Pharmaceutical Review (www.pharmarev.com). The atrocious view of Ms. Madiha Khalid; Mahidol associated with University, Bangkok, Thailand regarding the new six year curriculum of Pharm D (proposed by HEC, Islamabad) are as under;
I wish to review the exact curriculum finalized by HEC Pakistan. If the attached document is the future curriculum then it is simply hopeless, it seems a mid night effort and a night mare for pharmacists to add further insult to profession in Pakistan.
Let me ask some question from the responsible person(s).
1. Where are the jobs for the potential pharmacist?
2. Where pharmacist stands?
3. What the world demand from a pharmacist?
4. What a pharmacist should do?
5. What will be the future of a pharmacist? Etc, etc
6. Do we want to make our future pharmacist the ONLY Clinical Pharmacist? What about pharmacologist, Clinical research associates, industrial pharmacist, quality control and assurance, Drug rules and regulations, retail pharmacist? Time and age has no worth! will this extra year will not be a burden for industrial (etc) pharmacist or retail pharmacist who has no interest to work in hospital and have nothing to do with it.
7. Did anyone try to get pharmacy as a subject to be approved by CSS like medical subjects? To open a door for pharmacist in bureaucracy as well and to increase the chance of pharmacist in at least appearing and ultimately selection, after six years of education a Pharm D will be outdated already to take any such competition exam, and one of the potential opportunity will be already closed.
8. Now what about Clinical Research/Clinical Trials (other than clinical pharmacy), no one know about it? Or no one wants to work in this field! By the grace of medical doctors and their prescription rights we see this profession in Pakistan is completely occupied by the medical doctors and we have seen the loss of this market because of not having a proper guideline from our educators.
9. Let me tell my friends, In professional terms, a single effort (suggestion, idea, conclusion, policy etc) is appreciated only if a person with such idea is attached with number of degrees (Mphil/PhD), we have seen and observed it already so don’t you think an extra year will reduce a chance of pharmacist to go for Maters/MPhil/PhD program, where there is already an age bracket.
10. Concluding my arguments with a suggestion: instead of increasing years, we should focus in promoting one or two years Maters programs of international level (with or without research work) after minimum years of Pharm D and contributing in the society by providing specialists to work in specific area of profession as per and individual interest e.g.
Master/MPhil in Clinical pharmacy (with or without residency etc)
Master/MPhil in Clinical trials (with or without residency etc)
Masters/MPhil in pharmacognosy (no need of residency)
Masters/MPhil in Quality control and assurance ( QC labs and inspections etc)
Masters/MPhil in Business Management and Marketing (equivalent to MBA)
Masters/MPhil in Pharmacology etc.
Masters/MPhil in Rules and regulations / inspection etc
Regards,
Madiha Khalid; Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.