The International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) has formed a working group to implement a series of initiatives aimed at supporting and promoting women’s careers in the field of pharmaceutical sciences. The goal is to help the female workforce reach their fullest potential in the pharmacy sectors and to attract female students and young professionals to these fields. The initiative includes a series of activities currently chaired by Claire Thompson (UK) and carried out by an international group of women volunteers in science and education. “During 2020 – says Fip – we started building our FipWise community and raising awareness. Achieving gender equality and empowering women without leaving anyone behind is not an ‘single sport’. So we appreciate and take this opportunity to thank all FipWise team members and supporters and partners.” FipWise’s commitment focuses on specific areas of work that aim to build confidence in skills, adapt work environments in science and education, and support young women professionals and students to thrive in science and education. The program falls within Fip’s Goal 10 work area, which is to achieve equity and equality in Pharmaceutical workforce development, continuing education and training, and career advancement opportunities.
Do you care what you read? Sign up for our newsletter here to receive articles like this (and more) straight to your inbox
Initiatives to support women in science
To give substance to these commitments, the FipWise team has created a series of videos and podcasts in which the stories and experiences of women and men working in the science sectors are collected and share their personal and career paths. After that, a workshop on women’s leadership was organized. “Women are powerful agents of change – Fip illustrates – and the advantages and efficacy of equitable representation in leadership and decision-making are illustrated. To discuss the underrepresentation of women in decision-making processes, FipWise organized an influential virtual leadership lab during Fip Virtual 2020.” FipWise then pays special attention to young women. Working with the Young Pharmacists Mentoring Program (YPG) to support young professionals in the gender-specific challenges they face in the fields of pharmaceutical sciences and pharmacy education, they are joined by mentors who provide general advice, suggestions, and strategies to adopt.
Annual list to celebrate deserving professionals
2022 marks the second year of activity for FipWise, which has launched a new initiative, FipWise’s Rising Stars List. On the occasion of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, Fip has proposed the creation of a special annual list to collect the names of distinguished early-career professionals in pharmaceutical sciences and pharmacy education, selected on the basis of significant results, innovations and goals achieved. The list aims to promote equity, equality, diversity and inclusion among individuals, organizations and policy makers. Anyone wishing to apply or nominate a woman deserving of inclusion on the list can fill out the appropriate online form https://fipwiserisingstars.questionpro.com/ by March 31, 2022. The final list will be published in June 2022.
© All Rights Reserved
“Infuriatingly humble social media buff. Twitter advocate. Writer. Internet nerd.”
