Washington, D.C. – The Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) and the International Pharmaceutical Federation Foundation for Education and Research (FIP Foundation) announce the recipient of the 2026 FIP Foundation Research Grant, sponsored by BPS, as Bee Yean Low, BPharm (Hons), PhD, RPh, MMPS, SFHEA, BCPS, MClinPharm. The research grant program seeks to promote research in the field of pharmacist certification and its impact on specialization and advanced practice.
The research grant of up to €5,000 has been awarded to Dr. Bee Yean Low, Associate Professor of Pharmacy at the University of Nottingham Malaysia. The project is titled “Quantifying the Value of Board-Certified Pharmacists: A Multicenter Study of Clinical, Economic and Healthcare Utilization Outcomes.”
“Alongside FIP Foundation, BPS is excited to support this important research, which has the potential to generate meaningful evidence on the value of pharmacist board certification across patient care, healthcare utilization, and economic outcomes. The findings will help strengthen our understanding of the value of board-certified pharmacists beyond US borders.” said Brian Erstad, PharmD, BCPS, MCCM, FCCP, FASHP, BPS Board Liaison to the BPS Research Committee.
This project captures the core objectives of the FIP Foundation/BPS Research Grant. It aims to quantify the clinical, economic, and healthcare system impact of board-certified pharmacists in tertiary care settings by comparing outcomes among patients managed by board-certified versus non-board-certified pharmacists. The study will evaluate drug-related problem identification, adverse drug events, healthcare utilization outcomes (including readmissions, emergency department visits, and length of stay), and economic outcomes such as cost avoidance and cost savings attributable to pharmacist interventions. Additionally, it will examine the acceptance and timeliness of pharmacist recommendations and explore how process measures may inform pharmacist credentialing and privileging practices.
An announcement will be made at the 2026 FIP World Congress opening ceremony in Montreal, Canada. More information about the research grant can be found at this page.
The Board of the FIP Foundation for Education and Research and the Board of Pharmacy Specialties congratulate Dr. Low and look forward to the results of her research.
About the Board of Pharmacy Specialties
The Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) was established in 1976 as an autonomous division of the American Pharmacists Association (APhA). The mission of BPS is to improve patient care by positioning BPS Board-Certified Pharmacist Specialists as integral members of interprofessional healthcare teams, through recognition and promotion of specialized training, knowledge, and skills for pharmacists in the United States and internationally. Board certification is a recognized credential for determining which pharmacists are qualified to contribute at advanced practice levels given the rigorous standards mandated by BPS board certification and recertification. As of the end of 2025, BPS recognized more than 63,400 pharmacist certifications across 16 specialties.
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