The appointment of Pharm D professionals at the hospitals will transform the patient safety efforts in India. The big challenge in the healthcare space is the poor communication between the doctor and the patient. This is a growing concern because doctors are not able to interact with the patients for paucity of time, said Dr. Biranchi Jena, Director of Institute of Health Management Research (IIHMR), Bengaluru.

This is where healthcare providers need to utilise the large pool of one million pharmacists not just to enhance communications but also  to reduce the shortfall of health workers in the primary and community health centres.

The IIHMR chief also sees the need for information technology and qualified pool of pharmacists to ease much of the challenges in the healthcare space.

“With a new breed of qualified candidates armed with the six year Pharm D degree emerging from the pharmaceutical colleges in the country could now support the healthcare space. They could ensure the right guidance is provided not just to the patient on drug therapy protocol but also impart information on possible adverse drug interactions and other related issues,” Dr. Jena told Pharmabiz.

With the growing concern on patient care, IIHMR has commenced efforts to train students of medical colleges in Pondicherry like JIPMER, Sri Venkateshwaraa Medical College Hospital and Research Centre and Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital. It  is also working  to replicate the similar  medical and nursing colleges in Kochi, Hyderabad and Chennai for similar initiatives.,” said Dr. Jena.

The presence of a highly qualified pharmacist is the best solution for the prevention of medication errors in the healthcare sector. The close coordination with patients,  medical professionals and nursing staff would ensure constant communication and a surveillance on unsafe  patient safety practices,  he said.

With the experts in the pharma industry calling for prescription audits, it would only be timely if healthcare providers across government and private hospitals create posts to appoint Pharm D professionals.

More over the country is most  sought-after hub for medical tourism and cannot overlook need for patient safety. It is seen that much of the medication errors occur with poor communication and neglecting interactions between doctors and patients which is a  threat to patient care, he said.