Sivut kuvina
PDF
ePub

the curriculum of education, the arrangements of the establishment, and the number of students in the several classes. The object for which the School had been founded was clearly stated, and the question was raised by one of the witnesses, whether an examining body ought to be allowed to exercise educational functions. No objection was taken, no argument ensued upon this point; the proceedings of the Society were considered as a whole, the testimony of some of the highest medical authorities, as well as that of other competent witnesses regarding the result, was favourable, and the Society was left at liberty to pursue its course.

It is important to bear in mind the distinction between the circumstances under which the School of Pharmacy is constituted, and those of colleges and other educational establishments in which a revenue is derived from the fees paid by the students.

A medical school, for example, is not considered in a prosperous condition unless it produces over and above the amount of its current expenses a surplus sufficient to afford remuneration to the professors or teachers. This constitutes their income, and their interest is directly concerned in maintaining high fees and a large class of pupils. Now, if such an institution were also an examining body, if the examiners were empowered to grant or refuse at their discretion licences to practise or carry on business, if the fees for attending lectures, and the fees payable on examination were received into the same treasury as a source of revenue, the examiners would be under a temptation to secure a large class at their school by favouring their own pupils at the examination, and dealing severely with those who had been educated at other schools. The examination being compulsory-in other words, the passing of the examination being the only condition on which a licence to practise could be obtained-the power referred to might, if taken advantage of, be made equivalent to a monopoly in favour of one establishment to the prejudice of others. It would also have a tendency to lower the standard of qualification, as candidates are generally attracted by the prospect of a lenient examination, provided the nominal value of the certificate is not affected by such leniency; and a majority of them would prefer paying advanced fees with the certainty of passing easily, to saving part of the expense with the great probability of being plucked. The amount of the fees would be a secondary consideration compared with the injury which a candidate would sustain if unfairly deprived of a certificate, without which he could not legally embark in his profession. Under these circumstances the managers of an institution, combining education with compulsory examination, would be under so strong a temptation to make their power subservient to their interest, that they could not escape jealousy and suspicion, however desirous they might be to act with impartiality and uprightness.

The case of the Pharmaceutical Society is entirely different, and is free from the liability to abuse to which we have above referred. The Society is not interested in maintaining a school-the professors are not interested in attracting pupils from other schools-the examiners are not interested in favouring those who have derived their education from the Society. If any patriotic individual, or committee, would undertake the pecuniary responsibility of the School, the Society would be the gainer by several hundreds per annum. But in the absence of such act of patriotism, the Society submits to the loss; and the lectures are on a similar footing to those delivered occasionally at the College of Physicians in Pall Mall, or the College of Surgeons in Lincoln's Inn Fields, both of which are examining bodies. The lecture fees, when fees have been charged, were only nominal, and a very small set-off against the expenses; and although the total amount of fees from the laboratory class has been considerable, it has been barely sufficient to defray the working expenses, including the remuneration of the Professor and Assistants, but exclusive of rent, rates, and other incidental charges of the establishment. The examinations of the Pharmaceutical Society are not, in the ordinary sense of the term, compulsory. The refusal of the certificate does not restrain the candidate from carrying on the

business. The Society may attract but cannot compel candidates to come up for examination, and the power of attraction will depend entirely upon the value of the certificate. If the examination were to be so lenient as to be merely nominal, the certificate would be worthless, and would not be sought-if too severe, the examiners' occupation would be gone for want of candidates. In either case the Act of Parliament would become a dead letter. The prosperity of the Society will, therefore, be dependent upon the judgment and impartiality with which the character of the examination is upheld and undue severity avoided. This will be the best security against those abuses which sometimes prevail in institutions where the interests and the duties of the management are antagonistic.

In order to give effect to the examinations, the students must have the means of acquiring the requisite knowledge. Some individuals may enjoy peculiar advantages, some may possess the faculty of self-tuition to a remarkable degree, but the majority require to be led into the right course, and provided with systematic instruction. The education of Pharmaceutical Chemists is a novelty in this country, and the demand has not yet called into existence a supply of schools for this purpose. We hope to see such schools rise up and flourish, and when that hope is realised, the object for which the School in Bloomsbury Square was founded will have been attained, and the Society may resign its educational functions.

It has been asserted that the medical schools afford all that is requisite for the education of the Pharmaceutical Chemist, and we have lately seen in print rather a ludicrous denunciation of the School of Pharmacy, the Professors, the Council, the Members of the Society, the Pharmacy Act, and those who have been most active in promoting the education of Pharmaceutical Chemists. This general anathema is contained in a series of effusions, remarkable for sarcastic humour and inventive talent, but too comic to deserve further notice in this Journal, although one of our correspondents (an apprentice in the country) was so far misled by a statement respecting the Lectures on Botany, that he actually wrote to enquire whether it was founded on fact!

We may observe that the arrangements respecting the School of Pharmacy will claim the serious attention of the Council, as it is highly desirable that this branch of the establishment should be made subservient to the purposes for which the Society was founded, and the Act of Parliament obtained. It is equally important that the responsibility of carrying out the provisions of the Act should be kept in view, and that every department of the Society should be so regulated as to be free from objection or liability to the charge of abuse of power.

THE PROGRESS OF PHARMACY IN AMERICA.

We subjoin extracts from the American Journal of Pharmacy of July, showing the vigorous efforts which the Pharmaceutists in that country are making to raise their character and improve their qualifications by voluntary means. They are not protected by Act of Parliament or assisted by the legis lature, but being sensible of the defects and abuses which exist, they have come to the determination that the remedy shall be provided by themselves. A regular correspondence is established which is extending throughout the continent of America. By means of scientific meetings, periodical conventions attended by delegates from various places, and published reports extensively circulated, the leaders of this movement are endeavouring to infuse into the minds of their brethren a laudable ambition and a disposition to co-operate in the undertaking. We feel particularly interested in these proceedings because the nucleus existed in America some years before the commencement of similar efforts in this country. At the time the Pharmaceutical Society was proposed, the Colleges of Pharmacy in Philadelphia and New York were referred to as examples of the superior position of Pharmacy on the other side of the Atlantic; and although these institutions were conducted on the voluntary principle, and at

that time exercised a very limited influence, they have now acquired a character which has laid the foundation for a very extended reform in the cultivation and practice of Pharmacy.

We have reason to believe that the Transactions of the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, and the progress which the Society has made, operated as a stimulus to our transatlantic brethen in the same manner that their early proceedings stimulated us. The exchange of Journals between the two nations, the emulation thus excited, and the promulgation of information as to what may be effected by the united influence of the members of an organised body, act and re-act in the development of mental cultivation and the advancement of science. A Chemist and Druggist who has been brought up in the idea that his business is merely a mechanical trade, when he is reminded of the amount of science involved in the manipulations he has to perform, the discoveries which are continually taking place, and the progress which others are making, begins seriously to consider whether he is not in danger of being left behind and finding himself supplanted by those who have studied their business as a profession under more favourable circumstances. It may be too late to go to school, but it is never too late to learn; and when an opportunity is afforded of joining a Society from which he may derive useful information and a recognised position, he goes with the stream, views his avocation under a new aspect, and participates in the advantage of the improved system. He may have a son whom he intends to introduce into his business, and to whom he may desire to give the benefit of the scientific education, the value of which he appreciates by comparing the existing facilities for improvement with those which were within his reach at the time when he was an apprentice. In this manner the light of knowledge spreads among individuals, and the same influence prevails between one nation and another. The evidence given before the Select Committee of the House of Commons on the Pharmacy Bill tends to confirm this remark with regard to the progress of Pharmacy on the continent of Europe. The representatives of Pharmacy in the several nations, observing what is passing around them, and being in scientific communication with their neighbours, mutually assist and stimulate each other. The course of education is from time to time revised and extended, the stringency of the examinations is increased, and improved regulations are made relating to the sale of poisons, the detection and prevention of adulteration, the importation of drugs, and other practical details. Subjoined are the extracts from the American Journal of Pharmacy, to which we invite the attention of those who are interested in the progress of pharmaceutical education.

PHARMACEUTICAL REFORM IN AMERICA. PHARMACEUTICAL CONVENTION OF 1852.-We have received several communications from gentlemen residing in towns where no organization exists among the apothecaries, who feel a strong interest in the approaching Convention, asking whether, from not being members of pharmaceutical societies, they are ineligible to attend the Convention. It is gratifying to find our brethren at a distance awakening to this subject. Individuals who will come a long distance to attend the sittings of such a body, actuated by a feeling of interest in its objects, can hardly fail to prove useful members, and should be admitted, in our opinion, to seats, and to partake in its deliberations, if not in its decisions. When it is considered that the Convention of last year was called for a special object, whilst that called for October next has reference to the interests of the whole profession, we cannot but view the intended gathering as an initiatory movement-as a general call with a view to future organization rather than as an adjourned meeting of an organized body, adapted in its constitution to the object it is intended to effect. Hence it would have been wise to have given a general call to Pharmaceutists throughout the United States to meet, and, after organizing, determine on the future sources of its delegates. If that Convention should be but the commencement of a national association, as we believe, its healthy continuance will require it to be constituted of regular delegates having credentials from pre-determined authorities. If this be admitted, from whom shall the delegates come? If they are to be confined to permanent local societies, the

larger part of the apothecaries of the country would be unrepresented. With due deference to a better plan we would suggest that any ten established apothecaries and druggists located in one place or neighbourhood, where no organization exists, should be entitled to send a delegate to the Convention. This course would give a degree of authority to such delegates, who coming directly from the pharmaceutical ranks, could speak for their brethren at home. In places where organized societies are in existence, such societies should be empowered, if they desire it, to send a number of delegates proportioned to the number of apothecaries and druggists where they are located. Towns not numbering ten apothecaries should have the right to send a representative. This course would give a more liberal and republican character to the Association, and not confine its members to cities or institutions. Meanwhile, we hope that every pharmaceutist, whose sympathies attract him toward the Convention, will come, as there is every reason to believe that, on the first sitting of the delegates, measures will be taken to extend to them a participancy in its deliberations, if not in its decisions.

It has been repeatedly asked, what will the proposed Convention find to do? Will it be a mere formal organization without vitality, or a feasible object to accomplish, which will pass resolutions, publish them, and then disperse, satisfied that the profession will be improved and elevated? We trust that no such useless and unworthy results will be pointed to hereafter as the best fruits of the Convention of 1852. It is action, not talking that is wanted; it is wisdom, not eloquence, that is needed; it is conscientious pursuit of the general good, not individual ambition, that is desired; and it is a generous sacrifice of knowledge and influence by the better educated and successful, on behalf of those whose want of qualifications and success arises more from the force of circumstances, than from disinclination to improve their practice.

Among the subjects which merit the action of the Convention, a few will be noticed :

1st. The plan of local organization best calculated to subserve the interest of those concerned.

2d. Pharmaceutical education as it relates to the studies pursued, the manner of teaching, and the practice of the shop; together with a consideration of the means most effectual for encouraging ill-qualified established apothecaries to improve their practice.

3d. The Convention, viewing itself in the light of a scientific association, might receive written communications of scientific or industrial interest connected with Pharmacy, and, if worthy, direct them to be published in its Transactions. In this connection, it would be desirable that members should bring every offering worthy of a notice, whether in the form of draughts or models of apparatus; practical suggestions in manipulation, or criticisms on processes; specimens of, or information relating to the natural productions available in our art; and lastly, sketches of the state of Pharmacy among their constituents.

4th. With a view to more efficient action than could be effected in a Convention, standing committees might be appointed, to whom subjects should be committed for investigation during the recess, previous to the next Annual Meeting. These committees might be entrusted with such subjects as the following, viz: 1st. What are the actual results of the law against adulterated drugs, chemicals, and medicinal preparations, based on an examination of the custom - house records as compared with the drugs on sale;-2d. To what extent is home adulteration practised, where is it most practised, and what suggestions can be made to lessen or prevent it?-3d. What is the actual practice and custom of the Apothecaries generally throughout the Union in relation to the employment of the formula of the United States Pharmacopoeia in making their preparations ?-4th. To what extent the practice of Medicine and Pharmacy are united in the same individual, in places having more than two thousand inhabitants.

5th. Other committees of qualified individuals might be entrusted with more special subjects for investigation, as, for instance,-1st. What are the causes which occasion the decomposition of syrups, and what means can be suggested to increase their permanence?-2d. What form of evaporating apparatus adapted to the limited demand of the apothecary, is best calculated by its simplicity of construction, cheapness, and durability, to meet his wants? 3d. Whether it is better, in making hydro-alcoholic extracts, to employ alcohol and water consecutively, or mixed in the form of diluted alcohol, deciding the question by the activity of the resulting pro

duct, as ascertained by chemical analysis, if the active constituent is well defined, or by therapeutic trials if it is not ?-4th. In the process of displacement or percolation, as applied to the extraction of drugs, what is the degree of exhaustion which should determine the conclusion of the process (when the quantity of product is not necessarily pre-determined, as in tinctures, wines, &c.) in view of the effects or expense of evaporation?-5th. What is the best arrangement for filtering fixed oils, combining simplicity of construction with effectiveness of action ?-6th. What is the degree or amount of the deteriorating action of light on the fixed and volatile oils, tinctures, and wines, when kept properly closed, and whether it would not be better to protect these substances, or some of them, from the influence of light in our shops ?

Chemistry, of all the sciences, is that most closely connected with Pharmacy, and most worthy of the attention of its practitioners. The many able individuals that now grace our profession should bring some of the fruits of their chemical observations, irrespective of their application to Pharmacy, that a taste for this noble pursuit may be encouraged.

Such a course would, in a few years, render the meetings of the American Association of Pharmaceutists seasons of rich intellectual enjoyment to those who participated, and greatly advantageous to those at home, from the many useful and interesting memoirs that would scarcely fail to emanate from a body so organized.

The prospective adoption of a code of ethics should be considered, and the preliminary steps taken to digest and mature it. Any action of the Convention in this direction cannot be too cautiously and carefully taken, in view of the crippled condition of druggists and pharmaceutists as a body, in reference to quackery, directly or abettingly, as well as to the great want of uniformity that exists in shop practice. The Association should aim at reformation in these respects, and especially by a thorough and faithful adoption of our National Pharmacopoeia as the rule of practice. Deep-rooted evils in a profession can rarely be removed by sweeping legislation, unless the measures are enforced by despotic power. Let the well-disposed among us, therefore, show practically the working of a higher standard, as an example to those not now willing or able to adopt it, which will be more influential than volumes of precepts.-American Journal of Pharmacy.

PHARMACY IN RICHMOND, U.S.

JUST as we were going to press the following call, issued to the Richmond Apothecaries by some of their number, was received from Mr. Laidley. The meeting to which it refers was subsequently held, and measures taken for the organization of a Pharmaceutical Society. We understand that one of the proposed conditions of membership is proprietorship in business, which is certainly an error in judgment, as some of the best members of our College have been those not proprietors.

"The undersigned, believing that by friendly co-operation among themselves, their respectability will be increased, their standing in the community will become more elevated, faults in their profession be remedied, evils to which they are now subjected be removed; that their art may be more systematized, and better regulated; a more friendly feeling towards each other be excited amongst them, their mutual interests advanced, and the public good promoted; do most earnestly call upon their brethren engaged in Pharmaceutical pursuits, to meet at the Gentlemen's Parlour, Exchange Hotel, on Friday evening, 11th inst., at 8 o'clock, for the purpose, of considering the advantages that would result to all of them, from the formation of some organized Association, that would have for its object the above-named desirable ends; as well as to encourage among themselves mutual improvement in the knowledge so necessary to a proper discharge of those duties (both to themselves and the public), which their situations as men occupying positions among the most responsible in life, impose upon them.

"As the organization which it is now proposed to form, would contemplate the good of all its members, it is most earnestly hoped that all the Druggists and Apothecaries who feel any interest in this important subject, will cordially unite their intelligence and talents in an effort to accomplish the above-named ends, and that the proper preliminary steps will be taken for the formation of a society of the Apothecaries in this city, which will prove beneficial to its members, an honour to their profession, and a credit to the city of Richmond.

66

"ANDREW LESSLIE.
S. M. ZACHRISSON.
PURCELL, LADD & Co.

Richmond, June 8th, 1852."

SEABROOK & REEVE.
ADIE & GRAY.

PEYTON, JOHNSTON & BRO.

H. BLAIR.
CHAS. MILLspaugh.
ALEX. DUVAL.

American Journal of Pharmacy.

« EdellinenJatka »