Pharmacy Practice and its Advancements

Dr. Fakhsheena Anjum

Department of Pharmaceutics & Pharmacy Practice, Dow College of Pharmacy, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi, Pakistan.

*Correspondence to: Dr. Fakhsheena Anjum, Department of Pharmaceutics & Pharmacy Practice, Dow College of Pharmacy, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi, Pakistan.

Copyright © 2018 Dr. Fakhsheena Anjum. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

In Pharmacy Practice settings, attention has been moved from the product to the patient in recent years. The pharmacists’ care, (known as Pharmaceutical care), is a process for patients’ care which involves not only the identification of probable and actual drug-related problems but also encompasses their resolution and prevention plans. These activities are carried out by the pharmacists in various specialty practice areas like Ambulatory Care Pharmacy, Critical Care Pharmacy, Oncology Pharmacy, etc. For practice in such diversified fields, a pharmacist should have necessary knowledge and intellectual proficiencies; a local association is necessary to represent pharmacy practitioners along with the professional code of conduct and ethics for the guidance and practice of pharmacists.

The current Pharmacy Practice model is Medication Therapy Management which offers evidence based and team based interdisciplinary care with pharmacists. Various Clinical services like individualized drug therapy, therapy monitoring and adjustments are provided by the pharmacists with cost effective and focused outcomes. The provision of professional services and advice to the patients should be uniform.

In healthcare system, certain drivers of change can bring about transformations in Pharmacy practice. They include the emphasis on quality, safety, outcomes; overall cost; individualized therapies; Diagnostic advances; Preventative care and impact of technology. Technology developments are more accurate, safe and faster than human, yet, one cannot accept that technology is cent percent correct all the time; judgment is required to analyze the work of a machine. In order to ensure successful advancement of the profession, a qualified and proficient team of professional practitioners is required who can render high-quality services with proper documentation of the services and can also educate the patients and other health care professionals.

In Pakistan, there are certain challenges to Pharmacy and Pharmacy Practice that include: development of the Pharm. D curriculum according to the changing scenario globally, necessity of hospital jobs and recognition of practicing pharmacists by medical and paramedical staff in clinical settings, well-defined job responsibilities of practicing pharmacists and renting out of the category license of pharmacist to practice to a non-professional individual. Moreover, many Pakistanis do not even consider pharmacists as health care providers; they are often unaware of the role of the pharmacist in medical/patient care. From the public stance on pharmacy, the pharmacists are performing a product-centered role rather than a patient-centered role, in both hospital and community settings.

The role of today’s pharmacists necessitates development to include pharmaceutical care concepts, in order to make them health care professionals and not merely drug sellers in commercial setups. For this, continuous professional development is required for application into practice which should be self-directed, systematic and outcomes focused. The future of practicing pharmacist is bright if considered as an essential member of healthcare team with focus on complete spectrum of therapy in and across all sites of care, with urbane automation and innovative clinical information systems.