“When religion was strong and science weak, men mistook magic for medicine; now,when science is strong and religion weak, men mistake medicine for magic.” 

Industrial Pharmacists

Pharmacists - The drug designers

 Tablets, capsules, syrups, vaccines and all the dosage forms and drug delivery methods are not god made!!!

Each and every medicine both you and I have been using ever since we were born is the hard work and years of lab studies and clinical trials conducted by the healthcare professionals throughout the world.

Today the pharmaceutical industry has become one of the largest industries in the world.

Yes we all fall sick and even the kings need medicine!!

Also it is the second largest mafia in the world !!!!!!!!

  

Role of Pharmacist in pharmaceutical industry... 

• Research and development 

A drug reaching the pharmacy is a long and lengthy process which involves years and years of hard work and hours spent in laboratories and clinical trials.

From the process of finding an active pharmaceutical ingredients pharmacists are involved.

They may use the knowledge in pharmacology,toxicology, pharmaceutics, chemistry, physiology and even bio pharmaceutics in developing a sustainable dosage form. There are no miracles in this industry ....  

• Manufacture and quality assurance 

once the clinical trials are done with and drug is good go with production it is the pharmacists who see to the process. 

Drugs are being manufactured as per the pharmacopoeia standards (BP,USP, JP, IP ) and from the manufacturing to the quality control and quality assurance pharmacists are involved.

As of all industries this is also profit oriented and pharmacists face a huge challenge in meeting the best pharmaceutical standards with an affordable cost to the patients with best safety and quality.  

• Clinical trials and post-marketing surveillance

The pharmacist has the knowledge of drugs and health care provision required to facilitate collaboration between companies, health professionals and governments in relation to clinical trials and surveillance.

Drugs are under constant monitoring once introduced to the market and all side effects, adverse events, quality complaints and customer feedback are collected around the globe and pharmacist work day and night to deliver best dosage forms to the patients. 

• Sales and marketing

The pharmacist, whose professional ethics demand a concern for the interest of patients, can make a contribution to proper marketing practices related to health care and to the provision of appropriate information to health professionals and the public .

so the medicines you get from your druggist is not Gods work its the effort of millions of pharmacists and Health care professionals working across the globe to supply you with an appealing dosage form you prefer to swallow when you are really sick!

Cheers the Heroes Behind The Scene !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Piumishh - Bpharm (USJ)

Community , Hospital Pharmacist

Pharmacist in community pharmacy

These are privately owned pharmacies or SPC outlets such as Rajya Osusal 

They are responsible in  

• prescription reviewing - yes your doctor can make mistakes they are human after all!! 

• filling the precription 
  

• providing patient counselling - this may or may not be practiced in community set up as well as in hospitals owing to the long queues in hospitals but its a very important thing that should be performed by the pharmacist to ensure the proper use of drugs by the patient. otherwise most patients will end up swallowing suppositories!!! 

and as patients you have a right to be counselled and ask all your questions and clear your doubts at the pharmacy

• providing OTC medicines - OTC medicines are your non prescription drugs such as paracetamol, Vitamins. you can always go to your pharmacists and get their assistance in OTC products. Specially in a country like Sri Lanka where Ayurveda medicines and herbal medicines are still being used for minor ailments pharmacists have a responsibility in providing information on these multitude of products. Green concepts are healthy still herbal preparations also may have interactions with food and your other medicines so please consult your pharmacist as and when necessary!!!! 

• Extemporaneous preparations - Pharmacists everywhere continue to prepare medicines in the pharmacy. This enables them to adapt the formulation of a medicine to the needs of an individual patient. New developments in drugs and delivery systems may well extend the need for individually adapted medicines and thus increase the pharmacist’s need to continue with pharmacy formulation. In some countries, developed and developing, pharmacists engage in the small-scale manufacture of medicines, which must accord with good manufacturing and distribution practice guidelines.

Hospital Pharmacists 

Hospital pharmacists are of diverse nature but the patients come in contact with the pharmacists who dispense. Other than that its your pharmacists who manages drug records, inventory control, proper storage of all your medicines, maintaining ward pharmacies along with the nursing staff and now in some leading hospitals in private sector " B.Pharm graduates work as Clinical Pharmacists"... 

hospital or institutional pharmacist:

• has more opportunity to interact closely with the prescriber and, therefore, to promote the rational prescribing and use of medicine - this ensue the patient safety.. 

• having access to medical records, is in a position to influence the selection of drugs and dosage regimens, to monitor patient compliance and therapeutic response to drugs, and to recognize and report adverse drug reactions- this is the role of a clinical pharmacists .. they may spend hours of ward round and review the BHT and medical records to make sure the patient recieves the best and most affordable health care. 

• serves as a member of policy-making committees, including those concerned with drug selection, the use of antibiotics, and hospital infections (Drug and Therapeutics Committee) and thereby influences the preparation and composition of an essential-drug list or formulary;

• is in a better position to educate other health professionals about the rational use of drugs;

• takes part in the planning and implementation of clinical trials. 

What does a pharmacist do???

Well your pharmacist is the one who fills your prescription, assists you with your OTC medication and provide medication in an emergency when its unable to access the medical care. Basically pharmacist is your "guy" in the drug store!!!!

Pharmacy is the art and science of manufacturing and dispensing drugs and biological to cure and prevent diseases to preserve health of humanity..... 

The role of a pharmacist in ensuring safety quality and efficacy of medicines is much wider and important. pharmacist play a huge role in providing quality health care for patients around the globe. 

Coming to  Sri Lankan set up where the pharmacists are believed to be mere vendors of drugs it is timely to discuss the role of a pharmacist as a health care professional. 

• pharmacist in community pharmacies
• pharmacists in hospitals
• pharmacists in regulatory affairs 
• pharmacists in industry and manufacturing
• pharmacists in RnD 

these are the most basic roles played by pharmacists in Sri Lankan set up but in global aspect the role is more broader and diverse catering the patient safety and better health care.....