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Community Pharmacy Patient Safety Group welcomes new Chair

The Community Pharmacy Patient Safety Group (CPPSG) is delighted to announce the appointment of Martin Sadr-Kazemi as their new chair.

Martin Sadr-Kazemi is the Medication Safety Officer (MSO) and Deputy Superintendent Pharmacist at Rowlands Pharmacy.  He has been a member of the CPPSG since it formed 10 years ago and has contributed to a number of initiatives in that time. His career has spanned several roles in Rowlands including as Pharmacist Manager, Clinical Governance Pharmacist and Quality and Clinical Governance Manager before being recently appointed as Deputy Superintendent Pharmacist.  In his role, Martin leads on Patient Safety and Clinical Governance standards for Rowlands.   Martin also leads on the CPPSG’s work on liquid medicines and represents the Group at the National Paediatric MSO meetings and NHSE’s Pharmacy Integration Clinical Reference Group.  

After deciding not to stand as Chair for a further term, Jackie Giltrow, Head of Professional Standards and MSO at Paydens is delighted to have been elected as Vice Chair of the Group to continue to support the leadership of the CPPSG with Martin as Chair.

Since its inception, the CPPSG has played an integral role in driving the patient safety agenda forward.

During Jackie’s two-year term as Chair, the Group achieved a significant amount. They focused on improving safety around opioids and liquid medicines. They also published two video resources, Focus on Fentanyl and Focus on Methadone, alongside a range of other ‘share and learn’ and LASA materials. In addition, the Group supported the Department of Health and Social Care on topics including puberty suppressing hormones. They acted as a key collaborator to NHS England, providing feedback on numerous areas of work including the implementation of Pharmacy First. The Group also worked closely with the MHRA, SPS and NPPG on issues such as GTINs, 2D barcodes, and the standardisation of labelling for dispensed liquid medicines. ‑year term as Chair, the Group achieved a significant amount. They focused on improving safety around opioids and liquid medicines. They also published two video resources, ‑suppressing hormones. They acted as a key collaborator to NHS England, providing feedback on numerous areas of

Martin has been Vice Chair of the Group since early 2025 and is very much looking forward to building on the great work achieved in the last couple of years during Jackie’s term as Chair.

Martin said: “I am honoured to be elected as Chair of the Community Pharmacy Patient Safety Group (CPPSG). Patient safety remains a constant priority in the continually evolving landscape of community pharmacy.

The CPPSG is a key enabler for patient safety across the sector and is an essential forum for our members to discuss and take action on patient safety related issues. I would like to thank Jackie for her leadership and, in particular, for championing the development of the Group’s new video resources. These concise, engaging tools offer valuable support to pharmacy teams on key safety issues.

The CPPSG is the driving force in improving patient safety in community pharmacy open to all organisations with more than 50 members or a significant interest. I’d encourage any organisations with an interest to reach out and join our group

Having served as Vice Chair, I look forward to applying my experience to this new role and continuing to build on the Group’s important work. I am also delighted that Jackie will not only remain an active member of the Group but will continue to support the leadership of the Group as Vice Chair.”

The CPPSG formed in 2015, bringing together MSOs from community pharmacy, following an MHRA and NHSE patient safety alert.  The Group is focused on sharing and learning from dispensing incidents to embed a culture of patient safety across the entire sector.

The Group is grateful to its sponsors, Cegedim Rx, NPA Insurance, Numark and Pharmsmart, for their support, without which the vital work of this group could not continue.

ENDS

Notes to editors

  • The CPPSG was first established in 2015 following an NHS Alert which recommended community pharmacy businesses to identify a Medication Safety Officer (MSO).
  • The original 2014 NHS Alert is here. Supporting information can be found here.
  • The CPPSG provides a forum for large community pharmacy organisations (defined as 50 or more pharmacies in the MHRA alert), competitors in a commercial sense, to openly share and learn from each other when things go wrong, as well as from other sectors and industries. It is made up of the largest community pharmacy businesses, as well as organisations representing independent pharmacies and small multiples. The Group works together to consider how learning from patient safety incidents can be applied across the pharmacy network and wider NHS, and then create the opportunities and resources to do just that.
  • The MSO role is undertaken by the NPA and Numark for independent pharmacies. The Group also includes an IPA representative. 
  • MSOs took this requirement further and meet regularly to share and learn from patient safety incidents and drive improvements in patient care across community pharmacy and more widely. As part of its work, the group engages with a wide array of stakeholders including the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), NHS England (NHSE), the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS).
  • The Group have contributed to the Community Pharmacy England (CPE) discussions on the Pharmacy Quality Scheme, have helped make patient safety alerts clearer, supported the process of handling defective medicines, as well as inputting into the development of the national incident reporting system.
  • The CPPSG is sponsored by Cegedim Rx, NPA Insurance, Numark and Pharmsmart.
  • The Group is hosted and supported by the CCA.