This has nothing to do with recent global recession. It happened even before the effect of recession was felt in India -- in August last year. Pharmacy colleges throughout India (except Andhra) in general, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in particular, had to satisfy with just 20 to 25 per cent of their seats filled…not just in D. Pharm courses, but even in B. Pharmacy courses. With 75 to 80 per cent of benches empty in front of them,teachers had to take classes! Is it a passing cloud or warning signal ?
This year, all the colleges are sitting with their fingers crossed awaiting what is in store for them. The after-effect of last year shock, the present recession and consequent anxiety has forced many college managements to postpone their plan for expansion, modernization, new recruitments and even annual increment for their staff. What went wrong? Why there are fewer takers for pharmacy courses?
Look what is happening around us. Fearing fewer job opportunities, because of global recession in I.T and other industries, students are reluctant to choose their career in engineering or I.T. A lot of persuasion and counselling is needed to make them accept it is just a passing cloud. Even then engineering colleges are in dilemma, whether they will get full admissions this year or not. Already the admissions are on but the trend is not encouraging. The same is true for pharmacy colleges also. People have started asking questions about openings available after a particular course. They witness large-scale unemployment or job losses among particular professionals and even fear the huge supply disproportionate to demand.
What to do then?
For any profession to survive,there should be opportunity to practice the profession and a reasonable income from it. Pharmacy profession is lacking in these vital needs, hence it has many problems like
● Poor admissions in pharmacy courses
● Under-employment
● Unemployment
● Poor salary etc, etc,
If sufficient job opportunities are provided many of the above problems of pharmacy profession will be solved.
Turning a blind eye
People who should bother about this -- hundreds of pharmacy colleges which offer D.Pharm, B. Pharm, M. Pharm and the newly introduced Pharm. D -- are turning a blind eye towards this. Why even the students in these colleges are also not ready to do anything about it.
Unless there is a job after the course is completed , nobody is going to join for these courses. Few may join because of wrong information or ignorance. However once they realize their mistake, they themselves will spread the message of the bleak future and prevent others from joining the course.
A few years back Tamil Nadu Govt. had closed all the teacher training colleges, for want of jobs and huge unemployment. Later, after 10 years or so, when thousands of teachers retired and job opportunity was bright, hundreds of teacher training colleges were opened throughout Tamil Nadu. Do pharmacists want the same to happen for pharmacy colleges also? Not necessary! There is no dearth for opportunities in pharmacy field. What are in short supply are political will and the courage to fight for it.
Opportunities aplenty:
● Due to poverty, population explosion and rising cost of treatment in private hospitals , there is always huge crowd in our Govt hospitals but the services by pharmacists are inadequate. A lot of pharmacists can be appointed here.
● In Primary Health Centres [PHCs] where there are three doctors, often there is only one (in few places two) pharmacist to dispense, store and account the medicines prescribed by the doctors. No pharmacist accompanies a doctors when he visits any of the sub centres attached to PHCs. Obviously a pharmacist’s job is given to non-pharmacy people. Appoint more pharmacists in PHCs.
● Opening drug information centres in all district hospitals and employing graduate pharmacists in three shifts will create more employment opportunities. Pharmacists should demand it.
● Starting Dept. of Pharmacy services in big hospitals and also clinical pharmacy services by it, is still a distant dream in India even after such services were started in developed countries 30 to 40 years back. Without this job we have introduced Pharm.D course also. Where these Pharm.D holders will be employed in India? G.O.K! (God Only Knows).
Another area of concern in the pharma industry is the lose of jobs to non-pharmacy streams especially to B.Sc and M. Sc chemistry graduates. These science graduates can get jobs from other industries, but where else a pharmacy graduate go other than pharma industry? If the industry finds them less suitable, modify and update the syllabus to suit their needs, but don’t throw them out of their own profession. If employing non - pharmacy people is prevented by amending the relevant act, a lot more of pharmacy graduates will get jobs in the pharma industry. But we have no time to raise this demand and to fight for it !
Upgradation and modernization of the profession is long overdue. D.Pharm should be abolished as proposed by PCI earlier and B.Pharm must be made the minimum qualification for pharmacists. If some states are lacking even in D.Pharm that cannot be an excuse for delaying modernization of a life -saving profession. PCI and all professional associations must convince the central Govt and expose the vested interests in the field.
All the existing D.Pharm holders should be encouraged to complete B.Pharm within a specified time by upgrading the existing D.Pharm colleges. D.Pharm holders should also be encouraged to enrol in these colleges. Concessions like paid holidays or scholarships or education loans can be given to these pharmacists as was suggested by this author earlier. By this scheme , pharmacy colleges will get a new lease of life by enrolling lakhs of students for many years .At the same time the profession will achieve uniformity and get more respectability.
Will the pharmacy college management associations and state govt pharmacists associations support this demand for their own good?
No other way:
Think of any other remedy for the problems of the profession. You cannot get a better alternative. Remember the first line…the recent recession has nothing to do with present situation. The only alternative is to buy the vested interest’s and other ‘intelligent’ people’s argument… that creating job is not Govt’s duty…Go for self employment etc. Listen to it and keep quiet. A day will come when all the pharmacy colleges will have to down shutters for want of admissions. Those who are working there will also have to come out as unemployed. Then we will have to jointly exhibit “THE END” sign.
The author is Ex President, Indian Pharmacy Graduates Association, Madurai