Three pharmacists from Southend Hospital have just returned from a trip to west Africa, where they helped to develop new services.

Uchenna Onuoha, Carolyn Drewett and Wissam Hussain spent three weeks in Cameroon visiting hospital and health centres to talk about the benefits of a clinical pharmacy service and how one could be set up.

The trio paid for the trip themselves and took annual leave to make it.

Mr Hussain said: "There is no clinical pharmacy service as there is only one pharmacist to cover a large number of health centres and hospitals.

"Technicians are being taught the knowledge and skills needed to practise clinical pharmacy."

The three did some teaching but mainly travelled across the country, introducing the concepts of clinical pharmacy and discussing the benefits with doctors, nurses and other health care professionals.

Ms Onuoha said: "Health services in Cameroon are developing, but equipment and books are in short supply and drugs are costly and not readily available.

"They don't have a wide variety of drugs - not even some essential antibiotics."

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