Age Related Medicines

Biopharmaceutics

Biotherapeutics and Vaccines

Inhalation

Material Science

Microbiology and Anti-infectives

Nanomedicines

New Scientists

Parenterals

Pharmacognosy

Process Engineering and Product Formulation

Regulatory

Skin Forum

Students Association

Age Related Medicines Focus Group

Focus Group Chair

Contact Mine

Dr Mine Orlu-Gul

Dr Mine Orlu Gul is a pharmacist. She graduated from Istanbul University, Faculty of Pharmacy. She received her MSc on the subject of colon targeted microspheres in 2003, followed by a PhD about fluorescently-labeled nanoparticles and their interaction with lung cells in 2008 from Istanbul University, Faculty of Pharmacy. During her PhD studies, she held a 1-year visiting scientist post at King`s College London funded by Marie Curie Host Fellowship for Early Stage Training in the 6th Framework Programme of the European Commission. In respect to this, she was awarded an additional professional qualification, Euro-PhD in Advanced Drug Delivery, certified by Galenos Network & Saarland University, Saarbrucken, Germany. She started The School of Pharmacy, University of London in March 2008 as a post-doc for Prof Oya Alpar to perform studies on vaccine formulations. In her second post-doc position, she joined Dr Catherine Tuleu`s group as a Teaching and Research Fellow at UCL School of Pharmacy, Department of Pharmaceutics, Centre for Paediatric Pharmacy Research to work in the field of paediatric pharmaceutics and drug delivery. Her fellowship was funded by UK NIHR Medicines for Children Research Network (MCRN) from June 2009 to September 2012. As main part of her MCRN role as formulation research fellow, she worked closely with the MCRN Clinical Study Groups and provided pharmaceutical expertise in the development of patient-friendly formulations and appropriate trials supplies for the success of studies in children. She was appointed as Lecturer in Pharmaceutics to develop a research agenda in geriatric pharmaceutics in October 2012. She is a member of UCL Grand Challenges of Human Wellbeing Executive Group and Geriatric Medicines Society Age Appropriate Formulations Working Group.

Focus Group Co-Chair

Contact Carmel

Prof Carmel Hughes

Carmel Hughes PhD is a pharmacist by training and Professor in Primary Care Pharmacy at the School of Pharmacy. Her research interests focus the quality of drug use in older people particularly in long-term care setting and pharmacoepidemiology. She has published extensively on these topics and has led programmes of research in intervention studies in nursing homes for older people. Prof. Hughes was the first pharmacist to have been awarded a Harkness Fellowship in Health Care Policy by the Commonwealth Fund of New York City.She spent her fellowship year at the Center for Gerontology and Health Care Research, Brown University where she collaborated with Profs. Kate Lapane and Vince Mor on pharmacoepidemiological studies in nursing homes.She was awarded the British Pharmaceutical Conference Medal for her research in September 2001.She is the only pharmacist to have been awarded a National Primary Care Career Scientist Award from the Research and Development Division of the Department of Health in London.She has been a Cochrane Fellow, a member of the Cochrane Collaboration and is also the Joint Clinical Lead for the Northern Ireland Clinical Research Network.

Focus Group Co-Chair

Contact Fang

Dr Fang Liu

Dr Fang Liu is currently a Senior Lecturer in Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery. She obtained her PhD in Pharmaceutics in 2008 from the School of Pharmacy, University of London, before undertaking a Post-Doctoral research position in the same institution. In November 2009, Dr Liu joined the University of Hertfordshire as a Lecturer in Clinical Pharmaceutics. Her research interests include gastrointestinal targeting and the development of age-appropriate formulations, especially investigating medication management and formulation development for older adults. She is a member of the Geriatric Medicine Society (GMS) and associate member of European Paediatric Formulation Initiatives (EuPFI). She has published her work in over 10 peer reviewed journals and has been invited speaker at conferences. she is also the co-author of a book on polymers for oral drug delivery.

APS Age Related Medicines Focus Group`s main interest area is medicines for the older adult while being cognisant of and learning from the various paediatric initiatives. In particular the focus is on the development of patient-centric approaches for the benefit of the older people. The group will work at the interface of pharmaceutics and clinical pharmacy practice and follow the advances in both fields equally.

Aims and objectives

-Creating a platform that facilitates rapid translation of ideas to the older person`s and carer`s benefit

-Involving pharmaceutical scientists / clinical researchers / representatives of the pharmaceutical industry / older people committed to work in age-related medicines to prioritise and deliver the focus group`s research agenda

-Providing strategic leadership and facilitating collaboration for joint research and grant applications

-Developing links to associations / other age related networks / charities devoted to helping older people and carers and patient public involvement

Areas of interest

- Exploring age-appropriate formulations and senior-friendly pharmaceutical packaging & devices with a focus on their safety and acceptability

- Improving the quality of extemporaneous formulations as an interim solution

- Involving of older people and family carers to allow them to be active participants in research as well as formal carers

- Developing outcome measures specific for clinical trials in older people

- Transferring the knowledge developed for paediatric use for the development of medicines for older adults and developing appropriate platforms when paediatric approaches are not applicable

- Contributing to regulatory activities on medicines for older people

- Bringing new approaches into biopharmaceutical research considering physiological changes with ageing

- Recognising the importance of the science/practice interface when considering medicines for older people and interacting with healthcare professionals including GPs, geriatricians, nurses, clinical and community pharmacists

Research agenda

APS Age Related Medicines Focus Group`s activities are structured around two research themes:

1. Drug Delivery to Older People and Biopharmaceutics focusing on the prioritised areas

-Appropriate, acceptable and accessible formulations tailored for the specific needs of older people

-Packaging, administration devices and designed for older people

-Changes in the body function of older people

-New quantitative methods for improving characterisation of drug formulations for older people

-Regulatory aspects related to medicines for older people and information about older people in SmPC, PIL and other information sources

-Assessment of user feedback and acceptability of novel formulations/drug delivery approaches

2. Quality of Drug Use in Older People and Pharmacoepidemiology focusing on the prioritised areas

-Appropriate adherence

- Pharmacy practice interventions for improving medicine use in older people including the appropriate use of compliance aids

- The use of IT solutions to optimise medication usage in older people

-New qualitative/quantitative methodologies in advancing research of medicines for older people