Welcome to a special edition of the School e-bulletin. We would like to take this opportunity to communicate some exciting developments to take place over the next 12 months.

As you may know, The School of Pharmacy will relocate to its new home within the Pharmacy Australia Centre of Excellence (PACE) in time for the beginning of the 2010 academic year. Next year also commemorates the Golden Jubilee of the School, which marks 50 years of pharmacy education at the University of Queensland, as well as the Centenary of UQ. Coinciding with the move to PACE will be the launch of a book which recounts the history of the school.

PACE is a unique pharmacy-focused health and medical precinct and a site of knowledge exchange that will link education to industry requirements and will allow the translation of research discoveries into positive impacts on human health. This project, to create a world-class pharmacy hub, is being realised as a result of a partnership involving the University of Queensland, the pharmacy profession, industry and the Queensland Government.

The Queensland Government demonstrated its support for the PACE project at an early stage by donating, in 2003, an ideal site – 1.7 ha adjoining the Princess Alexandra Hospital at Dutton Park. Only 4 km from the Brisbane CBD, the site is linked to the UQ St. Lucia campus by the Eleanor Schonell Bridge. The PACE precinct is being constructed in three stages. Stage 1 – a new home for the UQ School of Pharmacy – is nearing completion (practical completion date: 11th December 2009) and will be occupied by the School in early 2010.

State-of-the-art facilities, many of which will operate as shared spaces, include a 360-seat lecture theatre, a branch of the UQ Library, seminar rooms, small-group meeting rooms, pharmacy practice environments, laboratories and an alfresco cafe. The move will allow the School to significantly grow and develop and our graduates will be at the forefront of the profession, having been exposed to real-life research and industry environments throughout their chosen program.

The completion of Stage 2 construction of PACE will see the School joined by half of its new neighbours, while the full complement of researchers, clinicians, industry representatives and professional bodies will be in residence by the finalisation of Stage 3 in 2014.

The development of the PACE project aligns perfectly with the University’s mission to create a learning and discovery environment that rewards excellence, fosters openness and innovation, and encourages community engagement. The School of Pharmacy – already a national leader in pharmacy education programs and research – is ideally positioned to capitalise on the unique collaborative opportunities that PACE offers.

To mark these historic events, the school will be hosting a trio of events, beginning with the official opening of PACE in April 2010. We hope to see many of you at one or more of these events, and ask you to save these key dates in your 2010 diaries:

• School of Pharmacy Official Opening at PACE - Friday, 16 April 2010
• School of Pharmacy Golden Jubilee Gala - Saturday, 17 April 2010
• 50 years of Pharmacy Alumni Reunion - Weekend of 3-4 July 2010

Professor Nick Shaw
Head of School

Completion in Sight - PACE Phase 1

As 2010 draws closer, phase 1 of the PACE Precinct nears completion.

This part of the overall project builds a state-of-the-art School of Pharmacy and contains:

• High level research facilities
• Multiple break-out rooms for small group learning, case studies and computer assisted peer group learning
• A new, pharmacy dedicated branch of the UQ library including dynamic elearning spaces
• Alfresco Cafe facilities
• 360 seat lecture theatre equipped with state-of-the-art AV equipment
• Comfortable interactive spaces within the central core of the building
• Multiple seminar rooms

In large, the facility at this stage will provide an experience consistent with any state-of-the-art learning and research facility, and moreover, an ideal experience for Pharmacy and Health integrated education and research. Phase 1 consists of 2 buildings separated by a large open foyer space. The larger building is seven floors, and holds the core of University research, teaching and administration related to Pharmacy, with the top two floors dedicated to state of the art PC2 research facilities, providing students and staff access to advanced research facilities consistent with that of any research institute at UQ.

The lower floors nearing fit-out completion hold the newest and most advanced teaching facilities within the University, boasting integrated and wireless video systems alongside flexible learning spaces designed within a laboratory based environment, with a capacity to teach 150 students in pharmaceutical science at one time.

The ground floor of this building is currently in the final stages of completion as it transforms from a mix of grey concrete to reveal large contemporary foyer spaces, interaction rooms to host events and foster the schools connection with its students, advanced research computer laboratories designed with interactive white boards and high speed networks to facilitate the schools expansion in the teaching and research in the societal and professional use of medicines.

The second building which fronts Cornwall Street consists of four floors, with the Queensland branch of the PSA on the ground floor, lease space above and adjacent to the teaching laboratories and large 360 person lecture theatre, a wing of seminar rooms and clinical/community teaching rooms for the practice of pharmacy. These rooms provide advanced recording and playback features as well as real life exposure to current industry standards in dispensing practice of medicines. These teaching rooms can switch between community pharmacy designed rooms to a hospital bedside arrangement within minutes, allowing students to build on their experiences gained in our placement programs.

The top floor of the building incorporates a new UQ library and as such will be easily accessible to Pharmacy students and provide modern and advanced study spaces in line with the quality and design of the entire facility. The school staff, students and partners in PACE are all looking forward to the end of the year and relocating to what is revealing itself to be a new standard for Pharmacy education in Australasia.

For updates and photo galleries please visit the PACE webpage on the School of Pharmacy website

Story Courtesy:
Dr Pete Cabot
Chair of Facilities Committee
UQ School of Pharmacy

Pharmacy Research to Benefit from PACE Facilities

The imminent opening of PACE offers a unique and exciting opportunity to harness the research talents of staff and students to contribute to the development of new and improved medicines.

The increased space availability alone has allowed the planning and organisation of work areas which facilitate research activities. The extra space readily accommodates large state of the art equipment which is required to keep research at the leading edge in an increasingly competitive global environment, seeking to improve patient care and to produce the biomedical industries of the future.

The School itself can house 90 researchers and more than 100 postgraduate students. Importantly, PACE will be situated in close proximity to the Princess Alexandra Hospital and the Translational Research Institute which will employ 650 scientists when operational in 2012. This will facilitate informal interactions and formal collaboration between the large number of researchers on site.

The ‘healthcare and biotechnology’ precinct in which PACE is located is anticipated to develop over the next 5 years to accommodate 2000 researchers involved in pharmaceutical sciences, pharmacology, biotechnology and other life sciences, clinicians and pharmacy-sector businesses. The potential for joint supervision of pharmacy research students, productive research and commercialisation collaborations, access to state of the art equipment and methodologies and employment of graduating RHD students is therefore enormous. The diverse range of projects is expected to attract Research Higher Degree applications from a wide range of scientific disciplines, not only pharmacy.

PACE will be at the centre of Brisbane’s biotechnology corridor which includes other major research facilities such as the UQ Centre for Clinical Research and the Institute for Molecular Biosciences. The area is being promoted as Australia’s ‘Silicone Valley’ for medical and pharmaceutical research. Successful drug development, however, stems from excellence in a broad spectrum of activities including drug discovery, medicines development, evaluation and clinical trials to commercialisation and marketing.

The School of Pharmacy possesses research strengths in Pharmacy Education, Quality Use of Medicines, Therapeutic Targeting and Modelling and Simulation. These assets are intrinsically geared towards maximising therapeutic outcomes through best practices in medicines use, production and evaluation and will be of high value to the research institutes and businesses dedicated to improving today’s and developing tomorrow’s therapeutics and diagnostics.

For further information on Research Higher Degrees within the School of Pharmacy, please visit our website, or contact our Research & Scholarships Officer, Ms Myrtle Sahabandu on research@pharmacy.uq.edu.au.

Story Courtesy:
Associate Professor Allan Coombes
Chair of Research Committee
UQ School of Pharmacy

The Future Looks Bright for UQ Pharmacy Students

Students will experience the new state-of-the-art facilities offered within PACE, from Semester 1 2010, for all pharmacy (PHRM) courses.

All lectures will take place in the lecture theatre, which seats up to 360 people and has 2 projection screens and lecture recording facilities with full video.

We have six clinical teaching rooms for the Quality Use of Medicines courses - three dispensing labs and three counselling rooms. The dispensing labs allow every student in the room to have access to their own dispensing terminal. We are also currently investigating the inclusion of semi-automated and fully automated robotic dispensing systems in these rooms, giving students experience in the use of current and future pharmacy technology whilst maintaining an experience in a non-automated environment.

The counselling rooms each consist of a counselling space attached to the tutorial room, with the counselling space itself designed to easily switch between being a community pharmacy, a hospital ward and an office environment. A one-way window between the tutorial room and the counselling space, and full sound and video integration, will allow counselling activities to be observed without distraction by those in the tutorial room. These rooms allow us to record and review presentations and practice behaviours both in live view and recorded playback modes.

Adjacent to the clinical teaching rooms, and a foyer that contains a large open lounge space with digital signage, there are two seminar rooms. Along with the dispensing labs and counselling rooms these will function as tutorial rooms for the Social & Professional Aspects of Pharmacy and Biological Fate of Drugs streams. The seminar rooms both seat 60, but open up to create one mid-size flexible teaching space seating 120.

Course coordinators for the Dosage Form Design and Drug Discovery streams are planning new practical classes to take advantage of the three large teaching laboratories. These labs are similar in layout to the current teaching lab in Steele building, but they are much more spacious and functional and allow around 150 students to be taught in the laboratories at the same time. The labs are fitted out with a wireless digital video camera and dual projection screens so we can demonstrate techniques during the practical sessions and show live displays of experiments across the rooms.

And while you are not in classes? Well, there will be a branch of the UQ library with lots of study space, as well as numerous large seated spaces indoors and outside with wireless coverage. There will also be a large interaction space accessible to students, similar to the one you can see in the Hawken Engineering building. And of course, there will be an alfresco café.

Students in years 1 to 3 of the Bachelor of Pharmacy program will undertake their non-PHRM courses on the main St. Lucia campus. PACE is actually considered to be part of St. Lucia campus because it isn’t really very far away at all, however we are currently planning the timetable so that there shouldn’t be any need for students to walk between sites within a single day. First years should expect to spend 1 day each week at PACE, while second and third years will be at PACE for 3 days a week in semester 1 and 4 days a week in semester 2. Fourth year students will be based at PACE for all of their courses.

Story Courtesy:
Dr Kathryn Steadman
Chair of Teaching & Learning Committee
UQ School of Pharmacy

UQ Library to have PACE Presence

The UQ Library will open a magnificent new branch within the PACE precinct in early 2010.

UQ pharmacy students will benefit from the provision of Library services and access to high quality information, in a first-class learning environment.

"The new branch will also be an ideal place in which to provide resources for all UQ medical, nursing and allied health students undertaking studies and clinical placements at the Princess Alexandra Hospital" said Keith Webster, University Librarian and Director of Learning Services.

The design of the new facility has been influenced by the results of research into student use of library learning spaces. It also incorporates elements from other branches of the UQ Library that are popular with students.

The space, designed by Design Nest architects of New Farm, will be flexible, comfortable and conducive to collaborative and active learning. It will offer a range of learning spaces and consultation zones.

Manager of the Joint Princess Alexandra Hospital/UQ Library, Nicola Foxlee, said that the layout is designed to benefit students. "Our students can have all of their information needs met, easily and conveniently, at one location" she said. "This arrangement follows the successful model used at other branches, including the UQ Ipswich Library and the Biological Sciences Library at the UQ St Lucia campus."

Like these "next generation" learning spaces, the new branch will cater for diverse learning experiences.

Computers will be made available in various configurations including stand up "counter style" for quick access to check emails, "classroom mode" for teaching and self study use, and "group study mode" for students working on group projects.

The emphasis will be on flexibility. Wireless connectivity will mean that students using laptops and mobile devices can access the Internet from anywhere within the space. Two training rooms, or "eZones", will be fitted with laptops instead of the usual desktop computers to allow for more flexibility in the use of the rooms. The rooms can also be opened up to form one large room if necessary.

Casual, booth, and group seating arrangements will be installed to meet different needs. There will be four group rooms – two fitted with plasma screens – to facilitate collaborative work. Students working individually on assignments or studying for exams will have access to pleasant, quiet spaces. Glass cubicles in a set-aside quiet space will limit noise while providing a view for students.

The design will meet student demand for spaces that are aesthetically pleasing and light.

"Glass walls will provide users with views to the outside and allow visitors to see the space in use" said Ms Foxlee. The location of the Library and the glass walls will allow views across the river to St Lucia on one side and toward the city on the other.

Interesting furniture and lighting effects will make the Library a pleasant space for students. Study spaces will be built into the book shelves to allow users to work with the print collection more conveniently. But this design feature will assist with lighting the area and allow users to have views throughout the space.

In response to a frequent request for 24 hour facilities, the print collections will be able to be secured to allow students after-hours access to study facilities and computers. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), a state-of-the-art materials handling system, will be used to make borrowing and returning items efficient and convenient for students.

The new branch is sure to provide another tangible display of how the UQ Library is enhancing the student experience through the provision of excellent learning spaces.

Story Courtesy:
Ms Tanya Ziebell
UQ Library

Co-location to Nurture Links with Future Pharmacists

The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (Qld Branch) are very excited about the opportunity to move into the PACE precinct at the end of this year.

We have called the ‘Gabba’ home for over a decade but we, like the School of Pharmacy, have grown beyond our current space and relish the chance to explore the benefits that the fantastic facilities will provide the PSA (Qld) members and look forward to having a closer link to not only the school and its staff, but also more importantly the student body – our future pharmacists.

As the premier pharmacy professional organization representing all pharmacists, including employee pharmacists, community pharmacy, hospital pharmacists, pharmacy owners, academics and those working in government to name just a few, PSA see the future of the profession and its advancement in the graduates of not only UQ but all universities.

Our co-location with the largest pharmacy school in Qld allows us to have a hands-on involvement in the development of the students. We will also be able to provide valuable resources to the students, academic staff, researcher, conjoint and community practitioners on the profession and the practice standards that govern it.

The PACE precinct and its focus on the development of pharmacy practice through teaching and research provides the profession with a premier location to focus the attention of the health system on the valuable and indispensible role of pharmacists as core members of the health care team.

Story Courtesy:
Dr Lisa Nissen
President, Pharmaceutical Society of Australia - Queensland Branch

Two Alumni Make History for the School of Pharmacy

A book which recounts the history of the School of Pharmacy is due to be launched in 2010. Two of UQ’s Alumni have been commissioned to work on this special project.

The book is being compiled by Judith Nissen, historian; UQ BA (1984), PGDip Arts (1996) MA (1999) MPHA and Moya Pennell, writer; UQ BA (1983), MAICD, MPRIA.

Judith and Moya have been kept busy over the last two years researching and writing about the context within which the School was founded, documenting the establishment of the Department of Pharmacy in 1960, and tracing its evolution from a small, new Department based in George Street to a thriving School at St Lucia, and beyond to the conception and development of PACE.

The history has been drawn from a wide range of archival and visual materials, but the finished product will also include many stories and recollections from past and present staff, students and others involved with the School over five decades.

Judith and Moya have almost completed their research and will now work towards the production of the book and is expected to be published early in 2010, to coincide with the School’s relocation to the PACE Precinct.

Excerpt:

Open Day 1964: By 1964 the Pharmacy Department was on a sufficiently sound footing to be able to stage its first open day, on Friday 10 July. Head of Department James Dare outlined to the Vice-Chancellor the reasons behind the exercise, including a visit by Queensland Governor Sir Henry Abel Smith: "Ever since the Department of Pharmacy was founded, it has been my wish to arrange an Open Day on which occasion the students would give practical demonstrations in every facet of the quite complex course which an undergraduate in Pharmacy undertakes … In spite of the fact that the Department is housed in a rather scattered group of old buildings, the actual fitting and equipment of the laboratories is something in which I think we can take some pride. There are many people in the city, both Pharmacists and others, who have expressed to me a keen desire to know what is involved in our Pharmacy course and I feel that we have now arrived at a time when it would be appropriate to give such a demonstration. My intention would be to have small groups of students engaged in every practical activity at all levels of teaching in the six teaching laboratories in the Department, supported by interesting displays and with members of staff stationed in each laboratory to assist students in explaining the nature of the activities they will be engaged in. We are now in a position to demonstrate everything in relation to dispensing from the preparation of a capsule to injections. We can show all the processes of manufacture from the isolation of pure chemical substances contained in plants to the manufacture of tablets and we can demonstrate all the quality control processes used to evaluate drugs from simple, chemical analyses to the biological assay of antibiotics." Illustrations: "Pharmacy Display 10 July 1964", The Governor’s visit – Sir Henry Abel Smith (second from the left) and Professor James Dare (second from the right). Picture courtesy of Records & Archives Management Services, The University of Queensland In addition, Dare wished to use the Open Day to launch a Research Trust to raise funds which would be devoted to supporting research at the University. To that end, senior executives from the fifty or so major pharmaceutical manufacturers in Australia were invited to attend. The date was chosen carefully – a Friday in winter was felt to be particularly attractive to southern executives. After all, as Dare explained, “if they can arrange an official visit … which will permit them to stay in Queensland for a weekend on an occasion when there is some other event of interest, the probability that they will accept the invitation is very high”. Saturday 11 July was scheduled for one of the major meetings of the Brisbane horse racing carnival.

Forty-six years later the School of Pharmacy will once again host an Official Opening at the PACE Precinct in 2010.

Professor Dare’s pride in our teaching methods and facilities in 1964 have transcended through the School’s history and into our future at PACE. The School of Pharmacy thanks Judith and Moya for their dedication and hard work on this special project. If you have a story, photos or memorabilia to contribute to the School’s history book please contact Ms Stephanie Dunn via email, s.dunn@uq.edu.au, or phone (07) 3365 2034.

School Seeks to Re-connect with Past Graduates

The UQ Pharmacy Alumni Network was established in 2006, in order to re-connect with alumni and foster mutually beneficial links between graduates of the School, the University and the wider community.

2010 promises to be an exciting year for the school, with combined celebrations marking 50 years of pharmacy education at UQ, the opening of PACE and the UQ Centenary.

The Alumni Network hopes to involve all of our past graduates in the festivities, and as such, have been working hard to update our contact lists by distributing Update Details forms. If you have not yet updated your contact details, you may do so by visiting the Alumni website. Some of the benefits offered to UQ Alumni include:

• Maintain valuable links with industry, allied health professionals, community organisations, fellow alumni and UQ
• Networking with past students, staff and industry professionals through invitations to alumni functions, professional seminars and conferences
• Opportunities for professional development through invitations to continuing education courses and lectures
• Stay connected with your graduating class through reunions, social events, school newsletters and Graduate Contact magazine
• Reduced rates for library access
• Email for life
• Continued access to UQ Employment Services
• Reduced rates for internet access via UQ Connect
• Reduced rates for membership of UQ Sport
• Membership of the UQ Staff and Graduates Club

Upcoming Events

• 40 Year Reunion – 29 August 2009
• 30 Year Reunion – 26 September 2009
• 20 Year Reunion – 24 October 2009
• School of Pharmacy Golden Jubilee Gala – 17 April 2010
• 50 Years of Pharmacy at UQ Alumni Reunion – July 2010

For more information on the UQ Pharmacy Alumni Network or upcoming events, please email alumni@pharmacy.uq.edu.au.

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