Sunday, February 23, 2014
Inaugural Convention of the Indian Association
of Colleges of Pharmacy & Indian Congress of Pharmacy Practice 2014,concluded at Hotel Sheraton,Bengaluru on Friday.Students, academicians, professionals and
administrators from pharma industry and hospitals have attended the two days
programme. Leaders in
pharmacy practice and education from USA, Australia, UK, Southeast Asia, Middle
East and Europe have Participated in the conference and delivered their talks
and interacted with the new breed of pharmacists (Pharm.D).
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Bhandary said there was a need to strengthen community pharmacy,and the government’s focus now was on regulatory mechanisms.This would put in place better healthcare delivery systems, he said.
B.Suresh, president of the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) and Vice-Chancellor of
JSS University, Mysore, said the PCI, with approval from the Union government,
introduced a six-year Pharm.D. programme in 2008 to strengthen the professional
competencies of Indian pharmacists.
Making a
presentation on ‘Pharmacy practice education in India: experiences and
roadmap’, Dr. Suresh said, there was a need to establish collaborative networks among scientific leaders for a synergy among diverse areas of pharmacy practice.President said,"Recently, some of the top honchos of corporate hospitals met me and said they wanted to appoint clinical pharmacists in their hospitals. Before Pharm D was introduced, students of pharmacy were trained in industry and science with less focus on the clinical aspects. Most of the students would opt for teaching or research, but the students who graduate from this course will now be able to actively practice in a clinical set up."The inaugural of the Indian Congress of Pharmacy Practice coincided with the
graduation of the first batch of Pharm.D. students, he said.
Leading
healthcare providers like Fortis, Apollo and clinical research companies are
already interested in hiring many from the first batch Dr.Chinnasamy said.
Dr Narendranath of MS Ramaiah Hospital revealed that the role of a pharmacist was crucial in healthcare. "When a physician prescribes a drug, it is essential that the patient is given full information on the drug," he said. "The role of a clinical pharmacist is multi- disciplinary. From assessing the effects of a new product to understanding the side effects, a clinical pharmacist plays an important role. They also play a vital role in counseling patients especially in cases of bad side effects. It is essential that every super-specialty hospital has a clinical pharmacist."
Dr Sudharshan Ballal, medical director of Manipal Hospital said, "The practice of having a clinical pharmacist is very common in the West. The functions of the in-patient pharmacy are much greater in the West compared to India. We have been pushing to have a clinical pharmacist for a long time as they help reduce medication errors."
Dr Narendranath of MS Ramaiah Hospital revealed that the role of a pharmacist was crucial in healthcare. "When a physician prescribes a drug, it is essential that the patient is given full information on the drug," he said. "The role of a clinical pharmacist is multi- disciplinary. From assessing the effects of a new product to understanding the side effects, a clinical pharmacist plays an important role. They also play a vital role in counseling patients especially in cases of bad side effects. It is essential that every super-specialty hospital has a clinical pharmacist."
Dr Sudharshan Ballal, medical director of Manipal Hospital said, "The practice of having a clinical pharmacist is very common in the West. The functions of the in-patient pharmacy are much greater in the West compared to India. We have been pushing to have a clinical pharmacist for a long time as they help reduce medication errors."
Wayne
A.I. Frederick , president of Howard University, U.S.;S. Manivannan, Deputy
Drugs Controller of India, and Premkumar Rajagopal, Vice-Chancellor of AIMST
University, Malaysia, also spoke.
“It was a good conference and the talks by speakers were very
encouraging..I could get many of my doubts cleared.I enjoyed attending the conference.” a student
said.
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