institute and course be extended to the end of October 2020 to allow the processing of the new application for accreditation.

Health Advance Institute applied to be a provider of the short course: Dispensing of Medicines by Healthcare Professionals. In July 2021, Council approved the application and accreditation of this course.

Applicants with a qualification obtained outside South Africa

The Office of the Registrar receives applications from candidates with foreign qualifications who wish to be registered with Council as pharmacists and pharmacy support personnel. Applicants are required to submit supporting documents for evaluation by the Pre-registration Committee. Upon approval, applicants who have applied to be registered as pharmacists are required to write a professional examination, prior to their registration as a Pharmacist Intern.

Currently all candidates, irrespective of citizenship status, are allowed a maximum of four (4) attempts in each paper and a maximum of four (4) years from the date of approval by the Committee, to pass the professional examinations. Candidates who have supplied proof of completion of internship with the regulatory authority of their country are required to complete six months of internship. Candidates unable to provide documentary evidence of internship or if internship is not performed in their country of origin are required to complete 12 months internship.

At its meeting in October 2020, Council resolved that all applicants with foreign qualifications who wish to be registered as pharmacists in South Africa be approved to undergo six (6) months of internship if:

1. they have provided proof of internship from their country of origin and have worked as a pharmacist in their country of origin for a minimum of two (2) years; and
2. they have not provided proof of internship but, have proof that they have more than five (5) years continuous experience as a pharmacist in a community or hospital pharmacy from their country of origin.
   
   

All applicants with no proof of internship, and less than a minimum of two (2) years of experience as a pharmacist from their country of origin be required to undergo twelve (12) months of internship.

All applicants with foreign qualifications who are not South African citizens be:

1. granted four (4) attempts in each paper of the professional examination and a maximum of four (4) years from the date of approval by the Committee, to pass the professional examinations; and
2. required to attend a compulsory remediation programme with an accredited provider prior to the 3rd attempt at the professional examination.
   
   

All applicants with foreign qualifications who are South African citizens, asylum seekers and refugees be:

1. granted six (6) attempts in each paper of the professional examination within six (6) years from the date of approval by the Committee, to pass the professional examinations;
2. required to attend a compulsory remediation programme with an accredited provider prior to the 3rd attempt of the professional examination; and
3. granted a two-year cooling off period after their 6th attempt or six years as follows:
   
   • (aa) applicants must work as a pharmacy technician in a community or hospital pharmacy for two years;
   • (bb) applicant must submit six (6) CPDs and be competent in six (6) per annum; and
   • (cc) their supervising pharmacist must submit four (4) progress reports per annum.
4. granted two (2) final attempts at the professional examinations following the two-year cooling off period; and
5. permanently registered as a pharmacy technician if unsuccessful at the professional examinations following the final attempts after the cooling off period.
   
   

All applicants with foreign qualifications who wish to be registered as pharmacists in South Africa must submit a police clearance certificate from their country of origin and from the South African Police Services (SAPS) if they have been in South Africa for more than two (2) years.

During its sitting in October 2020, Council resolved that:

1. Subject to the favourable confirmation of a South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) verification certificate, Ms EC Osuala be registered as a Pharmacist Intern after successfully completing the Professional Examinations. Ms Osuala also be required to complete a minimum of six (6) months internship in an institutional or community pharmacy, and that she be required to complete the pre-registration evaluation successfully.
2. Subject to the favourable confirmation of a SAQA verification certificate, Ms MM Ramochela and Ms M Rantoa be registered as pharmacist interns after successfully completing the professional examinations. Ms Ramochela and Ms Rantoa be required to complete a minimum of twelve (12) months internship in an institutional or community pharmacy, and that they be required to complete the pre-registration evaluation successfully.
   
   

In February 2021, Council deliberated over several application made for recognition of qualifications obtained outside of South Africa. The following decisions were taken:

1. The curriculum from Altinbas University be deemed equivalent to the South African Bachelor of Pharmacy qualification, and –
   
   1. Ms NJ Rankoetseng be permitted to proceed with the process for the evaluation of her qualifications; and
   2. Mr KV Makhele be permitted to proceed with the process for the evaluation of his qualifications.
2. Ms AR Patel is not permitted to proceed with the process for the evaluation of her qualifications as the curriculum from the Maharaja Sayahirao University of Baroda is deemed not to be equivalent to the South African Bachelor of Pharmacy qualification.
3. Ms A Mishra is not permitted to proceed with the process for the evaluation of her qualifications until such a time as outstanding information regarding the curriculum from Rajasthan University of Health Sciences is supplied.
   
   

During its sitting in May 2021, Council resolved that:

1. Subject to the favourable confirmation of a SAQA verification certificate, Ms K Mohsin and Mr M Saqid be registered as pharmacist interns after successfully completing the professional examinations. That Ms Mohsin and Mr Saqid be required to complete a minimum of twelve (12) months’ internship in an institutional or community pharmacy, and be required to successfully complete the pre-registration evaluation.
   
   

During its sitting in July 2021, Council resolved that:

1. The application of Mr VS Dadi not be approved as the curriculum provided by Andhra University is deemed not to be equivalent to the South African Bachelor of Pharmacy qualification.
   
   

Maximum number of attempts for the pre-registration examination

Pharmacist Interns write an examination as part of their pre-registration evaluation prior to registration as a pharmacist for the purpose of performing pharmaceutical community service. The examination is in the form of multiple-choice questions and consists of one hundred and twenty (120) questions. There are three examinations conducted annually.

Council has not previously put a limit on the number of attempts a Pharmacist Intern may write the Pre-registration Examination, however, it has come to light that there are Pharmacist Interns who have attempted the examination up to nine (9) times without being successful.

It has therefore been decided that Pharmacist Interns be granted a maximum of seven (7) attempts at the new format Pre-registration Examination, under the following conditions:

1. a fourth (4th) attempt at the Pre-registration Examination be granted for Pharmacists Interns who have failed both the general and calculation section of the paper three times within twenty-four (24) months of first sitting at the exam or failed the supplementary examination. The Pharmacist Intern must have attended a remediation programme;
2. the fourth (4th) attempt Pre-registration Examination must comprise of the general and calculation sections according to the examination blueprint. The intern may write these sections at alternate examination sittings, however if unsuccessful in the first section of exam they cannot write the subsequent section;
3. Pharmacist Interns who fail the examination after the fourth (4th) attempt be granted a fifth (5th) attempt after attending a remediation programme. The format of the examination be written for the calculation section and oral for the general section;
4. interns unsuccessful after the 5th attempt be granted a 6th attempt after they have registered as a pharmacy technician and worked for a minimum period of six (6) months. These interns must submit three (3) CPD entries and be competent in all three (3). The supervising pharmacist must submit one (1) favourable progress report;
5. the 6th attempt pre-registration examination must comprise of the general and calculation sections according to the examination blueprint. The intern may write these sections at alternate examination sittings, however if unsuccessful in first section of exam they cannot write the subsequent section;
6. a 7th attempt at the pre-registration examination be considered for interns who have:
   
   1. worked for an additional period of six (6) months as a pharmacy technician;
   2. attended a course, for at least three (3) months, with an accredited provider. The course must include content relating to competency standards the interns are struggling with (i.e., pharmaceutical calculations; general practice), as well as examination techniques (i.e., open book examination and multiple-choice questions); and
   3. submitted three (3) CPD entries and are competent in all three (3). The supervising pharmacist must submit one (1) favourable progress report.
7. the 7th attempt pre-registration examination must comprise of the general and calculation sections according to the examination blueprint. The intern may write these sections at alternate examination sittings, however if unsuccessful in first section of exam they cannot write the subsequent section;
8. interns be granted a two-year cooling off period after their 7th attempt of the pre-registration examination and:
   
   1. they must work as a pharmacy technician for two years;
   2. they must submit six (6) CPD entries per annum and be competent in all six (6);
   3. the supervising pharmacist must submit one (1) progress report every three (3) months; and
   4. they must provide evidence of remediation.
9. the examination following the cooling off period must comprise of the general and calculation sections according to the examination blueprint. The intern may write these sections at alternate examination sittings, however if unsuccessful in first section of exam they cannot write the subsequent section;
10. interns with a foreign qualification be granted a maximum of four (4) attempts at the pre-registration examination, failing which they will be permanently registered as pharmacy technicians. Interns unsuccessful after the third attempt will be required to:
    
    1. register as a pharmacy technician and work for a minimum period of six (6) months;
    2. attend a course, for at least three (3) months, with an accredited provider and the course must include content relating to competency standards the intern is struggling with (i.e. pharmaceutical calculations; general practice), as well as examination techniques (i.e. open book examination and multiple choice questions); and
    3. submit one (1) favourable progress report.
11. a supplementary examination be considered for interns who have:
    
    1. attempted the new format of the pre-registration examination twice;
    2. passed at least one (1) section twice i.e. the general section with a subminimum of 50% or the calculation section with a subminimum of 60%;
    3. failed the general/calculation section of the examination twice;
    4. attended a remediation programme; and
    5. the supplementary examination will only cover the section of the paper the intern has failed and maintain marks as per the blueprint.
12. a supplementary examination will only be conducted once a year, in February.
    
    

Extension of payment period for pharmacists

In July 2021, Council decided that the payment period for annual fees payable to Council in terms of the Pharmacy Act for the year 2021 be extended by 2 months, as was done in the previous year considering the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to keep members of the profession registered to serve the public.

COVID-19 vaccine rollout and external storage sites

With regards to the COVID-19 vaccine rollout nationwide, Council received an application for multiple external storage areas, whereby the applicant indicated that they intend to provide fixed outreach vaccination services close to the external storage areas to avoid transporting vaccines to and from the pharmacy daily, thus establishing temporary outreach vaccination sites.

It is noted that Rule 1.8 of Rules relating to good pharmacy practice (GPP) makes provision for a pharmacy to have an external storage area. The rule states that “any storage area, which is not physically an integral part of the premises of a pharmacy, must constitute part of a pharmacy licensed by the Department of Health and recorded with Council.” Such a storage area must fall under the authority of the Responsible Pharmacist of the pharmacy of which it forms a part, and must be operated in compliance with GPP and cannot exist/operate independently of a pharmacy.

According to the National Department of Health Standard Operating Procedure for the identification, application and approval of COVID-19 vaccination sites, a temporary outreach vaccination site is defined as a place linked to a primary vaccination site where vaccination services are provided on a temporary basis. This site may not necessarily be a health establishment. Passive cold-chain containers are used, and vaccines are not stored on-site at these temporary sites.

Also according to this SOP, a fixed outreach vaccination site is a place where vaccination services are provided on a semi-permanent basis, that is not a health establishment, but which is linked to a health establishment. Fixed outreach services may store COVID-19 vaccines and other medications required to support the administration of COVID-19 vaccines on-site, in accordance with applicable legislation. The Director General: Health will issue a Section 22A(15) permit (in terms of the Medicines and Related Substances Act, 101 of 1965) to a fixed outreach vaccination site.

It was decided that fixed outreach vaccination sites or distribution sites must be linked to a pharmacy and the Responsible Pharmacist must submit an application for each external storage area. A pharmacy may have up to a maximum of five (5) external storage areas, and each area must be under the control of a pharmacist. The storage areas must be located within a reasonable geographic location to the pharmacy, i.e. be within the same province. Such external storage sites shall be approved for a period not exceeding nine (9) months.