Indian Pharmaceutical Association (IPA) is working on a system of accreditation of pharmacies in India in a bid to improve the image of over 5 lakh retail shops. World Health Organisation and the office of the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) will jointly fund the project. For the pilot project, the IPA will be at looking pharmacies in Mumbai and Goa.

"The IPA has started the process by selecting 30 stores each in Mumbai and Goa for trial. We are just testing how it will work in India. These selected shops will be given three months time to comply with the accreditation standards. Once it becomes successful in these stores, we will expand it all over the country," IPA community pharmacy division chairman Raj Vaidya said.

Some of the parameters for getting accreditation included a minimum of 200 sq feet area, preferably air-conditioning to keep the drugs in the cool atmosphere, refrigerator for keeping the vaccines and injections, etc. Once a pharmacy owner applied for accreditation, a two-member IPA team of assessors will make the assessment before giving the accreditation. The IPA has already formed an 8-member team for the purpose, Vaidya said.

In a country where pharmacies are run like grocery shops, the accreditation will go a long way in raising the satisfaction of the customers. At present, people are suspicious of the credibility of most of the pharmacies of the country due to the messy atmosphere prevailing in these medicine-dispensing stores. The accreditation, which will be a voluntary exercise by the pharmacists, is aimed at instilling confidence in the minds of the customers about the product they purchase from these shops.

"Things should improve in pharmacies, as there are suspicions among the people about the activities of the pharmacies in our country. The accreditation, once successfully implemented, will definitely allay the fears of the customers. If a pharmacy shop is accredited by an independent body like IPA, customers' attitude will definitely change," Vaidya said.

Vaidya added that under this accreditation, everything from looks to functioning, personnel, system and facilities will be upgraded. The accreditation is voluntary. The ultimate goal is to upgrade them voluntarily to improve the quality of service and customer satisfaction.

Experts in the industry are of the view that accreditation of pharmacies is a must in future as the present way of running a medical shop is not considered proper. Enforcement of upgradation may not also work to the satisfaction of the customers as there are several lacunae in the rules. It is a fact that the pharmacy shops do not look like a pharmacy shops in the country. There are no pharmacists in the pharmacy stores, no proper bills are given by them and there have been cases of substandard drugs being sold out by these stores.