A majority of the 21 colleges applied for starting Pharm D course this year may not get the mandatory approval from the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) as most of these institutions do not possess the required infrastructure to commence this advanced pharmacy course which will bring the pharmacists of the country on par with international standards.

PCI sources said that a total of 21 colleges have applied to the PCI for starting the Pharm D course this year. In the inspections carried out by the PCI, it was found that only four of the 21 colleges applied for the Pharm D course have fulfilled the required criteria to start the course. The PCI had vetted the applications and has conducted physical verification of each of the colleges to ensure that these institutions fulfilled the required specifications to begin this advanced course. Among the 21 institutions, four colleges were rejected outright due to lack of basic requirements to start the course. There are deficiencies in the rest of the 13 colleges and have been asked to rectify it.

PCI chairman Dr B Suresh said that only eight to 10 of the 21 applications can be approved this year as there are major deficiencies in the infrastructure of these colleges. "We want to maintain strict quality in the Pharm D course and there will be no compromise on that," Dr Suresh said.

Last year, the PCI had given approval to 26 colleges across the country to start Pharm D (Doctorate in Pharmacy) course. That time it had received a total of 46 applications from different pharmacy colleges, mostly from the four southern states. Out of the 46 applications, the PCI had rejected six applications due to non-fulfilment of required criteria to qualify to commence this course.

As per the norms, the pharmacy colleges which have come out with its first batch of B Pharm will be qualified to start the Pharm D course. Other major prerequisites for starting the Pharm D course included proper teaching and building infrastructure, tie-up with any 300-bedded hospital or own hospital and prior permission from PCI. Plus 2 students with science as main subject are eligible to join this course which will open up new vistas for the students as the course will have validity all over the world including advanced countries like US, UK, etc.

For the students who have already completed B Pharm course can join the Pharm D (post baccalaureate) course. The duration of the Pharm D course will be for six academic years (5 years of study and one year internship/residency). In the one year internship, a student is exposed to actual pharmacy practice/clinical pharmacy services and acquires skill under supervision so that he/she may become capable of functioning independently.