Educational Opportunities

Postgraduate education opportunities include the Certificate, Diploma and Stand-alone Modules:


Postgraduate Certificate and Diploma in Psychiatric Pharmacy

Aston University, Birmingham

One-year Postgraduate Diploma in Psychiatric Therapeutics by Distance Learning

The Postgraduate Diploma in Psychiatric Therapeutics by Distance Learning was launched in May 2000. It is part-time and offered by Aston University. The entry qualification is the Postgraduate Certificate in Psychiatric Therapeutics from Aston University, plus regular access to in-patients with psychiatric illnesses and able to take part in multidisciplinary team meetings.

The aims are that:

The one year practice-based Diploma will consist of six distance-learning modules. Modules 1-3 cover professional expertise and application of knowledge and modules 4-6 are knowledge-based distance learning. The Diploma is awarded after completion of the six modules plus a pass at the final "open book" exam. The fees are available on application and subject to annual review (please phone the University for the current fees) Bursaries (£300 for Certificate and £600 for Diploma) for UKPPG members may be available upon application to the UKPPG Treasurer.

Contacts, further information, application forms etc:
Course Tutor -
Celia Feetam
Course Office
Postgraduate Certificate and Diploma in Psychiatric Therapeutics
School of Life and Health Sciences
Aston University
Aston Triangle
Birmingham B4 7ET
England
Telephone 0121 204 3954 (+44 121 204 3954)
e-mail c.l.feetam@aston.ac.uk
Certificate and Diploma details

The seventh intake for the Psychiatric Therapeutics Diploma will be in April 2005. The Course Tutor for both courses is Celia Feetam (e-mail for Certificate/Diploma c.l.feetam@aston.ac.uk), who also happens to the immediate-past UKPPG Chairman.

One-year Postgraduate Certificate in Psychiatric Therapeutics by Distance Learning

The one year certificate aims to further knowledge and understanding of psychiatry as a basis for decision-making by the psychiatric pharmacist within the multidisciplinary team.

The prices are available on application and subject to annual review. (please phone the University for the current fees).

The Certificate intake is usually in about January each year. As the certificate is now the Certificate in Psychiatric Therapeutics and is open to anyone who fulfills the admission criteria and you do not necessarily have to be a pharmacist.

Both courses have the full endorsement and support of the United Kingdom Psychiatric Pharmacy Group (UKPPG). Bursaries of £300 (certificate) and £600 (Diploma) may be available to successful candidates who are UKPPG members, on application to the UKPPG Committee, through the UKPPG Treasurer.

For further details, contact:
Penny Delaney,
Course Administrator,
Aston University,
Aston Triangle,
Birmingham B4 7ET
Tel: 0121 204 3928 (+44 121 204 3928)
Fax: 0121 359 4759
e-mail for Certificate/Diploma p.j.delaney@aston.ac.u

Guidelines for Application for a Postgraduate  Student Bursary from the UKPPG

A limited number of bursaries are available from the UKPPG to help finance students for the Certificate and Diploma in Psychiatric Pharmacy from Aston University.  Applications for funding for other relevant postgraduate courses, supported by the UKPPG, will be considered but preference will be given to the Aston courses outlined.

An application form is available from any member of the UKPPG committee or it can be down-loaded from the UKPPG website.(www.ukppg.org.uk/ukppg-bursary-application.rtf)

  1. All applicants must be current members of the UKPPG and membership numbers will be requested and checked. Preference will be given to those who have been members for twelve months or longer.
  2. The following details will be requested:
    1. Name, Job Title, Grade, Place of work with contact telephone number and address for correspondence.
    2. Details of present post held.
    3. Course applied for and perceived benefits of the course of study to the applicant and their department.
    4. Reasons for the bursary application and any additional source of funding.
    5. Any other relevant supporting information.
  3. Application forms should be returned to the UKPPG treasurer
  4. Applications meeting the above criteria will be prioritised, based on application date, need etc. and considered at the next committee meeting.
  5. Applicants will be notified in writing of the outcome. If successful, the bursary will be paid, when evidence of payment of at least half the fees in the form of a receipt from the University, has been forwarded to the Treasurer of the UKPPG.
  6. The current bursary for the Certificate in Psychiatric Pharmacy is £300 and for the Diploma is £600.
  7. Only one bursary will be awarded per applicant per course.

Mick Marven, UKPPG Treasurer, 2008

Click here for the UKPPG bursary application form as a Word document, ready to fill in and send to the Treasurer.

 

Post Graduate Certificate in Psychiatric Therapeutics from Aston University as stand-alone modules

If you are unable or unwilling to commit to the Post-Graduate Certificate in Psychiatric Therapeutics from Aston University, then this might be for you.

This year, for the first time, we are offering the six Certificate Modules as stand alone resources in a programme of Continuous Professional Development (CPD). Together they form a comprehensive introduction to the use of psychotropic medicines in psychiatry.

The first component of this programme entitled "An Introduction to Psychiatry was available from February 2008 from Penny Delaney in the Psychiatric Course Office (p.j.delaney@aston.ac.uk)

The remaining five titles will be available as they are published throughout the coming year:  
2. Underlying Principles,   
3. Schizophrenia,   
4. The Affective Disorders,   
5. Anxiety and Sleep
6. The Dementias and Related Disorders .

Each contains directed reading from the 4th Edition of the Shorter Oxford Textbook of Psychiatry (not included) together with self-assessment exercises throughout for you to test your learning and understanding. This mode of learning involves no formal assessment, no examination and allows you to proceed at your own pace. The components are stand alone (with the OTP) and may be taken in any order but we do recommend that number 2 is done before any of the following four. Each chapter of each volume may provide you with a separate on-line entry for your RPSGB CPD record

Each volume will be available at a cost of £300

Background information

This programme is aimed at pharmacists, technicians and others, working in psychiatry who do not wish or are unable to commit to a more formal postgraduate programme of study. The remaining five parts will be available as follows:

Part 2 – Underlying Principles - April 2008
Part 3 – Schizophrenia - June 2008
Part 4 - Affective Disorders – August 2008
Part 5 – Anxiety and Sleep Disorders – November 2008
Part 6 – The Dementias and Related Disorders – January 2009

Please note that all contain directed reading from the 4th Edition of the Shorter Oxford Textbook of Psychiatry to which the student should also have access. All other directed reading will be supplied.

Additionally the student is also provided with references for additional reading where appropriate but this is entirely optional.

All parts are “stand alone” and can be done in any order. However, to make best use of the information, we recommend that Parts 1 and 2 are done before any of the subsequent parts.

Every part is made up of several chapters – each of which, once completed, may form a separate on-line entry in your RPSGB CPD record.

This mode of learning involves no formal assessment and no examination; however you may test your understanding as you go along by undertaking the self-assessment exercises scattered throughout the text. Answers are provided for you at the end of each chapter.

Celia Feetam
Psychiatric Post-graduate Tutor.
Aston University
February 2008

 

 

 

 

Background to the Aston Certificate/Diploma

27 applications were received for new Postgraduate Certificate in Psychiatric Pharmacy by Distance Learning, offered from Aston University starting in January 1999. The aim of the course is to improve the student's understanding of the actions and uses of psychotropic drugs and to increase their awareness of the role of medication in the overall treatment and rehabilitation of patients with enduring mental illness. On completion of the course the student will have an increased ability to contribute to the care of psychiatric patients by evaluating the risks and benefits of medication, to monitor the outcome of treatment and to present an appraisal of the cost implications of the new therapies.

The Certificate consists of 6 modules - two are sent out each term. The printed text and associated exercises should occupy approximately 4 to 5 hours of study per week. There are two Tutor Marked Assignments per module, a multichoice questionnaire and questions surrounding a case study. At the end of the year there is an open book examination. The first is scheduled for February 2000. This will test the student's application of knowledge acquired, its application and integration as well as the use of reference sources.

With the help of Dr Sheila Handley, the course leader, and her team of psychopharmacologists at Aston we have been able to develop the syllabus to include some of the newest techniques and research methods in this specialist area of medicine and to look ahead at some of the new treatment strategies that are currently in the pipeline. Other aspects of the syllabus include the treatment of affective disorders, psychotic illness, sleep disorders and anxiety as well as the psychiatric conditions associated with the neurodegenerative disorders of old age. There will also be a section on pharmacoeconomics contributed by Professor Alain Li Wan Po who has just rejoined the department at Aston as head of postgraduate education there. This we feel will enable those who complete the course to be aware of the latest advances in neuroscience as well as having a sound clinical and economical basis for their contribution to the treatment of patients with mental illness. In addition to the team at Aston authors and editors include several well known clinical psychiatric pharmacists as well as regular publishers of scientific papers and journal articles in the specialist area of psychiatry.

This new course for Aston School of Pharmacy not only complements its other postgraduate diplomas which include a diploma in clinical pharmacy for community pharmacists but it also represents a" first" for the team there in that they have not before offered a postgraduate course entirely by distance learning. They are receiving considerable help and support in this from the department of Continuing Vocational Educational.

For specific further information about the Certificate or Diploma contact The Course Office, PG Certificate in Psychiatric Pharmacy, School of Life and Health Science, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham, B4 7ET e-mail c.l.feetam@aston.ac.uk Telephone 0121-359-3611 ex 4751.

UKPPG Treasurer Celia Feetam took up post as Course Tutor at Aston University in July 1998 and is working for the University for two days a week. Aston also have a secretary in the office 5 mornings a week to manage the Helpline etc. and in her absence there will be an answerphone.

Previously obtained qualifications from an equivalent course (i.e. de Montfort) WILL be applicable as qualification for the Aston courses.

It is planned that this Diploma programme will lead to a one year research based MSc. programme to be offered by another university with a major commitment to psychiatry. These new courses have the full support and endorsement of the current UKPPG Committee.

For details, please contact Celia by phone or e-mail address c.l.feetam@aston.ac.uk, or click here

US Board of Pharmaceutical Specialties'

As well as our UK opportunities, there is also the US Board of Pharmaceutical Specialties' Specialty Council on Psychiatric Pharmacy www.bpsweb.org.

The Board of Pharmaceutical Specialties has administered a program of advanced practice specialty certification of psychiatric pharmacists for about 4 years. To date (May 2000), over 300 pharmacists have become certified in psychiatric pharmacy - the vast majority in the US, but several in other countries. On October 7, 2000 they will be administering the BPS specialty certification and recertification exams for all our specialties: nuclear pharmacy, nutrition support pharmacy, oncology pharmacy, pharmacotherapy, and psychiatric pharmacy.

Complete information on the BPS process is in our Candidate's Guide, posted on the BPS web site. The main contact is:

Richard J. Bertin, PhD, RPh
Executive Director, Board of Pharmaceutical Specialties
2215 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20037-2985
202-223-7192; FAX 202-429-6304
rjb@mail.aphanet.org
www.bpsweb.org.
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