Lifelong leader

For more than 40 years Peter Halstead FPS has dedicated himself to advancing pharmacy practice – as an advisor, mentor and friend.

As an ‘escapee from dentistry’, PSA’s 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award recipient wasn’t always set on pharmacy. But a desire to work in health led to an influential 4 decade-long career.

After graduating in 1980 from the Institute of Technology, now the University of South Australia (UniSA), and interning at an independent pharmacy group of five pharmacies in SA, Mr Halstead spent a year as a locum in far-flung parts of the state. He remembers an exciting time, filled with situations that required a bit of creative problem-solving.

Like the time a doctor asked if he could rustle up some zinc cream to help a patient covered in burns after his car radiator cap exploded. Or dealing with a man who demanded antibiotics for his prize heifer then suffering from mastitis.

‘You experience things in the country that you might not experience in 5 years in the city,’ he says. ‘Those experiences, and how you deal with them, are quite challenging, but they stand you in good stead later in your career.’

The big picture

Back in the city, Mr Halstead continued to work in the independent pharmacy group, eventually becoming managing partner. He juggled work with family life as a husband and father of three children, and was an advisor to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, Drug and Alcohol Services SA and SHINE SA.

‘I did a lot of contract work, which was exciting and challenging, and a lot
of hospital work as well,’ he says. ‘It was the best of both worlds, and I loved it.’

Then it was time for a step into ‘a whole different world,’ joining Emeritus Professor Lloyd Sansom AO FPS at UniSA’s School of Pharmacy, where he helped to develop new pharmacist roles, particularly in aged care. ‘Pharmacy is very focused on the here and now and the person in front of you, as it should be,’ he says. ‘But Lloyd exposed me to policy and big-picture thinking when it comes to making a difference.’

Mr Halstead continued on this theme as the Education Officer of the Pharmacy Board of South Australia, before becoming Registrar of the Board in 2010. He had many achievements during his tenure, including seeing SA become the first jurisdiction to introduce mandatory continuing professional development.

Since 2010, Mr Halstead has been Senior Pharmacist at the Australian Pharmacy Council (APC), where he has made a lasting contribution, including helping develop assessment processes for intern pharmacists, and supporting pharmacists from overseas seeking registration in Australia.

Ongoing efforts

Today, Mr Halstead works part time in his role at the APC and is a pharmacist advisor to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency.

He is also a keen puzzler, walks 12 kilometres a day and enjoys spending weekends at the coast with his wife. While he’s grateful to be recognised with an award, Mr Halstead is humble about his contribution to the profession.

‘In many respects, all I did in my professional life was my job. When I retire, my next journey will be figuring out how I can continue to contribute. But one of the advantages of being a pharmacist is that the muscle I need is my mind. While it’s still pliable, and I’m enjoying my work, why would I stop?’

Q&A

1. What is the one scope of practice change you would most like to see?

The demand for health services is only going to increase, with associated impacts upon the health workforce. There will have to be greater flexibility in the nature of healthcare provision.  One contentious avenue for such flexibility is to provide all pharmacists, particularly those in South Australia, with legislative support allowing them to administer medicines where necessary.

2. What advice would you give your younger self?

To take the time to better understand how the way I speak to people and patients impacts their willingness to listen to what I have to say and then to be influenced by what I have to say. To place a greater value on patience and know that having to repeat a message is not a waste of time and may, in fact, be necessary.

3. What will be the profession’s biggest challenge ahead of 2030?

Maintaining the trust of the community as the profession continues to journey down the road of extended scope.