Meet the Advisory Board: Part One
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The Pharmacy Show is proud to be supported by an expert advisory board who help drive the development of the programme and speaker faculty. We have invited some of the most senior and innovative leaders transforming pharmacy to join this committee, ensuring we can deliver true value to all our attendees and partners.
Our advisory board is already helping us to refine the direction of the event and agenda, as well as sharing insights into how we can build out our community.
Yousaf Ahmad, Director of Medicines Optimisation and Integrated Care System (ICS) Chief Pharmacist, NHS Frimley ICS
Yousaf has worked in Pharmacy and the wider pharmaceutical industry for over 20 years. He has extensive experience within secondary care, having worked primarily in large acute health boards in Scotland and in the Middle East. He has represented pharmacy at a national level through committee memberships and chairships with UK Clinical Pharmacy Association (UKCPA) and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society bodies. Yousaf also holds several Non-executive and Board roles at various institutions, including a digital health care company and a number of peer-reviewed research houses, while also currently being a member of the governing Council at the General Pharmaceutical Council.
Yousaf is a fellow of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and he has written several research papers, with a notable writing accolade in a pharmaceutical encyclopedia that was commissioned by Elsevier. He also holds a number of postgraduates and undergraduates’ degrees in Pharmacy and Clinical Pharmacy and Healthcare Leadership.
Matt Barclay, Chief Executive Officer, Community Pharmacy Scotland
Having graduated from Strathclyde University in 1999, Matt embarked on a career in pharmacy that spans over two decades. Following his pre-registration year, he dedicated over ten years to working as a community pharmacist, gaining considerable experience in various localities. In 2008, Matt achieved independent prescriber status, leveraging this qualification to deliver hypertension services directly from his community pharmacy. During his tenure in Forth Valley, Matt served for over five years as a community pharmacy practitioner champion, actively supporting and fostering collaboration within the local pharmacy network. This engagement extended to various Health Board governance aspects, where he participated in committees such as Pharmacy Practices, APC, ADTC, and the local Primary Care Prescribing Group, acquiring valuable insights into diverse facets of healthcare.
Matt’s association with Community Pharmacy Scotland (CPS) has evolved progressively, reaching its current pinnacle with his role as the new Chief Executive Officer. However, Matt still maintains a hands-on approach, continuing to contribute as a locum pharmacist to ensure his connection to the grassroots of community pharmacy remains intact.
Vikki Furneaux, Manager, Monkbar Pharmacy
Vikki Furneaux had spent most of her career in hospital pharmacy, including commissioning and then running a £10 million aseptic suite and radiopharmacy unit, before she joined her husband and his business partner at 100-hour contract Monkbar Pharmacy in the centre of York.
After graduating from the University of Bradford back in 2005, Vikki made her career within the NHS where she gained experience of working in clinical services, managing technical services and she even had a stint working within academia at the University of Leeds too. Her switch to community pharmacy follows the time out she had whilst on maternity leave with her 3 young children. Her current focus is to forge multi-disciplinary team working between local community pharmacists, GPs and other healthcare professionals.
Leyla Hannbeck, Chief Executive Officer, Independent Pharmacies Association (IPA)
Dr Leyla Hannbeck is the CEO of Independent Pharmacies Association, representing a significant number of independent community pharmacies in England and Wales. As a pharmacist herself, Leyla is passionate about pharmacy and patient care and does a lot of advocacy work to promote the profession to the wider public, media, politicians and influence the direction of travel for the profession in the wider healthcare landscape. She is the key spokesperson for community pharmacy network and a prominent representative for the sector. Her career started in Sweden, where she conducted her studies in clinical pharmacy. Leyla moved to the UK in 2004 working her way up from pharmacist branch manager to senior management positions in the healthcare sector. She is also a Fellow of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in Great Britain.
Malcolm Harrison, Chief Executive Officer, The Company Chemists' Association (CCA)
Malcolm is the Chief Executive of the Company Chemists’ Association (CCA), the trade body for multiple pharmacies in England, Scotland and Wales. Previously Malcolm worked as part of the Walgreens Boots Alliance International Healthcare Public Affairs team. He was also a Fellow of the NHS Innovation Accelerator programme, working with NHS England and the Academic Health Science Networks to develop new ways in which innovation and technology can be brought to market at scale within the NHS.
Malcolm has been a registered pharmacist for over 25 years, having previously worked in a variety of roles within Boots UK both as a pharmacist and within retail operations. He holds a CIPR Diploma in Public Affairs and is chairman of the charity Pharmacy Research UK.
Alison Hemsworth, Independent Consultant | Founder, Pharmacy Technicians International
Alison has had a unique and varied career which started in hospital pharmacy. However, most of her career has been dedicated to the commissioning and development of community pharmacy in England. Whilst working in the NHS, she led on many high-profile national projects relating to community pharmacy – the most notable one being the introduction of the Community Pharmacy Seasonal Flu Vaccination Service.
Alison is an Honorary Visiting Senior Fellow in Pharmacy Policy at the University of Bradford and serves as a member of the School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences External Advisory Board. In addition to professional qualifications, Alison has been a finalist in both the Women in the City Future Leaders Award and similarly the Association of Pharmacy Technicians UK (APTUK) Leadership Award.
Alison’s most recent achievement is being the founder of Pharmacy Technicians International.
Gareth Jones, Director of External and Corporate Affairs, National Pharmacy Association (NPA)
Gareth is the Director of External and Corporate Affairs at the NPA, and leads the policy, public affairs and governance functions within the Association. On behalf of NPA members he works with government, regulatory, representative, industry and patient representative bodies. He liaises with pharmacy associations across the world through the NPA's membership of the European (PGEU) and global (World Pharmacy Council) organisations.
And that concludes part one of our announcements. Stay tuned for the second instalment of our Advisory Board announcements…
With 2025 planning in motion, we are actively calling on all our Pharmacy Show community to help us deliver a year filled to the brim with high quality educational content. If you would like to speak at the show or contribute to future newsletters, please get in touch at b.ridley@closerstillmedia.com.
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