Page 11 - Pharmacy History 29 July 2006

A plea from the editor!
‘MPSA’
Can you help please?
While researching an early Western Australian pharmacist, Charles Conway, who practised in Geraldton W.A from 1884-1926, I noticed that he used the post nominal ‘MPSA’.
It was a bit early for him to have been a member of the PSA we know today, but was there a society or group out there that liked to use this qualification?
If you can shed any light on this question, please contact the editor by phone or e- post (see p20).
Two opinions from respected pharmacy historians offered the following:
David Newgreen, lecturer in forensic pharmacy at the Victorian College of Pharmacy writes: ‘Regarding ‘MPSA,’ I recall seeing it on some pharmacies in my days with the Department. I think it hails from the time when the PSV took unto
itself the title ‘Pharmaceutical Society of Australasia’ in the late 19th century. The other societies objected, but it was not until the 1920s that the Society changed its articles to revert to the original name of Pharmaceutical Society of Victoria.’
Greg Haines in Pharmacy in Australia, The National Experience (1988) elaborates on the friction between the Pharmaceutical Societies of NSW and Victoria, and how the Victorian Society retitled itself as ‘The Pharmaceutical Society of Australasia’ in 1884 after a spat about reciprocity between the two states.
This name lasted until the 1920s, during which time it attracted a steady stream of members and associates.
It is possible that members in other states such as
Western Australia and Queensland shared the objectives
of the Pharmaceutical Society of Australasia (PSA), and were willing to support it financially, particularly as the Australian nation had adopted political federalism in 1901.
Members of the PSA around the country could have used the post nominal MPSA.
So if anyone has any further suggestions, the editor would love to hear from you.
Notice for more stories
We need your contributions to
Pharmacy History Australia
Can you help with stories (and photos if possible) of Australian historic pharmacies, family dynasties, or just plain achievements of pharmacists who have given to higher service in their communities or the profession?
Think about this please and phone or e-mail the editor if you have an idea or a question, or just send your offering in the old fashioned way.
Geoff Miller 09 9386 6078 or gcmiller@iinet.net.au
volume 3 ■ no 29 ■ JULY 2006
Pharmacy History Australia ■ 11