NAGPUR: Soon, doctors in big corporate hospitals will only prescribe the drugs (technical names of the medicines) and not the brand names to you, which has been a common practice all these years. A specialized health official — ‘clinical pharmacist’ — will be there to select appropriate drugs and dispense the medicines suitable to you, to monitor the progress of your health and to verify the side effects of the drugs.
The post of clinical pharmacist was not in the gazette in India, despite having the six-year Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm D) course running for more than 11 years. On July 5, it was finally included as the notification regarding Pharmacy Practice Regulations, 2015 was out.
Doctor of Pharmacy Association (DOPA), Maharashtra president Dr Vinayak Ghayal said, “As the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) did not create any post called clinical pharmacist in the Pharmacy Practice Regulations (2015), this post has not been included in the policy of the government till now. We were pressing this demand for the last many years. Eventually, the government has issued gazette notification on July 5 and made this post official.”
Pharm D course was introduced on the lines of USA in 2010, where the degree holders are appointed in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, community health centres, pharmacies, drug stores etc. Unlike other pharma graduates or post graduates, Pharm D holders undergo at least one year of clinical rotations in hospitals and develop clinical acumen.
These professionals study human anatomy, biology, medicinal chemistry, molecular pharmacology, toxicology, psychology, health assessment, patient care and diagnosis procedure, along with pharmacy. They also use the ‘Dr’ prefix.
Kailas Tandale, president of Maharashtra Registered Pharmacists Association (MRPA), said, “We welcome this decision of the government which has the potential to bring about much-needed reform in Indian hospital settings.”
DOPA, Maharashtra vice-president Dr Akshay Shelke said, “Now, we want the authorities to utilize our knowledge and skills in the current pandemic scenario. In coming years, we will work at the ground level and create awareness amongst common people.”
ALL ABOUT THE POST
In USA, clinical pharmacists play a key role in providing medication and monitoring patient health
They dispense prescribed medicines to patients and assist doctors
They help doctors in diagnosing, selecting appropriate drugs, monitoring the progress of patients’ health, verifying the side effects of drugs etc.
In addition, they offer counselling to patients on how to lead a healthy lifestyle, conduct health and wellness screenings, take proper immunizations etc
Pharm D degree holders will be appointed as clinical pharmacists in hospitals now
