Amgbare Ekaunkumo, Yenagoa
The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has appealed to state government across the country to emulate Osun, Edo and Niger State by implementing the pharmacist consultant cadre service within the healthcare system, saying that the scheme would increase training and self-developement of Pharmacists.
The PSN President, Sam Ohuabunwa, stated this in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State Capital, during 8th Annual Peer Review meeting of the Committee of Heads of Pharmacy in Federal Health Institutions in Nigeria.
Speaking further, Pharmacist Ohuabunwa said that the benefits that will accrue to the patients and other healthcare workers, as a result of the implementation of the Pharmacist Consultant Cadre, will be enormous because it would boost the nation’s healthcare delivery system.
He urged PSN state chairmen to start assembling Pharmacists in politics in their various states to form a lobby group to meet with Commissioner of Health to ensure that more states implement the Pharmacist Consultant Cadre in a bid to achieving evidence based practice in the nation’s healthcare system.
He said “already some states like Niger and Edo have started the implementation, while Osun State has given directive for the implementation. We specially thank the management of UCH Ibadan for taking the lead among federal health institutions in Nigeria in implemention of the Pharmacist Consultant Cadre.
“Let me also inform you that PSN is directly involved in the negotiation of harzard allowances for healthcare personnel and other negotiations now with the Federal Government. For the PCN Bill, work is at an advanced stage and by the grace of God we shall emerge victorious.”
Delivering a keynote address titled “Confirming to International Best Practices in Hospital Pharmacy Practice”, Dr. Obi Adigwe identified the challenges of pharmaceutical practice in Nigeria to include the fact that regulations and laws do not permit pharmacists to reach their full potentials, hospital managements view pharmacies as revenue department and non-inclusion of pharmacists in the management of patients medication therapies.
Adigwe, the Director General, National Institute of Pharmaciteucal Research and Development, said that it is expedient for hospital managements to encourage good hospital pharmacy practice, the duty of the Pharmacist is to ensure welfare of patients, help patients make the best use of medicine, promote rational and economic prescription and improve patients safety.
In order to change the narrative, Dr. Adigwe suggested that “a robust strategy is developed to optimize the role of pharmacists, effort should be made to ensure the implementation of pharmacy practice residency program and decentralization of unitary pharmacy department structures into a pharmaceutical services department with independent department that handle distinct functions.”
In his welcome address, the Chairman of the Local Organizing Community of the three day meeting, Dr. Andrew Momo, noted that though the pharmacy practice has undergone tremendous changes over the last decade but that there is need for pharmacists to come together annually to retool the practice in line with global best practices.
“I therefore appeal to all participants to take every bit of the meeting seriously in order to learn, unlearn and relearn so we can be better equipped to deliver good practice in hospitals.”
