Dr Bilkis Islam-Ali BPharm(Hons), MRCPharm, PhD, IPresc, PGCert, SFHEA

B Islam-Ali

School of Pharmacy
Lecturer in Clinical Pharmacy

Contact details

Address
School of Pharmacy
Robert Aitken Institute of Clinical Research
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Bilkis joined the School of Pharmacy in December 2021, bringing extensive multi‑sector experience including community, hospital, research, academia and primary care. With a passion for teaching innovative, sustainability‑focused teaching, she leads Year 2 of the MPharm and Deputy Programme Director for the MSc in Clinical Pharmacy (International).

Qualifications

  • Senior Fellow HEA (2025)
  • Postgraduate Certificate in Multiprofessional Education for Health Professionals
  • Postgraduate Certificate in Independent Prescribing (Grade A) Robert Gordon University, Nov 2018
  • Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Group, Aston University June 2001
  • Member of Royal College of Pharmacy 1997

Biography

In her most recent clinical role, Bilkis served as Lead Clinical Pharmacist for Education, Training and Governance within a Primary Care Network (PCN) comprising six GP practices, where she led a team of  six clinical pharmacists and supported service development across the network. In this role, she project‑managed the launch of pharmacist‑led hypertension clinics, developed clinical competency frameworks, undertook structured medication reviews, and contributed to the management of long‑term conditions, as well as Covid‑19 and influenza vaccination programmes. She also collaborated with PCN leadership to establish a local Pharmacy Leadership Group, strengthening professional practice and peer support across the network. Alongside this, she worked with the Centre of Pharmacy Postgraduate Education (CPPE) as an Education Supervisor, mentoring and supervising pharmacists and pharmacy technicians undertaking an 18‑month HEE‑funded Primary Care Education Pathway.

Bilkis gained her Independent Prescribing qualification in 2018, training under the supervision of a Consultant Geriatrician on a sub‑acute ward at Moseley Hall Hospital. This period deepened her interest in deprescribing, shared decision‑making and person‑centred care, which continues to shape her educational philosophy and clinical teaching.

Earlier in her career, she held the post of Clinical Training and Policy Development Pharmacist within a Community Trust, where she trained a wide range of healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, nurses, advanced nurse practitioners, physiotherapists and students, and authored several medicines‑related policies that were disseminated across community hospitals. Her contributions were recognised through Value in Practice Awards for implementing NICE drug‑allergy guidance trust‑wide and developing a medicines‑management e‑learning package.

She also spent five years working for NHS Direct and as a Medicines Information Pharmacist at Good Hope Hospital, handling complex clinical enquiries and training staff to navigate medicines information resources effectively while applying critical‑thinking and evidence‑based decision‑making skills.

In addition to her clinical roles, Bilkis has contributed to higher education by teaching on the Independent Prescribing Course at Worcester University and delivering pharmacology teaching as part of the MSc Physician Associate programme, further extending her impact across the healthcare education landscape.

Bilkis’ scholarly interests include sustainable healthcare, pedagogical innovation, simulation‑based learning, palliative care and developing training pathways for future academic pharmacists.

Teaching

  • MPharm Pharmacy
  • MSc in Clinical Pharmacy (Deputy Programme Director and Module Leadership)
  • Practice Certificate in Independent Prescribing

Research

PhD entitled “Second messenger pathways in the Action of Cachectic Factors” July 2001- Under supervision of Professor Tisdale, Aston university.

Dr Islam‑Ali is a teaching‑focussed academic whose scholarship centres on enhancing pharmacy and healthcare education.

Current interests include:

  • Sustainability and planetary health education
  • Simulation and moulage in teaching opioid overdose
  • Integration and evaluation of Associate Clinical Educators (ACEs) in MPharm teaching
  • Gamification and escape rooms as pedagogical tools
  • Support mechanisms for Dual-Career Student Athletes (DCSA)
  • Academic–hospital split foundation placements
  • Clinical audits in palliative care and pharmacogenomics