Hospital pharmacists association of ireland

About the HPAI Executive

HPAI members are elected to the National Executive Committee at the AGM in April. Officers including the President, are elected from the elected representatives at the first

meeting of the National Executive Committee following the AGM. Non-officer roles are assigned to those not selected as officers.

 

Sub-committees may consist of members of the National Executive and some non-Executive members. These groups work together and report to the National

Executive monthly.

 

Examples include:

 

• Education sub-committee

• Pharmacy software sub-committee

• Career structure sub-committee

 

There are 15 elected positions on the National Executive Committee. Meetings of the National Executive are held once monthly in Dublin.

Current members of the National Executive Committee:

Fionnuala Kennedy 

Deirdre Lynch 

Sarah-Jane Doyle 

Colm Devine 

Elaine Conyard 

Diarmaid Semple

Brian Rattigan   

Declan O’Sullivan            

Ciara Reddy       

Oran Quinn          

Richard Sykes

Ciara Ni Dhubhlaing   

Marianna O'Dowd

Cliona Hayden

Eamonn Henry

HPAI Past Presidents

History of the HPAI

The Hospital Pharmacists Association has it origins in the Hospital & Public Pharmacists Association formed in 1953. That organisation received a licence to negotiate as a Trade Union (under the 1941 Trade Union Act) from the then Dept of Industry and Commerce. Subsequently that association negotiated a two tier structure of Pharmacist and Assistant Pharmacist grade in hospitals and secured a 100% pay rise.  

In 1968 The HPPA assigned their negotiating licence to a large Trade Union as they were lacked the critical mass to successful attain their own goals in negotiations. In 1977 the HPPA was renamed as the  Association of Hospital Pharmacists of Ireland.

Following demand for a Career & Salary Review in 1974 a joint Working Party was established which first met in September 1976. In January of 1978 the Chemist and Druggist noted “hospital pharmacist's role is expected to receive a significant boost as a result of the report of a joint working group, currently with the Minister for Health.”  The report was finally published in October of that year.

Prior to the Working Party Report there was no definition of the role of Hospital Pharmacist and only two staff grades existed (Pharmacist and Assistant Pharmacist). Furthermore the focus of hospital pharmacists in the 1970’s was on Medicines Procurement, Dispensary services, Medicines Information (still in its developmental stage) and Training & Education.

As a result of the Working Party Report the role of the Hospital Pharmacist was defined. Furthermore a place for the Pharmacist on Hospital Committees (Drugs and Therapeutics, Infection Control) was implemented. The report also recognised the need for local and national Drug Information services and envisaged pharmacist input on national medicines pricing.

Importantly the working party recommended a new 3 tier grading structure of Pharmacist, Senior Pharmacist, and Chief Pharmacist (I or II). This is the grading structure that still applies in most Irish Hospitals.

Following the publication of the report the Association used the statutory machinery of the time (Scheme of Conciliation and Arbitration for the Civil Service) to successfully process its pay claim.