Charles Darwin University (CDU) is on track for accreditation of Pharmacy courses despite a number of recent inaccurate and misleading media reports.
Professor Carole Kayrooz, Dean of the Faculty of Education, Health and Science said CDU has every intention of offering Pharmacy next year and into the future as there has been strong demand for the program from industry, hospitals and the community.
“CDU has been teaching first year of Pharmacy as a feeder program for several years with appropriate approvals,” Professor Kayrooz said.
“Accreditation of any new full Pharmacy degree course, anywhere in Australia, is a three phase process: preliminary, provisional and full.
“Full national accreditation cannot be achieved in advance from relevant professional pharmacy authorities: indeed it requires the first group of students to complete the full program and a year’s additional practical experience.
“CDU is aiming for the next accreditation step during 2006, and we are working closely with academic experts from other universities to prepare and lodge the required documentation.
“We are also recruiting more senior Pharmacy staff to ensure that they are on board for the ‘clinical’ years of the program, scheduled to commence next year.
“We appreciate the frustrations this process may have for some. I met with students two weeks ago to explain the process further and to discuss their issues and I will continue to keep students informed with regular updates.
“CDU is committed to providing study programs of the highest standard and quality for the NT community so that students will graduate with degrees that meet the future demands of their chosen profession, in this case Pharmacy,” Professor Kayrooz said.