Dr Catriona Bradley writes about the world’s first Pride and Progress in Pharmacy Conference
The past month has been a whirlwind. I finished my role as Executive Director of the Irish Institute of Pharmacy in March and, just weeks later, it is difficult to believe how much has happened since then. There’s plenty to share in the months ahead.
The most beautiful thing about the past month has been the deluge of kind and generous messages that I’ve received from colleagues across the profession. Hundreds of pharmacists have sent letters, cards, LinkedIn posts, text messages, voice messages, emails, and calls. It hasn’t been possible to acknowledge them all yet, but please know how grateful I am for your kindness.
As the inbox filled up, I almost missed an email from a pharmacist who took the time to share her reaction to my first column, Perfectly Imperfect. This provided valuable feedback that my writing provokes reflection for some readers. In the absence of feedback, it’s easy to assume that my words just languish in each edition of the magazine, unread or (worse) misread.
I thought it would be useful to publish this pharmacist’s email as a reminder of the core messages from Perfectly Imperfect ? especially the pull of perfectionism, guilt, and comparison, and the relief that can come from allowing ourselves some grace. I have included it here (unedited except for redaction to preserve anonymity), with permission from, and thanks to, the author. It may help you to recognise similar thought patterns.
The themes of self-compassion and belonging don’t just matter to us as individuals ? they show up in how we build teams, train students, and create healthcare environments where both patients and professionals feel safe. Last week, I had the joy of reconnecting with an old friend from Melbourne, Greg Duncan. Greg is an inspirational guy and always developing new ideas. He drives applied research in population health at Monash University as his day job and also has great hobbies. A few years ago, he set up a side-hustle project with his buddies, producing tonic water, which has now, to Greg’s surprise and delight became a rather substantial business!
As we chatted on Zoom, I wasn’t surprised to hear that he has started another significant project: Organising the world’s first Pride and Progress in Pharmacy Conference 2027 for next February in Melbourne. His energy was infectious, and I found myself looking up flights to Melbourne for February! Even from Ireland, this feels relevant. Inclusive, culturally safe care is part of everyday pharmacy practice, and the learning is transferable across settings. I asked him todoaQ&Aforme,soIcansharethe information and spread the word. I know many, within my network, who may be tempted to get involved. With involvement from inspirational pharmacists like Prof Lisa Nissen, Prof Kyle Wilby, and the fabulous Greg Duncan, it is sure to be a fun and meaningful event.
What is the Pride and Progress in Pharmacy Conference about?
The Pride and Progress in Pharmacy Conference is the world’s first LGBTQIA+- focused pharmacy conference,
organised by a volunteer collaboration of pharmacists with support and guidance from the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP). The conference brings together LGBTQIA+ pharmacists, students, educators, researchers, and allies to build a more inclusive and culturally safe future for pharmacy practice. Pride and Progress in Pharmacy will be an innovative forum for the discussion and sharing of information, resources, research, and innovative care strategies with a dual focus on both LGBTQIA+ practitioners and LGBTQIA+ patients.
Who is organising the conference?
Under FIP leadership, the conference committee comprises a group of volunteer pharmacists from diverse areas of practice, from Australia, New Zealand, US, Canada, and the UK. Conference chair, Professor Lisa Nissen from the University of Queensland, said the Pride and Progress in Pharmacy Conference will help pharmacists provide more responsive care to LGBTQIA+ patients and support LGBTQIA+ pharmacists.
“People within the LGBTQIA+ community still experience significantly poorer health outcomes in Australia and around the world compared to the general population, particularly in areas of mental health.
This is the result of direct and indirect discrimination” Prof Nissen said.
“As one of the most accessible health care providers, pharmacists are an important part of the solution, which starts with
more responsive care. The conference is an opportunity to upskill regarding the needs and preferences of this often vulnerable and under-served patient group.”
Prof Nissen said the conference will also bring together and build support structures for LGBTQIA+ pharmacists, practitioners, and allies to build professional support networks: “The Pride and Progress in Pharmacy Conference has a strong theme
Under FIP leadership, the conference committee comprises a group of volunteer pharmacists from diverse areas of practice
of inclusion. It will connect LGBTQIA+ practitioners and allies, building and strengthening support networks in what is often an isolating practice environment.”
For whom will it be relevant and who would you like to attend?
This is designed to be an inclusive event, so we welcome all participants with a commitment to inclusive and safe care.
The programme has been designed to be of interest to pharmacists, interns, and students as well as other health professionals and community members with vested interests. We welcome all members of the LGBTQIA+ community and allies to engage, share, and network. It’s an opportunity for all branches of the profession to explore innovation around teaching, research, and the practice of pharmacy in an inclusive way, which encourages diversity and strives for equity. Think stimulating presentations and discussion, expanding your ideas, meeting new people, fun while learning, all in the centre of Melbourne in summer!
Can people contribute to the conference?
We are encouraging practitioners, interns, and students from all pharmacy settings to share experience and ideas, as well as network with other people, and build supportive collaborations. It’s going to be a slightly different type of conference, so it won’t just include academic presentations.
We are inviting pharmacists, researchers, educators, students, and healthcare professionals to submit abstracts that showcase initiatives that contribute to equitable healthcare, inclusive pharmacy services, and improved patient outcomes across diverse communities. We welcome submissions from across all areas of pharmacy practice, education, research, policy, interprofessional initiatives, and workforce development that demonstrate progress toward a more inclusive and patient-centred profession. There will be the options of 20-minute oral presentations and five-minute ‘Snappy’ presentations.
This is not just for academic researchers. We see this as an opportunity to showcase innovative contributions you make to inclusive practice. This could be creative services that you offer in a pharmacy, approaches to inclusion used in practice, and many more. This is not a traditional research conference but a space where LGBTQIA+ pharmacy professionals and allies can connect, learn, and lead meaningful change in healthcare.
Presentation themes may address (but are not limited to):
- Inclusive pharmacy practice
- LGBTQIA+ health research
- Workforce culture and safety
- Public health and infectious diseases
- Gender-affirming care
- Education and curriculum innovation.
While a traditional research abstract format is more than acceptable, we are encouraging submissions to reflect the following aspects: What is known about this topic, why it matters, why did we do it? What did you do and what did the initiative involve? What were you trying to achieve with this initiative? What happened and what did we find out? What is your takeaway message?
The global call for abstracts will open shortly. Practitioners are encouraged to check the conference website for the most up-to-date information.
What will participants take away from this event?
Pride and Progress in Pharmacy will be an innovative forum for the discussion and sharing of information, resources, research, and innovative care strategies with a dual focus on both LGBTQIA+ patients and LGBTQIA+ practitioners. Importantly, it will provide the opportunity to connect and establish networks with others and gain support for practice development and innovation.
The programme focuses on evidence- based care, cultural safety, gender- affirming practice, HIV prevention, inclusive education, and workforce wellbeing and is ideal for pharmacists, technicians, educators, researchers, students, and health leaders from all pharmacy and other healthcare settings.
What support has the conference received?
A limited number of leading and progressive organisations have been invited to sponsor this activity and actively promote Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. To date, the conference has Gilead Sciences as the principal sponsor, with further financial and in-kind support from the Australian Pharmacy Council, the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia, The Pharmacy Guild of Australia, PDL (the professional indemnity organisation), Monash University, several pharmacy groups/chains, and others. The conference is organised under the guidance of FIP.
Why Melbourne?
Pride and Progress in Pharmacy is to be held at the iconic Zinc Conference Centre in Melbourne, Australia, at Federation Square, during Australia’s summer of pride events.
Melbourne has been selected as the setting for the inaugural conference, given its reputation as an excellent host city for conferences of all sizes, with strong facilities, extensive public transport, and plentiful accommodation options. Melbourne is consistently considered to be one of the world’s most liveable cities, which makes it a pleasure to visit.
FIP has experience with events there, having run the Pharmaceutical Sciences World Congress in 2014 and peripheral activity around the FIP World Congress in Brisbane in 2023. 2014 also saw the significant World AIDS Conference in Melbourne, which was warmly welcomed and had a profound impact. Melbourne is a generally inclusive and diverse city, with relatively low risk for some of the more vulnerable potential attendees.
Is it likely to be a one off or repeated event?
After the inaugural event, the plan is to conduct similar meetings every two years in various places around the world. We’d love to see a strong Irish contingent at the inaugural conference, so that we can explore future collaborations in this space. Who knows? Maybe Ireland could be a host for a future conference?
How do people find out more?
The conference will be held from 4-6 February, 2027, in Melbourne, Australia. All of the information about the conference can be found on the website at https://fip.eventsair.com/pride-and-progress-in- pharmacy-conference-2027. The website has links for people to subscribe to for updates as new information develops for this dynamic event. Contact details for the conference committee are also found there if anyone has questions about the event
Hi Catriona,
My name is <redacted>, I’m a Supervising Pharmacist in the <city name redacted> area and I wanted to reach out to say that your article ’Perfectly Imperfect’ really resonated with me. I meant to get in touch when the article was first published, but life got busy and work got busier and I’m only getting around to it now!
Your article spoke with a certain gentleness that we don’t often allow ourselves as pharmacists. We hold ourselves to relentless standards ? expected to function like machines, maintaining flawless accuracy and precision, resolving conflict, managing teams, and communicating at a high level ? all while on our feet for long
hours with little-to-no rest. I often catch myself attributing this pressure to our patients and the trust they put in our profession. At the same time, I want to be seen as competent and dependable by my colleagues, to embody this ideal of the ‘perfect’ pharmacist with effortless clinical knowledge, never needing to revert to ChatGPT. Then there’s the
quiet comparison with peers and friends moving steadily up their career paths, and the fear of falling behind sets in. Your article was the first time I allowed myself some grace and gentleness.
When I was in 3rd or 4th year in <university name redacted>, we had the opportunity to attend optional mindfulness sessions between lectures. Mindfulness? I remember the concept being alien to me. That time could be study time. Only students who struggled with their mental health needed that. And that unspoken yet powerful thought rippled through the currents of my class. Although never admitted, it quietly shaped how we valued ourselves ? productivity over presence, endurance over ease ? as if pausing to breathe was a kind of failure, rather than the very thing that might have helped us keep going.
I noticed the signs and symptoms of stress within myself embarrassingly late for a person with a pharmacy degree. I stopped sleeping well. My skin got worse. I was snacking on unhealthy treats with the excuse: “I don’t know if I’ll get a lunch break today.” I would dream of work and come in early to solve the more complex scripts without interruption. I was short- tempered and brought home my work problems to my family. So, I reduced my working hours to a nine-day fortnight instead of a full five-day working week. And rather than giving back some time to myself, the guilt and self-doubt set in. None of my friends reduced their hours. Will the locum follow up on the note I left? I’m earning less money now. What if I’m not as good at this job as I thought?
A few years ago, after a particularly bad break-up, a counsellor friend once asked me: “Why are you trying to solve such emotional problems with logic? You cannot think your way out of every difficulty. Your job as a pharmacist requires you to be a high-functioning critical thinker where your environment thrives on problem-solving. Not every problem can be solved with reasoning and rationale.”
She was trying to explain to me, in a rather tough-love format that I didn’t really appreciate at the time, that we can just let ourselves be, that not every issue can be put neatly in a box and tied with a bow. Allowing ourselves some tenderness is sometimes the only solution to a problem. Perhaps some other professions are better at adapting to such a mentality because they are trained to sit with uncertainty rather than resolve it, to witness rather than fix ? whereas I had been taught to search for answers, to close loops, to make things tangible and resolvable.
I am a perfectionist by nature and I used to wear that badge with honour and pride. And to some degree I still do. But now
I begin to question whether each task I undertake deserves 100pc of my attention and all of my effort. I have to recognise that not all of the scripts will be done by the end of the day, some of the orders will still sit there and not all conversations with patients will go as smoothly as I would wish. It was lovely to hear that I am not the only one out there whose pressure
is often self-imposed and, even if it is, we can allow ourselves some grace and humility to just do our best.
Kind regards, <name redacted>
Dr Catriona Bradley is founder and managing director of Fios & Praxis Ltd, a company providing consultancy and advisory services in the areas of healthcare delivery, workforce development, and practitioner wellbeing. She is a pharmacist, psychologist, researcher, coach, mediator and formerly worked as inaugural executive director of the Irish Institute of Pharmacy. She is particularly interested in exploring psychological concepts within pharmacy and always welcomes pharmacists’ views and comments to her column at catriona@fiospraxis.com.
