Foundation Pharmacist Framework

We have led the development and publication of a revised RPS foundation pharmacist framework.

Download the framework

A collaborative framework for the future

The RPS foundation pharmacist framework has been produced as a result of a collaborative exercise to investigate the roles of foundation pharmacists both currently and over the next five years. 

More than 800 responses were received from across the sector and used to inform this work. analysis of the data identified nine attributes, each represented by several descriptors.

FoundationWheel

The outputs of the role analysis, defined in the framework, are evidence based and meet the needs of the future workforce and patients. The framework will inform the development of the curriculum and national assessment for Foundation Pharmacists.

The framework has been designed to align with the RPS Advanced Pharmacy Framework, supporting seamless career development through Foundation to Advanced stages. 

The RPS is committed to supporting the development of a national Foundation programme for pharmacists

We need to support and invest in newly qualified pharmacists, to ensure a future workforce that can meet the ambitious government policies across the UK and see pharmacists providing increasingly complex clinical care across a broad range of settings. 

To achieve this:

  1. We need to establish a standardised approach to training for all pharmacists across the UK
  2. We need to develop the workforce to meet future NHS service needs and deliver improved patient care
  3. We need to create a more sustainable training system.

Pharmacist Training Model

Framework PharmacistTrainingModel

To develop a national foundation curriculum and assessment programme:

  • The RPS Foundation Pharmacist Framework will be used as the springboard for developing a UK Foundation Pharmacist curriculum
  • The curriculum will place patient safety and service needs at its heart and define the expected knowledge, levels of performance, as well as the breadth of experience required to meet the learning outcomes of Foundation Training
  • The curriculum will be designed for training providers to develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours in pharmacists so they can demonstrate the capabilities defined in the RPS Foundation Pharmacist Framework
  • A UK team will work together to utilise existing curricula and to identify existing good practice in curriculum development. A new UK curriculum will be developed by Spring 2021 and will inform the design and delivery of future foundation programmes across the UK.