[Project of continuing professional development for pharmacists supported by three public universities]

The Tokai Regional Alliance Center for Recurrent Education supported by three public universities in Tokai area executes a continuing education program for pharmacists. One of the major features of this program is that it can deliver lectures easily to pharmacists using a web conferencing system. This system enables pharmacists to attend lectures at several remote places. The program consists of two learning courses. One is a lecture series given by teachers belonging to the university or university facilities. Another course is a training series using the university equipment. This training course incorporates the contents of a new 6-year pharmacy education program. Moreover, this training course is intended to facilitate participation of pharmacists to the health care team. This continuing professional development for pharmacists will not only improve their pharmaceutical expertise, but also will provide the education necessary for pharmacists to perform well in actual medical practice. Through these efforts the continuing education of future pharmacists will be strengthened by new educational contents provided by pharmaceutical universities.