On International Women’s Day, we are delighted to bring you a message from Dr Catherine Duggan, Chief Executive Officer, International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP)
What a privilege it is to be the CEO of FIP, with such a remit and role and with such teams of volunteers, officers and passionate professionals who champion pharmacy at every stage.
When I was appointed, I found myself proud and sobered by being the first female CEO of the Federation and, since then, have understood more and more that we must empower, support and enable all in our profession to have the opportunity to be the best they can be and that sometimes (sometimes) to use the being ‘’first’’ as something as a way to create paths for others. For me, that will be for other women in pharmacy, but must never be limited to this.
Following the past two years, the global pandemic has pulled us together in many ways but also sharply contrasted the inequities and inequalities across our globe. The FIP vision for a world where everyone can access safe, affordable and effective medicines, this is a priority. For me personally, seeing inequity and inequality across our nations weighs heavily on my shoulder.
As we expanded the FIP workforce development goals to include all areas of practice and endeavour across pharmacy in 2020, we sought to expand the focus of Development Goal 10 (DG-10) from gender equity and equality in the pharmacy workforce to include all elements of equity / inequity we saw in sharp focus during the pandemic, our DG now encompasses equity around age, gender, socio economic status, co morbidities, ethnicity, access. As we find ourselves in a fresh time of conflict, I am also reminded that many conflicts and wars and injustice carries on unnoticed, forgotten, dismissed and that the mantra for equity for all needs to be on all the lips of all- women and men. Uniting around this mantra is an ethical and professional imperative. A good reflection for IWD 2022 and with a positive note to consider in these times, I am delighted to wish everyone at GHP a very Happy International Women’s Day 2022- here’s to a great IWD for all in GHP…..
Thanks a million.
