Saint John of God Hospital, one of the leading providers of mental health treatment and care services in Ireland, has announced an official collaboration between its Pharmacy Department, and the School of Pharmacy at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI).

The Memorandum of Understanding, which was signed today, Thursday, 29 August, aims to enhance the educational opportunities available to undergraduate pharmacy students. This is the first time that the RCSI School of Pharmacy has undertaken a Memorandum of Understanding with a psychiatric teaching hospital.

The partnership will see the development of inter-professional, work-based educational initiatives between the two organisations. Clinical work placements and structured site visits will help give pharmacy students an insight into the Hospital's multi-faceted approach to the treatment of mental illness and person-centred care. The agreement will also facilitate collaborative research between the two organisations.

According to Dolores Keating, Head of Pharmacy at Saint John of God Hospital, the Memorandum is an important step forward for the Hospital: "As a teaching hospital, education is a core part of the ethos and mission of the organisation. Pharmacists have an important role to play in the delivery of high quality mental health services. I hope that this collaboration will help pharmacists support people with mental illness on their recovery journey."

Speaking at the Hospital to mark the announcement, Professor Hannah McGee, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, RCSI said: "The Pharmacy Department here at Saint John of God Hospital has established, under the leadership of Dolores Keating, a record as leading in innovation in pharmacy services and facilitating multidisciplinary care. It is with the greatest of pleasure therefore that today I sign this Memorandum of Understanding between our School of Pharmacy and this prestigious Hospital. This Memorandum will enable our undergraduate pharmacy students and interns to have more access to clinical patient care scenarios; to learn from the clinical expertise of Dolores Keating and Audrey Purcell; and to facilitate clinical research opportunities between our two institutions."

Professor McGee continued: "Today we are not only creating history, but also building on the history of our respective institutions and the vision of our founders. The principal beneficiaries of this new joint venture will be our patients and that will justify all our future endeavours together as we embark on this new journey."