The Karnataka State Pharmacy Council (KSPC), which achieved the registration of 50,000 pharmacists, is now concerned about the dwindling employment opportunities in the field, not just for D Pharm candidates but also for B Pharm and M Pharma candidates.

The Council is of the view that if the state government establishes Drug Information Centres across its 121 taluk hospitals and 31 district hospitals, it would solve much of the underemployment and unemployment problems for the qualified candidates including D Pharm.

“Although, we were able to garner the registration of 50,000th pharmacist, the same was achieved over a period of 50 years and this is a serious concern. The issue is that D Pharm is no longer viewed  as career of choice in Karnataka with the dwindling number of pharmacy colleges and students opting for this career, KSPC president Dr. D A Gundu Rao told Pharmabiz.

Pharmacists graduating from pharmacy colleges are seeking to go abroad for better job opportunities and pay packages as there is serious shortfall of employment opportunities here. Indian pharma industry is seen to be saturated for new openings despite high attrition. There exists a serious mismatch between qualified workforce to job openings, he added.

Pharmacists are apprehensive on the future career prospects. Despite new avenues like hospital and clinical pharmacy, the influx of the six -year Pharm D candidates are seen to be more suitable for postings, he noted.

For a D Pharm, B Pharm and M Pharm candidate, competition is stiff and jobs are scarce. This is where the Council sees the need for Karnataka government known for its robust healthcare initiatives to embark on an aggressive drive to open DICs which would enhance patient safety, said Dr Rao.

“It would give a booster shot to the pharmacist career because he is the only ideal candidate to support the DIC operations.  These centres are seen as dependent  facilities for doctors and nurses, besides monitoring adverse drug reaction. Every government medical centre needs to have a DIC because it is core to patient safety, said the KSPC president.

In the private hospital space, Karnataka has several DICs. These include Vydehi Institute of Medical Sciences, St. Marthas, St. Philomena’s, to name a few.

Since patient flow to taluk-level and government hospitals in Karnataka is huge, a pharmacist’s supervision could ensure correct dispensing and  compounding of medicines. It would help a pharmacist to disseminate his expertise with members of the varied medical specialties. They would not just monitor the procurement but oversee distribution and control of medicines at hospitals. Going by the comprehensive process of evaluation and providing information on the medicines, a team of D Pharm, B Pharm and M Pharm posts could be created, said Dr. Rao, adding that DIC could ease unemployment of pharmacists.