Pharmacy Professor Appointed to Provincial, National Committees

BY: .

UKZN Professor Fatima Suleman, Associate Professor in the Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Health Sciences at the Westville campus, has been appointed by the MEC for Health to serve on the KwaZulu-Natal Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee (KZN PTC) for the next three years.

The KZN PTC is responsible for advising the Head of Department and providing governance with regard to the evidence-based and cost-effective selection of medicine and related pharmaceutical products to be used in KwaZulu-Natal.

Suleman has also been appointed to two other national positions. The first is as Chairperson of the Pricing Committee, which is responsible for ensuring a transparent pricing system for medicines in the private sector. She has served as a member of this committee since 2010.

The second appointment is as a member of the Adult Expert Review Committee for the Hospital Level Essential Medicine List (EML), a committee which is responsible for the evidence-based and cost-effective selection of medicines to be used in the public sector. The review of the EML is a continuous process which is guided by evolving evidence and conditions. Suleman is to provide technical, clinical and professional contributions.

Suleman has published research in several journals and has presented at a number of national and international conferences. She will be attending the 74th International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) World Congress of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in Bangkok, Thailand.

On her appointments, Suleman said: ‘It is an honour and a privilege to be part of these committees and I look forward to a successful appointment term.’

-           Zakia Jeewa