The Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) has recommended to the Karnataka government to make it mandatory for all hospitals with a bed strength of 100 to appoint one Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm. D).

The state government will also need to make provisions for appointment of Pharm.D qualified students in government hospitals, dispensaries and primary health centres, Prof. S. Mohan, Dean, Faculty of Pharmacy, RGUHS, Karnataka and Director, PES College of Pharmacy, told Pharmabiz.

There are 65 pharmacy colleges coming under RGUHS, of which 19 offer Pharm D course.  The colleges submitted a memorandum to the state health and family welfare minister UT Khader and also to the medical education minister Dr. Sharanprakash Patil, calling upon them to make provisions for the appointment of Pharm. D. qualified students in government hospitals, dispensaries and primary health centres.

The memorandum insisted for the post for clinical pharmacist in each government and private hospitals in Karnataka, recognition of role of clinical pharmacist in hospitals and community.

In 2014, the first batch of the Pharm D graduated across colleges. There are over 20,000 hospitals in India and 10 of which are Joint Commission International accredited and over 70 National Accreditation Board for Healthcare & Hospital Providers (NABH) certified in India. In addition, there are 400 medical colleges and corporate healthcare providers established in the country and many more new facilities are coming up to cater to the treatment needs of its 1.2 billion population.

According to Prof. Mohan, it was the Union government through its Gazette Notification Ref: letter No.V.13013/1/2007-PMS, March 13, 2008 approved the regulations of Pharm D course. Now they should mandate the hiring of these qualified candidates.

As per section 10 of the Pharmacy Act, 1948, the Pharmacy Council of India (No.14-126/2007-PCI), with the approval of the Central Government sanctioned the commencement of the 6-year Pharm D programme to cater to the needs of patients and doctors on par with the developed countries. “Now we need to ensure that these candidates are suitably employed as their services are indispensable for healthcare providers,” Prof. Mohan said.

The Pharmacy Council of India in consultation with foreign universities designed the curriculum and has ensured that the students with Pharm D qualification are accepted in foreign countries for jobs.

Now the role of a Pharm D is to guide and provide the right drug at right time in the right dose. They will ensure creation of a clinical pharmacy services in hospitals. It will include
poison information service, patient counseling, adverse drug reaction monitoring and reporting mechanism, besides focus on drug-disease integration management, dosage adjustment, pharmacovigilance, pharmacoeconomics, community patient education, primary issues of drug related problems, among others, said Prof. Mohan.

The course design allows both doctors and patients will be benefitted with the services of these Pharm D qualified professionals. These candidates are being employed in corporate hospitals as clinical pharmacists. But it is important to ensure that their services can be utilised in government hospitals, PHCs and dispensaries. The paucity of doctors to render services in villages and remote places can be overcome by making provision for the appointment of Pharm D candidates, pointed out Prof. Mohan.