The PJ Pod

The PJ Pod’s final episode of the year looks ahead to our editorial team’s predictions for pharmacy in 2026. What big changes are coming for the world of pharmacy — and what impact will this have on pharmacists’ day-to-day work?

We also look at the biggest stories of 2025, including a new contract that was deemed the best deal in the past decade, the ten-year health plan and the greater role that pharmacists will play in preventing ill-health within the community, as well as a government consultation on pharmacists combatting medicines shortages by being able to amend prescriptions in limited ways.

Tell us about your own predictions and join our conversation on social media using the hashtag #PJPod, or email us at: [email protected].

This episode is presented by Siobhan Chan, senior features editor, and produced by Geoff Marsh.

Thank you to Corrinne Burns, Royal Pharmaceutical Society correspondent; Graham Clews, news editor; Caitlin Killen, clinical editor; Joanna Robertson, senior clinical reporter; and Sophie Willis, investigations editor, for their contributions.

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Pfizer

Financial support was provided from Pfizer Ltd. Pfizer have provided only financial support and have had no input into the development or content of the project and associated materials.

In this episode of The PJ Pod, senior editor Alex Clabburn shares insights from a recent expert round table meeting hosted and organised by The Pharmaceutical Journal exploring how pharmacists can contribute to improved migraine care for patients.

For links to further resources and sources of support when getting started in research visit the PJ website.

Many thanks to Callum Duncan, Sandip Patel, Bethany Hill, Katy Munro, Rob Music and The Migraine Trust for their contributions and support in the production of this episode.

This programme is presented by Alex Clabburn, senior editor, research and learning and was produced by Geoff Marsh.

In this episode of The PJ Pod, senior editor Alex Clabburn shares insights from a recent expert roundtable meeting hosted and organised by The Pharmaceutical Journal, which explored how pharmacists can contribute to improved migraine care for patients.

By the end of the episode, you should be able to:

Understand how to recognise symptoms and identify patients with undiagnosed migraine;

Know which treatments are recommended for acute migraine and when preventative medications are indicated;

Understand the long-term nature of migraine and need for ongoing patient support and optimised treatments, 

Know the importance of lifestyle adjustments and headache diaries to help patients reduce their exposure to migraine triggers and frequency of attacks.

Many thanks to Callum Duncan, consultant neurologist at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Sandip Patel, Bethany Hill, a headache and facial pain clinical nurse specialist at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, Katy Munro, a senior GP headache specialist at the National Migraine Centre, Rob Music, chief executive of the Migraine Trust, and the Migraine Trust for their contributions and support in the production of this episode.

This programme is presented by Alex Clabburn, senior editor, research and learning and was produced by Geoff Marsh.

In this episode of The PJ Pod, we explore the main changes and implications for practice of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)’s chronic heart failure guidance update.

On 3 September 2025, NICE released its updated guidance on ‘Chronic heart failure in adults: diagnosis and management’.

The guidance mentions the role of pharmacy for the first time and has implications for an expanded role for primary care in managing heart failure.

The guidance makes several recommendations, including on the use of combination treatment of the four main types of treatment: angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs), beta-blockers (BBs), mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs) and sodium-glucose co-transporter-2s (SGLT2s) inhibitors — also known as the four pillars — in the early treatment of heart failure.

In this episode of The PJ Pod, clinical editor Caitlin Killen talks to Paul Wright, consultant cardiovascular pharmacist at Barts Health NHS Trust, to learn more about the guidance and its implications for practice.

This episode was produced by Geoff Marsh.

In this episode of Pharmacy Inside Jobs, senior features editor Dawn Connelly talks to Sanjay Gudimetla.

Gudimetla has worked within the pharmaceutical industry for around nine years and is currently senior medical affairs manager at Jazz Pharmaceuticals. He is also a qualified final medical signatory.

Before moving to his role within the pharmaceutical industry, Gudimetla gained his independent prescriber qualification and worked within clinical practice, including roles in community pharmacy, primary and secondary care.

Listen to this episode if you want to find out how to secure a role in the pharmaceutical industry, the diverse opportunities available and whether it is possible to achieve a work–life balance.

This episode was produced by Geoff Marsh, with editorial support from Alex Clabburn, senior editor, research and learning.

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Our new PJ Pod series — Pharmacy Inside Jobs — has been developed to inspire you to take the next step in your career. Whether you are a pharmacy student or a seasoned pharmacy professional, our goal is to provide insights into the increasingly diverse roles that exist within the profession.

In each episode, we will be joined by a guest to explore their career journey so far, with a focus on their current role and the opportunities, challenges and rewards that it brings. We will also find out which skills are needed to succeed in their role and how you could follow in their footsteps.

From rising stress to expanding clinical roles, pharmacists are facing mounting pressures.

Chronic understaffing combined with increased demand and limited resources are

compromising patient safety and leaving many pharmacists working alone or rushed.

Emotional strain is also growing, with reports of increased abuse and burnout.

Despite these challenges, pharmacists remain deeply committed to patient care — but

without meaningful support, the cracks in the system are becoming harder to ignore.

In this PJ Pod 'Spotlight' episode, interim executive editor Carlotta Eden and senior features editor Siobhan Chan unpack the results of The Pharmaceutical Journal’s latest salary and job satisfaction survey.

This episode was recorded in July 2025.

If you'd like to hear us cover any specific topics in our podcasts or have any suggestions, please contact us at [email protected]

In this episode of The PJ Pod, we look at the benefits of effective patient engagement and speak to the OPERA 2025 shortlist and joint winners, to explore some of the ways that they are working patients and the public to improve the relevance, accessibility and quality of their work.

For links to further resources and sources of support when getting started in research visit the PJ website.

Many thanks to the OPERA 2025 shortlist Qonita Anjani, Ryan Hamilton, Wallis Lau, Smita Salunke and Jennifer Stevenson the for their contributions.

This programme is presented by Alex Clabburn, senior editor, research and learning and was produced by Geoff Marsh.

Our new PJ Pod series — Pharmacy Inside Jobs — has been developed to inspire you to take the next step in your career. Whether you are a pharmacy student or a seasoned pharmacy professional, our goal is to provide insights into the increasingly diverse roles that exist within the profession.

In each episode, we will be joined by a guest to explore their career journey so far, with a focus on their current role and the opportunities, challenges and rewards that it brings. We will also find out which skills are needed to succeed in their role and how you could follow in their footsteps.

In this episode of Pharmacy Inside Jobs, senior features editor Dawn Connelly talks Gurmat Khangura, a specialist in neurodevelopmental conditions.

Khangura has more than 15 years of experience as a mental health pharmacist and is currently working within the neurodevelopmental pathway of a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service covering Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin.

He is an independent prescriber and is responsible for conducting ADHD assessments for young people and providing evidence-based interventions to support them and their families following a diagnosis. Khangura has also founded his own private practice, where he provides ADHD and autism assessments for children and adults.

This episode was produced by Geoff Marsh, with editorial support from executive editor Carolyn Wickware.

Our new PJ Pod series — Pharmacy Inside Jobs — is aimed to inspire you to take the next step in your career. Whether you are a pharmacy student or a seasoned pharmacy professional, our goal is to provide insights into the increasingly diverse roles that exist within the profession.

In each episode, we will be joined by a guest to explore their career journey so far, with a focus on their current role, and the opportunities, challenges and rewards that it brings. We will also find out what skills are needed to succeed in their role and how you could follow in their footsteps.

In this episode of Pharmacy Inside Jobs, senior features editor Dawn Connelly talks to prison pharmacist Kaniksha Aggarwal.

Aggarwal has recently founded Prison Pharmacy Connect, a platform dedicated to raising awareness of prison pharmacy professionals and sharing the lived experiences of people who have been on the receiving end of pharmacy services while in prison. She completed the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer’s Clinical Fellowship scheme in 2024 and is currently employed by Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust as an advanced pharmacist specialist working in a men’s prison.

This episode was produced by Geoff Marsh, with editorial support from executive editor Carolyn Wickware.

On the 27th of November 2024, the British Thoracic Society (BTS), National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) released joint guidance on ‘Asthma: diagnosis, monitoring and chronic asthma management’. The guidance is the first collaboration of its kind between the organisations.  

The guideline makes a number of recommendations, including a strong recommendation to stop prescribing Short-acting beta-2 agonist (SABA) inhalers without inhaled corticosteroids. While there has been a move towards this treatment regimen in recent years, this is the first recommendation of its kind in national guidance.

In this episode of The PJ Pod, Caitlin Killen, clinical editor, talks to Toby Capstick, Consultant pharmacist in respiratory medicine at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, to learn more about the guidance and its implications for practice.

Many thanks to Toby for his expertise.

This episode was produced by Geoff Marsh.

The Pharmaceutical Journal’s third analysis of MPharm awarding gap data has revealed that the percentage point difference between the proportion of white students and minority ethnic students awarded a first or 2:1 degree increased to 11 percentage points in 2021/2022 and 2022/2023.

This comes after previous analyses of the data from before and during the pandemic indicated a narrowing of the gap from 12 percentage points in 2017/2018 and 2018/2019 to 8 percentage points in 2019/2020 and 2020/2021.

In this Spotlight episode of The PJ Pod, senior features editor Dawn Connelly shares what she learned from experts about why the gap has rewidened and what pharmacy schools and other pharmacy bodies, including the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, are doing to help produce more equitable MPharm outcomes.