Dr Margaret Ledger-Scott
BSc Pharmacy 1973, MSc Clinical Pharmacy 1986, MBA 1996 and DProf 2010
Margaret’s career in hospital pharmacy spans 37 years in the North East of England, starting as a Pharmacy Assistant and retiring as Clinical Director of Pharmacy and Medicines Management at County Durham and Darlington HNS Foundation Trust. Throughout that time, Margaret kept returning to the University of Sunderland to support her professional development and completed four degrees - her first pharmacy degree in the 70s, her MSc in clinical pharmacy in the 80s, her MBA in the 90s and her DProf in the 00s.
“My passion for research was ignited by my MSc dissertation which was undertaken in 1983 with mentor Dr Jim Hurst when I worked at Sunderland Eye Infirmary. I investigated why glaucoma patients receiving acetazolamide had debilitating side effects causing them to stop taking the medication. I discovered that the pharmacokinetic modelling used by the pharmaceutical company to calculate doses required to reduce intraocular pressure was flawed. My work led to a reformulation of the medication which reduced side effects but maintained therapeutic effectiveness. This work was published (Ledger-Scott & Hurst, 1985), won a research award and is referenced in Martindale.
“This work and its success showed me that, even as a full-time hospital pharmacist, I could undertake research which would improve patient care. For example, projects developing the clinical and prescribing role of the pharmacist which improved outcomes for patients were recognised as being pioneering and leading-edge practice and won numerous national awards including seven Pharmaceutical Care Awards from the RPSGB and the first RPSGB Improving Medicines Safety Award for a significant contribution to medicines safety in 2009.
“My career has had many highlights – but the pinnacle of my career was being awarded my DProf from the University of Sunderland for my work on reducing the risk of prescribing errors.”