Page 16 - Pharmacy History 37 Nov 2009

Pharmacy champions of information technology
Colloc to Amfac reminiscences 2009
Ted Crook Colin Trevena
It’s not often that individual community pharmacists can be credited with changing professional pharmacy practice not only forever, but also for the better. Such was the case with community pharmacists, Colin Trevena from the town of Boorowa NSW 130 km north of Canberra and Ted Crook whose pharmacy was in Mawson ACT.
Crook had worked for Hallams in Sydney, before moving to Canberra where he ran a number of pharmacies. In 1973 Crook became involved in Marchem, the regional marketing group, becoming its chairman in 1975. Crook was also the President of the PSA ACT Branch and President of the ACT zone of the NSW Branch of the PGA in the late 1970s.
At the same time Colin Trevena,
who was a well-known community pharmacist and proponent of pharmacy professionalism, began to develop his program of shelf reference cards and counselling materials which he eventually marketed under the name Colloc Systems.
Trevena approached the Guild via John Scown as chairman of APPCo to print, publish and distribute the shelf
reference cards. Initially, the Guild was enthusiastic and advanced funds to assist in presentation of the material for printing.
Subsequently, APPCo declined
to proceed with the project citing irreconcilable legal responsibilities
so Trevena formed a joint venture with the Boorowa Newspaper, claimed copyright, printed, published and
distributed the cards from Boorowa Pharmacy.
A Colloc System card
The Colloc System cards were placed on the dispensary shelf next to the appropriate drug pack, so available
to the dispenser at the point of drug selection.
A Colloc System card
16 Pharmacy History Australia
volume 5 no 37 NOVEMBER 2009