Angela Constance MSP has been appointed cabinet secretary for health and care in the newly formed ministry under First Minister John Swinney of the Scottish National Party.
Welcoming the decision, the Royal College of Pharmacy said, "We look forward to working with the cabinet secretary and the rest of the Scottish government, and more widely across Parliament, to advance our key priorities."
The college had earlier come up with a manifesto, which focused on maximising pharmacy for patient benefit.
Some of their proposals include prioritising the integrated digital patient care record and ensuring this is available to pharmacists in all care settings, with read-and-write access.
Its other proposals include undertaking comprehensive workforce planning for pharmacy to ensure that there are adequate numbers of pharmacists working at any one time; prioritising the introduction of electronic prescribing across the NHS and improving the availability of data about the environmental impact of medicines.
Constance takes over from Neil Gray, who moves to her old post as justice secretary.
