EAHP General Assembly 2022 – 3 new position papers adopted and a new Vice President appointed

For the first time since the start of the pandemic, the European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP) brought together the delegates of its 35 full-member associations for an in-person General Assembly. The 52nd EAHP General Assembly took place from the 9th to the 12th of June in Brussels Belgium.

During the General Assembly, delegates received updates on EAHP’s educational activities, the core projects of the Association and current policy developments. Discussions centred around the implementation of the 44 European Statements of Hospital Pharmacy, the Common Training Framework for hospital pharmacy specialisation and the revision of the general pharmaceutical legislation.

Three position papers were adopted by EAHP’s General Assembly focusing on Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMPs), clinical trials and hazardous medicinal products. The Position Paper on Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products concentrates on the role and responsibilities of the hospital pharmacist in ATMP handling, education and training as well as the assessment of ATMPs and pharmacoeconomics. The role of the ethics committee, further improving the European clinical trial landscape, clinical trials for special populations and the role of the hospital pharmacist are covered by EAHP’s Position Paper on Clinical Trials. The Position Paper on Hazardous Medicinal Products touches on their classification, education and training needs, the role of hospital pharmacists in handling these products and the protection of healthcare workers.

The Board of Directors appointed Darija Kuruc Poje as its new Vice President. Darija Kuruc Poje works as the Head of the hospital pharmacy at the General Hospital “dr. Tomislav Bardek” in Koprivnica, Croatia. She joined EAHP’s Board of Directors in June 2021. She is a lecturer for the course on antimicrobial resistance at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Medicinal Biochemistry at the University of Zagreb. Due to her expertise, Darija Kuruc Poje became a member of the Permanent Assembly of the Medicinal Products’ Safety Committee of the Croatian National Agency for Medicinal Products and Medical Devices (HALMED) in 2020. She was also appointed by HALMED as an expert in the working group for traceability of medicines in hospitals set up by the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & HealthCare (EDQM).

The appointment of a new Vice President also meant that it was time to say goodbye to Aida Batista who had served on EAHP’s Board of Directors for the past 10 years and led the Association’s work on medicines shortages. Tjalling van der Schors was re-elected as Director of Professional Development and Petr Horák will continue to advise his colleagues until June 2023 as Immediate Past President.