Vietnamese and U.S. partners sign pharmacy agreement

Leaders from 6 Vietnamese pharmacy schools joined with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Pharmacy and UCSF Global Health Sciences, and the United States Pharmacopeia to sign a partnership agreement on November 12, 2005 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam to expand the role of pharmacists and pharmacies in Vietnam.

One of the group's first projects will be a study by the Vietnamese partners to quantify Vietnam's pharmacy workforce and medication dispensing sites.

At the same time, the UCSF School of Pharmacy will work with Vietnamese pharmacy school and hospital leaders on pilot projects in drug information. "The goal is to help our colleagues develop strong and sustainable ways to electronically access and to evaluate current information about drugs, so they can make the best drug choices for individual patients," says R. William Soller, PhD, executive director of the UCSF School of Pharmacy Drug Information Analysis Service and key facilitator of the partnership agreement. "This is a concrete example of the kinds of activities we have agreed to explore together."

"The partnership agreement is a symbol of how pharmacists from different countries, different cultures, and different experiences can come together around common professional goals," says Mary Anne Koda-Kimble, PharmD, dean of the UCSF School of Pharmacy.

Signing the agreement were leaders from Hanoi University of Pharmacy, the University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, Hue School of Medicine and Pharmacy, Can Tho University of Medicine-Dentistry-Pharmacy, Thai Nguyen Medical University, Tay Nguyen University, the UCSF School of Pharmacy, UCSF Global Health Sciences, and the United States Pharmacopeia. Koda-Kimble signed on behalf of the UCSF School of Pharmacy. The agreement is formally entitled the Letter of Intent to Explore Collaborative Opportunities for Expanding the Role of Pharmacists and Pharmacies in Vietnam.

From the agreement evolved a statement, entitled The VN/US Partners in Pharmacy Initiative, that presents the professional objectives and values shared by the pharmacy schools involved.

 
1. Leaders from 6 Vietnamese pharmacy schools; the School of Pharmacy and UCSF Global Health Sciences of the University of California, San Francisco; and the United States Pharmacopeia sign an agreement to work together to expand the role of pharmacists and pharmacies in Vietnam. The signing ceremony was held November 12, 2005, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

 
2. Faculty members from the School of Pharmacy, University of California, San Francisco meet with pharmacy colleagues at Children's Number 1 Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. UCSF faculty members pictured, left to right, are Steven Kayser, PharmD (blue shirt), Mary Anne Koda-Kimble, PharmD (black dress), and R. William Soller, PhD (holding black briefcase).

 
3. The Fourth Indochina Conference on Pharmaceutical Sciences was held November 11 to 13, 2005 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. More than 500 pharmacy scientists and clinicians attended from countries including Vietnam, China, Japan, Korea, Cambodia, Thailand, Austria, Greece, Korea, Japan, Singapore, and the United States.

Press announcements

• Vietnamese and US Pharmacy Leaders Agree to Work Together to Expand the Role of Pharmacists and Pharmacies in Vietnam (English)
  (PDF, 2 pages, 32 KB)
• Vietnamese and US Pharmacy Leaders Agree to Work Together to Expand the Role of Pharmacists and Pharmacies in Vietnam (Vietnamese)
  (PDF, 2 pages, 167 KB)

More information

• Letter of Intent to Explore Collaborative Opportunities for Expanding the Role of Pharmacists and Pharmacies in Vietnam (English)
  (PDF, 2 pages, 28 KB)
• Letter of Intent to Explore Collaborative Opportunities for Expanding the Role of Pharmacists and Pharmacies in Vietnam (Vietnamese)
  (PDF, 2 pages, 126 KB)
• The VN/US Partners in Pharmacy Initiative (English)
  (PDF, 1 page, 30 KB)
• The VN/US Partners in Pharmacy Initiative (Vietnamese)
  (PDF, 1 page, 130 KB)
• UCSF Global Health Sciences
• [United States Pharmacopeia Drug Quality and Information Progam—Global Assistance Initiatives][link defunct as of May 12, 2011]