Meet our Antimicrobial Expert Advisory Group
Louise Dunsmure (Chair)
Contact AmEAG
[email protected]
Louise Dunsmure (Chair)
Louise is a Consultant Pharmacist for Antimicrobial Stewardship and current chair of the Expert Advisory Group on Antimicrobials for RPS.Louise is committed to tackling antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and works closely with clinical staff to implement antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) throughout the Trust as well as supporting the stewardship agenda across the whole health economy.
She has a keen interest in teaching about AMS and AMR and is a Visiting Fellow in the School of Chemistry, Food and Pharmacy at University of Reading and a Visiting Lecturer for the PGDiploma in Paediatric Infectious Diseases University of Oxford. Louise is also a member of the UK Clinical Pharmacy Association - Pharmacy Infection Network (UKCPA PIN) committee and until recently was the chair of the South Central regional antimicrobial pharmacist network and the Associate Member Secretary for the British Infection Association
(BIA).
Louise is involved in a NIHR funded research project related to penicillin allergy delabelling which is an important element of stewardship. She is chair of the South Central regional antimicrobial pharmacist network and Associate Member Secretary for the British Infection Association (BIA).
Louise is always looking for opportunities to promote antimicrobial stewardship and the Antibiotic Guardian campaign.
Delyth Ahearne
Delyth has been working as an Antimicrobial Pharmacist at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust since 2008. At the end of 2024 she started in a new role working across the Gloucestershire system and is working towards her consultant credentialling.
She is the named antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) pharmacy lead for the trust and responsible for the leadership and operational delivery of a high-quality antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) programme. She also supports the Gloucestershire Integrated Care System (ICS) on the system wide delivery of AMS and to work with UK HSA, primary, community, acute care stakeholders and South West Regional Antimicrobial Stewardship Lead to ensure delivery of the NHSE Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) strategy.
She is chair of the Gloucestershire ICS Antimicrobial Stewardship Strategy Group, and led on the development of the Gloucestershire Infection Prevention and Management strategy priorities for the next 5 years. This focuses on development of educational packages for staff for AMS, improvement in the management of recurrent and relapse of c.difficle infection, IV to oral switch, improving the safety of fluoroquinolone prescribing, and developing and updating a system-wide antimicrobial guidelines which are driven by an understanding the local antimicrobial sensitivity profile. She is also leading on a business case to launch the recurrent urinary tract infection pathway in Gloucestershire.
She has also developed a comprehensive countywide guideline for Penicillin Allergy de-labelling, and currently involved in a pilot for a clinic undertaking oral penicillin challenge of low-risk patients. She is also a member of the South West Antimicrobial Pharmacy Group.
Rakhi Aggarwal
Rakhi is a Consultant Pharmacist in Primary Care. She has over 15 years of expertise in primary care commissioning and a strong track record in leading antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) initiatives. In her current role as Head of Medicines Optimisation at NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (ICB), she plays a pivotal role in shaping AMS strategy both locally and regionally.
Her career spans across primary and secondary care, providing her with a comprehensive understanding of the interface between care settings. She has led numerous high-impact AMS projects, including the Antibiotic Amnesty campaign, a penicillin allergy review programme in primary care, multilingual patient education videos, and a child-centred AMS campaign in partnership with Aston University.
Nationally, Rakhi represents primary care as a member of the Advisory Committee on Antimicrobial Prescribing, Resistance, and Healthcare-Associated Infection (APRHAI), ensuring that primary care voices are heard at the highest levels of strategic decision-making. She also serves as the Primary Care Lead for the NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service and holds the position of Visiting Professorial Fellow at Aston University.
Outside of work, Rakhi is a proud and energetic mum to two young boys. When she’s not championing better prescribing, you’ll find her baking, crafting, or enjoying the great outdoors with her family.
Nirlep Agravedi
Nirlep is Lead Antimicrobial Pharmacist at University Hospitals Birmingham, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, where he leads antimicrobial stewardship programmes.
He chairs the West Midlands Antimicrobial Pharmacy Group and is an active member of the UKCPA Pharmacy Infection Network.
His professional development includes qualification as an Independent Prescriber and training as an Associate Principal Investigator for research projects.
Nirlep has a keen interest in digital antimicrobial stewardship within the hospital's electronic Prescribing and Medicines Administration (ePMA) system. He has successfully implemented several projects that have improved antimicrobial management practices at UHB.
His work has been featured in publications at local, national, and international levels, contributing to the advancement of antimicrobial pharmacy practice.
Rachel Berry
Rachel is an experienced pharmacist with a strong focus on antimicrobial stewardship, infection prevention, and optimising antimicrobial use across both primary and secondary care settings. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated expertise in antimicrobial management, working within multi-disciplinary teams to support complex patient groups, including adult Cystic Fibrosis patients, and leading stewardship strategies within NHS Trusts and Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) and Integrated Care Boards (ICBs). She was a Chief Pharmaceutical Officer’s Clinical Fellow in 2024-25 with the UK Health Security Agency, and though this was involved in national strategy development and research on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). She has developed a comprehensive understanding of AMR through both practical experience and advanced qualifications in clinical education, research, and independent prescribing.
Passionate about addressing AMR, Rachel believes in fostering collaboration between multidisciplinary teams, enhancing the profile of pharmacy in national AMR efforts, and utilising digital tools to streamline stewardship processes. With a proven track record in leading stewardship initiatives and a national perspective gained through her fellowship, Rachel is dedicated to contributing to the Group’s efforts to optimize antimicrobial use and combat AMR through strengthening pharmacists' role in antimicrobial stewardship across all healthcare sectors, especially primary care.
Lisa Boateng
As lead antimicrobial pharmacist at Bart Health NHS Trust, I was nominated for the lifetime achievement award in 2011 as an outstanding individual in leadership, and supported a visit from the local MP, Jim Fitzpatrick.
In my hospital role, I lead a team of four 8a pharmacists and 2 band 7 pharmacists to deliver antimicrobial stewardship across four hospital sites. I co-chair the Trust Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee, co-ordinating the agenda items to ensure we deliver the objectives of the committee. This includes presenting national agenda items, antimicrobial usage data, audits, and regularly review our prescribing guidelines.
My master’s degree in medical microbiology and clinical practice experience fully equips me to lecture at three London Universities, MSc in medical Microbiology at QMUL, pharmacy clinical diploma at UCL and Independent prescribers’ course at University of East London.
I have published chapters in antimicrobial clinical practice and am actively involved in research to understand the clinical effectiveness of antimicrobial agents and prevent further antimicrobial resistance.
Aaron John Brady
Frances Garraghan
As a Credentialled Consultant Pharmacist in Antimicrobial Stewardship, Fran is passionate about tackling antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and works across sectors to support the implementation of effective antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). She brings extensive experience from her work in hospital pharmacy and is especially committed to empowering pharmacists to take a leading role in stewardship. Fran has supported colleagues at all stages of practice through mentoring, education, and leadership development.
Fran is the Programme Lead at the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (BSAC), where she oversees the development of innovative training programmes, including the new LEAP leadership course designed to equip healthcare professionals with the skills to drive local improvement in AMS. Her work spans national and international settings, with experience in global health programmes focused on strengthening AMS capacity in low-resource environments.
An experienced mentor and educator, Fran is dedicated to creating inclusive, supportive learning environments that build confidence and foster professional growth. She is always looking for opportunities to promote the pharmacy profession's contribution to tackling AMR and to support collaborative, system-wide approaches to stewardship.
Mark Gilchrist
Professor Mark Gilchrist is Consultant Pharmacist Infectious Diseases and directs the antimicrobial stewardship and OPAT services at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. He is a council member of British Society of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy and co-leads its UK OPAT Initiative.
He is a Professor of Practice (Infectious Disease) at Imperial College London, together with being a spokesman on antimicrobials and fellow of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS).
Mark has particular interests in antimicrobial stewardship around improving systems and processes that affect local, national and international AMR. His clinical interests include OPAT, tuberculosis and critical care.
Postgraduate education includes an MSc and non-medical independent prescribing status and he was recently awarded the NHS Leadership Academy Nye Bevan Award in executive healthcare leadership. He is immediate past chair of the RPS expert advisory group on antimicrobials, past chair of the UK Clinical Pharmacy Association - Pharmacy Infection Network (UKCPA PIN) and was awarded RPS Faculty Fellowship (Infection) in 2013.
He has delivered many lectures and workshops on AMS both at national and international level and has published around his areas of interest.
Conor Jamieson
Dr Conor Jamieson is the Regional Antimicrobial Stewardship Lead for NHS England’s Midlands region.
He has previously been working as an antibiotic pharmacist in hospitals in the West Midlands since completing his doctoral studies at Aston University in 2002.
He is a former council member and Honorary Treasurer of the British Society of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (BSAC), served as Senior Editor for Education for BSAC’s open access journal JAC-AMR and was chair of the BSAC Drug Stability Testing Programme until 2023, a part of the BSAC OPAT Initiative.
Zoe Kennerley
Zoe is a Consultant Antimicrobial Pharmacist in Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board working across North Wales. Zoe leads a team of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and a nurse across primary and secondary care.
She has experience working in rural areas where a One Health approach is essential due to a large farming population and engagement with other sectors is essential to raise awareness of antimicrobial resistance and the importance of stewardship to strengthen the meaning of that in this population.
Zoe currently chairs the Welsh Antimicrobial Pharmacy Group (WAPG), involving of all the antimicrobial pharmacists, technicians and other relevant stakeholders within Wales, including Public Health Wales. The group shares experience across Health Boards and takes a collaborative approach to antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) across Wales, progressing projects nationally.
She is also a core member of CwPAMS Malawi/Wales partnership where the Pharmaceutical Society of Malawi and WAPG work together to implement AMS programmes in facilities in Malawi.
Marisa Lanzman
Marisa Lanzman is a Consultant Pharmacist in Infection at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust where she focuses on Antimicrobial Stewardship and infection management.
Her interests include Antimicrobial Stewardship in secondary care especially within the Intensive Care Unit. She also has a focus on training standards for pharmacists working in infection and the management of sepsis.
Marisa is actively involved in professional organisations, serving as Chair of the UK Clinical Pharmacy Association (UKCPA) Pharmacy Infection Network and is a founding member of the pharmacology and pharmacotherapy section of the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine. She is also a member of the NICE Managing Common Infections guidelines committee.
Marisa has presented on infection management and antimicrobial stewardship at a number of national conferences and delivered webinars at both National and International level.
Marisa completed her Consultant Pharmacist credentialling with the RPS in 2022.
Rakhee Patel
Rakhee is the Lead Antimicrobial Pharmacist at Dartford & Gravesham NHS Trust, a district general acute trust in Kent. Rakhee has a particular interest in infection management and antimicrobial stewardship and has been an antimicrobial pharmacist since 2007.
Postgraduate education includes an MSc in infection management and non-medical independent prescribing status. Rakhee is a BSAC member, member of the English Surveillance Programme for Antimicrobial Utilisation and Resistance (ESPAUR) antifungal subgroup and UK Clinical Pharmacy Association - Pharmacy Infection Network committee member.
Rakhee sits on the Regional Medicines Optimisation Committee (South East) Antimicrobial Prescribing and Medicines Optimisation (APMO) Subgroup along with being an active member of the Kent & Medway Antimicrobial Medicines Optimisation Group.
Rakhee was instrumental in the setup and chaired the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Antimicrobial Pharmacy Group for many years, and is now still an active member of the group.
In May 2025 Rakhee became a UK-ALF-A– the United Kingdom-Africa Leadership Fellowship – AMS programme as a volunteer mentor.
Preety (Emlata) Ramdut
MRPharmS, MPharm, IPresc, PGCert GPP, DipCorpGov, Nye Bevan Alumni, Board member and advisor, Co-opted Governor
Preety Ramdut is an award winning board-level pharmacy leader with over 20 years of experience across clinical practice, Health & Justice, quality and safety, commissioning, policy, and system transformation.
She currently serves as the Regional Antimicrobial Stewardship Lead at NHS England in the South East and is the former Regional Chief Pharmacist.
Preety led the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme in Kent and Medway ICS during the pandemic as Deputy Senior Responsible Officer and is a passionate advocate for infection prevention, tackling antimicrobial resistance, vaccination, health equity, system and workforce transformation, digital innovation, and equality, diversity, and inclusion. Her leadership has helped shape national and regional policy across quality, safety, and clinical governance domains, improving outcomes and efficiency across complex health systems.
She brings strategic insight through her board-level roles and active engagement in community leadership and governance. Preety is a Director and Independent Trustee of the Infection Prevention Society (IPS), a Co-opted Governor at Maidstone Grammar School, and an Honorary Member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s Antimicrobial Expert Advisory Group (AmEAG).
With a strong commitment to global collaboration, she actively supports international efforts to advance evidence-based policy and healthcare resilience. As a dedicated coach and mentor, Preety empowers future leaders—championing inclusive workforce development and sustainable change grounded in collaboration, integrity, and impact.
Avril Tucker
Avril is the Principal Pharmacists for Antimicrobials and Immunology for Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board. In this role, she leads a team of antimicrobial pharmacists and pharmacy technicians across both primary and secondary care.
As part of her role, Avril developed a resource pack called ‘UTI Friday’ which has gained NICE approval and was incorporated into the GMS contract for Wales from 2019-2022. Avril is an independent prescriber, specialising in infections of the urinary tract, ENT and skin.
She uses her prescribing skills predominantly in the out of hours setting while working as a clinical pharmacist for 111.
Avril is currently a member of the NICE Pneumonia prescribing guidance committee and has previously sat on the NICE Acute Respiratory Infection guideline and the NICE Managing Common Infections suite of guidelines. She is an active member of the All Wales Antimicrobial Pharmacist Group and the All Wales Antimicrobial Guideline Group.
Avril is also a regular content contributor to The British Society for Antibiotic Chemotherapy (BSAC) and Health Education Improvement Wales (HEIW), where she developed and delivered a series of webinars designed to support antimicrobial stewardship for Community Pharmacy Prescribers in Wales.
Avril has both a well-rounded view of the profession and first-hand experience in the development and implementation of antimicrobial stewardship strategies. She has spent the majority of her career working in primary care and, through building effective networks and encouraging others, Avril has been able to raise the profile of antimicrobial resistance at both a local and national level. It all starts with engagement!
Blessing Ukoha-Kalu
Blessing is an Assistant Professor and assessment lead for the Graduate Entry Medicine program at the University of Nottingham, UK. She has over 10 years of combined research and teaching experience in higher education.
A clinical pharmacist by background with research interests in global and public health. She holds a doctorate and MSc in clinical pharmacy and pharmacy management from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. She also holds a PharmD from the University of Benin, Edo State, Nigeria.
She is an academic editor of reputable journals and has authored high-quality, peer-reviewed publications.