SPECIAL ARTICLES Fostering and Managing Diversity in Schools of Pharmacy

Organizational benefits of diversity in the workplace have been well documented. In health professions, however, diversity-related research traditionally has focused on the effect of diversity on health care disparities. Few tools exist describing the benefits of diversity from an organizational standpoint to guide pharmacy administrators and faculty members in nurturing and developing a culture of diversity. Given the scarcity of pharmacy specific data, experience from other academic areas and national/ international diversity reports were incorporated into this manuscript to supplement the available pharmacy evidence base. This review summarizes the benefits of diversity from an academic organizational standpoint, discusses the issues administrators and faculty members must consider when developing programs, and provides guidance on best practices in fostering and managing diversity

Synthesis and evaluation of ligands for D2-like receptors: The role of common pharmacophoric groups

Arylcycloalkylamines, such as phenyl piperidines and piperazines and their arylalkyl substituents, constitute pharmacophoric groups exemplified in several antipsychotic agents. A review of previous reports indicates that arylalkyl substituents can improve the potency and selectivity of the binding affinity at D2-like receptors. In this paper, we explored the contributions of two key pharmacophoric groups, i.e., 4′-fluorobutyrophenones and 3-methyl-7-azaindole groups, to the potency and selectivity of synthesized agents at D2-like receptors. Preliminary observation of binding affinities indicates that there is little predictability of specific effects of the arylalkyl moieties but the composite structure is responsible for selectivity and potency at these receptors

Community pharmacy interventions for health promotion: effects on professional practice and health outcomes (Protocol)

This is the protocol for a review and there is no abstract. The objectives are as follows: Primary objective To assess the effectiveness of health promotion interventions in community pharmacy practice settings on pharmacy workers and pharmacy clients (including diagnosed patients) when compared to i) No treatment controls ii) Usual treatment controls iii) Other active intervention Secondary objectives To assess whether there are differences in effectiveness of health promotion interventions in community pharmacy practice settings on i) Pharmacy worker ii) Client (patient) with regard to: i) Ethnicity of patients ii) Country income level (World Bank Group 2009) iii) Extent of adverse health behaviour (defined according to national guidelines where available) iv) Type of pharmacy worker delivering the intervention (e.g. pharmacist versus pharmacist technician) v) Theoretical constructs/components and behaviour change techniques employed in the intervention vi) Costs of health car

Pharmacist services for non-hospitalised patients

We are very grateful to the Chief Scientist Office, Scottish Government, for funding this review (CZH/4/1041). The authors wish to thank the members of Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC) Group who supported this review, particularly Ms Tamara Rader and Mr Paul Miller for conducting the searches, and Ms Julia Worswick for her continued and good‐natured assistance throughout the update. We are very grateful to Dr Imran Omar for providing additional technical support. We thank Ms Caroline Burnett, Ms Andrea Fraser, Mrs Bev Smith and Ms Lynn McKenzie for their administrative and clerical support of this review. We thank the referees whose comments improved the reporting and interpretation of this review. These include: External referees: Yoon K Loke; Newton Opiyo; Internal editor: Carmel Hughes; Statistical editor: Sofia Massa; Contact editor: Gillian Leng; Managing editor: Daniela Gonçalves‐Bradley We also thank National Institute for Health Research, via Cochrane Infrastructure funding to the EPOC Group. The views and opinions expressed therein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Systematic Reviews Programme, NIHR, NHS or the Department of Health.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Assessment of the volume of seafood waste generation, utilization and management system from selected seafood processing companies in Ghana: A case study

Seafood waste has gained attention globally due to its increasing demand and negative impact on the environment. Survey work was conducted because Ghana has a significant number of commercial seafood processing industries but documentation on seafood waste is limited. The objective of this survey was to gain an insight into the volume of seafood waste generation, utilization and management system in seafood processing companies. Specifically, the study was to identify bottlenecks in the reuse of waste from seafood processing companies, quantify the seafood waste and determine the composition of the seafood waste generated. This study evaluated seafood waste from ten seafood processing companies situated in Tema, Effutu, Takoradi and Accra Metropolis in Ghana. Production and Quality Assurance managers from on-shore seafood processing companies were interviewed using a semi structured interview schedule (SSIS). These seafood processing companies have been in existence for between one to forty years. The highest proportion (40%) of the companies have been in existence for six to ten years. The companies which were in operation for a period of twenty to twenty-five years accounted for 20%. Most (80%) of these processing companies processed prawns, octopus, lobsters, grouper, catfish, whereas a minority (20%) processed tuna seafood. A majority (80%) of the surveyed processing companies did not process the waste generated. The remaining percentage occupied a production volume ranging from 10-50 tons of raw fish production. A large portion of the waste generated was from grouper (60%) with the least being tuna (11%). Survey results revealed that the companies did not process their seafood waste because of the unavailability of processing equipment and lack of knowledge on the seafood waste value-added products. Another challenge confronting seafood waste management was the absence of management policy to regulate it. It can be concluded that the 60% of the surveyed companies generated seafood waste and there is a need for steps to be taken to reduce it. The study revealed that there were no laws in Ghana that controlled the reuse of seafood waste. It is recommended that a holistic seafood waste reduction approach must be established between actors in the fishing and seafood processing sector. This study could be a driving tool to improve the seafood waste management system in Ghana