World Pharmacists Day is celebrated on September 25 every year and the theme for 2024 is "Pharmacists: Meeting global health needs". The day recognises the role of pharmacists in improving global health.
The International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) leads the campaign to raise awareness of the contributions of pharmacists to global health. The day is an opportunity to celebrate the successes of the pharmacy profession, and to advocate for its value and potential to address health challenges.
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Pharmacists are the most accessible health professionals and visible leaders in most communities across the globe. They are health professionals who formulate, preserve, control, and dispense medications and provide advice or counselling on how medications must be used. Pharmacists have an immense impact on medication adherence and compliance. They play an important role in achieving positive health outcomes, fewer hospitalisations, decrease in disease progression and co-morbidities, by being accessible and building relationships with their patients. Pharmacists also play a key role in society by helping patients feel better and are an integral part of every community.
Since Pharmacy is a rewarding as well as a rapidly evolving profession, so all pharmacists must always remain knowledgeable about new treatment guidelines and recent medications approved for treatment. Pharmacists should work alongside other healthcare professionals to improve health outcomes as well as ensure the continuity of care. There are various benefits to having pharmacists on hospital rounds and in ambulatory care settings. Pharmacists are now playing a key role in reducing hospital readmission rates, chronic disease management, and medication therapy management. Nowadays, they are not only part of the medical care team but are also participating in clinics, visiting, and counselling patients.
Pharmacists have the advantage of exercising professional autonomy in choosing their work environment and work hours. They are also capable of redefining their roles in the healthcare setting to provide optimal patient care. They are an integral part of the healthcare team that support clinicians by ensuring patient medication safety and efficacy. The world is currently in a new era of globalisation, where the global health is more integrated than ever before. Hence, pharmacists should be skilled to meet global health needs having qualities with accuracy, communication skills, proof reading, interpersonal skills, multitasking, patient counseling, computer skills, as well as gaining knowledge of professional ethics.
There are many different fields and paths that a pharmacist can choose according to their interest. Few important and demanding specialty areas of the pharmacy are Ambulatory Pharmacy, Critical care Pharmacy, Nuclear Pharmacy, Nutrition support Pharmacy, Oncology Pharmacy, Pediatric Pharmacy, Pharmacotherapy, and Psychiatric Pharmacy. Pharmacists should adopt few qualities that assist themselves in advancing their pharmaceutical profession are:
Create an aim:
Knowing your objective in the pharmacy and where you want to go in this profession will help us operate more efficiently with your goal in mind. You must conduct some study on other pharmaceutical experts for this, including reading their articles and listening to their speeches.
Find a mentor:
The knowledge given by a mentor who works in this field will be more useful. A person with years of experience in this industry can assist you in advancing your pharmaceutical career.
Additional training:
According to where you want to reach in your career, you need additional training. For example, if you want to specialize in Pediatric pharmacy you need more training for it.
Networking:
Networking will help you keep up your position. Being in touch with other pharmacists will help you with their advice and the information that they shared. It will help you to have an idea of what is going on in your field and update you with the latest trends and technologies.
(The author is a Doctor of Pharmacy Scholar. All thoughts and views expressed are the author’s own.)
