Alison Beaney is Regional Quality Assurance Specialist for the North East and North Cumbria, and is based in Newcastle upon Tyne hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. She is currently Chair of the NHS Pharmaceutical Quality Assurance Committee and has also served as Secretary. She edits Quality Assurance of Aseptic Preparation Services on behalf of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and the Committee. Alison is a Fellow of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and obtained a professional Doctorate on the topic of the preparation of medicines in 2010 from the University of Sunderland where she is a visiting professor. In addition, Alison is actively involved in the management and teaching of the Pharmaceutical Technology and Quality Assurance (PTQA) postgraduate course in association with the University of Manchester.