About ESHP Congress
The European Society of Hospital Pharmacy (ESHP) ↗ Congress is the continent's largest dedicated hospital pharmacy event, bringing together clinical pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and pharmaceutical scientists from across Europe and beyond. The 2027 congress in Copenhagen focuses on advancing clinical pharmacy, medicines safety, and the pharmacist's evolving role in multidisciplinary care.
ESHP publishes the European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy (EJHP) ↗ (BMJ Publishing Group) and has issued the landmark European Statements of Hospital Pharmacy ↗ that guide practice standards across EU member states.
2027 scientific programme themes
Medication reconciliation, polypharmacy management, clinical decision support systems, and pharmacist-led interventions to reduce adverse drug reactions (ADRs) ↗. Session focus: medicines reconciliation on hospital admission using STOPP/START criteria for older adults ↗.
Cytotoxic preparation safety (closed-system transfer devices), oral oncolytic adherence monitoring, CAR-T administration pharmacist roles, and EMA biosimilar substitution policies ↗. Biosimilar uptake across EU health systems and interchangeability law review.
EU GMP guidelines for hospital pharmacy cleanrooms (EudraLex Vol 4, Annex 1), European Pharmacopoeia ↗ sterility testing, isolator technology, and international standards for chemotherapy preparation. ESHP recommends centralised intravenous additive services (CIVAS) to reduce preparation errors.
Hospital-based pharmacovigilance: spontaneous ADR reporting to EudraVigilance ↗, PRAC signal assessment, DARWIN EU real-world data network, and risk minimisation measures (RMMs). Session: using hospital EHR data for post-market safety surveillance. See our guide: Understanding drug recalls ↗.
PK/PD-optimised dosing for beta-lactams (prolonged infusion, Monte Carlo simulation), antifungal stewardship, IV-to-oral therapy pathways, and WHO AMR action plan ↗ integration into hospital stewardship programmes. Internal guide: Antimicrobial stewardship.
Electronic prescribing, automated dispensing cabinets (ADCs), AI-assisted drug interaction checking, pharmacogenomics integration into hospital CDS tools, and the EMA regulatory science strategy for digital health ↗. Related glossary: clearance, steady state.
European medicines regulation at a glance
Hospital pharmacists in Europe operate within a regulatory ecosystem governed by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) ↗ and national competent authorities (e.g. BfArM Germany ↗, ANSM France ↗, AIFA Italy ↗).
Centralised procedure
New biological medicines, oncology drugs, and medicines for rare diseases must obtain marketing authorisation through the centralised procedure (CHMP review, EC decision). Result: a single European public assessment report (EPAR) published on the EMA medicines database ↗.
PRAC & safety
The Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC) monitors post-market safety, reviews signals from EudraVigilance, and recommends regulatory actions (label changes, RMMs, withdrawals). PRAC minutes and recommendations are public on the EMA PRAC page ↗.
Frequently asked questions
What is the European Society of Hospital Pharmacy (ESHP)?
ESHP (European Society of Hospital Pharmacy) is the professional body representing hospital pharmacists across Europe. It sets standards for clinical pharmacy practice in European hospital settings, publishes the European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy (EJHP), and runs the annual ESHP Congress — the continent's largest dedicated hospital pharmacy conference. ESHP works closely with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and national pharmacy organisations to harmonise hospital pharmacy practice.
What CPE/CPD credits are available at ESHP Congress?
ESHP Congress sessions are accredited for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) through EACCME (European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education). Attendees receive CPD points that are recognised by national pharmacy associations across EU member states. The exact number of EACCME credits varies by session type; workshop participation typically earns more points than lecture attendance. Check the official ESHP programme for current credit allocations.
How does European hospital pharmacy regulation differ from the US?
European hospital pharmacy operates under national legislation harmonised by EU pharmaceutical law (Directive 2001/83/EC, Regulation EC 726/2004). Key differences from the US: (1) Centralised EMA approval for most new medicines vs FDA (US); (2) Hospital formulary management follows national HTA decisions (e.g. NICE in UK, HAS in France, G-BA in Germany); (3) Sterile preparation and compounding governed by EU GMP guidelines and national pharmacopoeias; (4) Pharmacovigilance reporting via EudraVigilance. The ESHP issues practice statements that guide hospital pharmacy across these diverse national systems.
What is clinical pharmacy technician practice in Europe?
Clinical pharmacy technician roles vary widely across Europe. In the UK and Netherlands, pharmacy technicians undertake extended roles including medicines reconciliation, dispensing verification, and ward-based support. Southern and Eastern European countries typically maintain a more traditional dispensary-only technician model. ESHP has published a workforce statement calling for harmonised technician training standards to address pharmacist workforce pressures across European hospitals.
What is the ESHP European Statements of Hospital Pharmacy?
The ESHP European Statements of Hospital Pharmacy (2014, revised 2021) are a set of 75 statements covering hospital pharmacy practice standards across six chapters: patient-centred care, safety, clinical pharmacy, medicines management, preparation of medicinal products, and research/education. They are published in the European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy and serve as a benchmark for national pharmacy organisations developing their own practice standards.