Phuture 17 2011

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Message from IPSF

Message from the Phuture coordinator

Dear IPSFers,

Dear IPSFers,

I would like to take this opportunity to present to you the asupplement of IPSF – Phuture 2011. The theme for this year’s edition is “Mapping a New Vision – Translating ideas into practice”. This educational supplement is created with the idea of sharing with all you aspiring young pharmacists some “personal opinions” written by our very own fellow pharmacy students throwing light on the current situation of our profession in their country and how they envision the future of their careers. We have tried to showcase the technological advancements observed in our field through an expert opinion followed by a review on the global status of a major health threat – Tuberculosis.

I am grateful to Bastien and his team for providing the glamour and beauty through their design of the Phuture. I am indebted to Lena K for her constant efforts in compiling and creating this edition. We hope you enjoy reading this as much as we enjoyed building it.

It’s my pleasure to present to you this year’s theme of “Mapping a New Vision-Translating Ideas into Practice”. In this edition we included the personal opinions of our fellow pharmacists, from students to professors, about different aspects of our profession. They are all based on their personal experience and their belief in the significance of these topics in our professional future.

I hope it will inspire you to follow your visions and to create the future as you wish it to be!

Special thanks to Dimple M for all the hard work and her devotion to Phuture, and to Bastien V for the beautiful and creative design.

Enjoy reading!

Lena Kojukarov, ator 2010-11 Phuture coordin

Viva la pharmacie!

Dimple Modi 2010-11 on of Education rs e p ir a h C F S IP

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Table of Contents New Pharmacists, New Media, New Environment, New Issues Prof. Jeff Cain

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Pharmacy Over the Counter B.Pharm Or Moskovich

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Role of Pharmacists in Tuberculosis Management Zamzam Torabi

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Pharmacy in my Generation's Perspective Jasmit Singh Suri

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How my Pharmacy Education Prepared me to be a Pharmacist Asma Khanniche

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New Pharmacists, New Media, New Environment, New Issues Jeff Cain, EdD, MS Adjunct Associate Professor Department of Pharmacy Practice & Science Director of Education Technology University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy 114M BPC Bldg 789 South Limestone St Lexington, KY 40536-0596 (859)257-4429 jeff.cain@uky.edu

those same beliefs and attitudes to an online public then we expose them to the criticisms of tudents today live in an era of that same public. This has led to numerous unprecedented social communication instances of individuals who have been expelled capabilities.

Due to the immense from school1 and even lost jobs because of their popularity of social media platforms such as actions in the online environment. blogs, microblogs (e.g., Twitter) and social networking sites (e.g., Facebook), it is extremely The emerging construct of e-professionalism is simple to share aspects of everyday actions, new and one that practicing healthcare attitudes, and opinions with others. Maintaining professionals and students should comprehend. communications with friends, classmates, and In its most basic form e-professionalism is simply family members has never been easier. an extension of traditional professionalism Because of this, young healthcare professionals attributes (e.g., empathy, integrity, excellence, embarking on their careers face a different set of etc.) to the online setting. Pharmacists and other situations than their predecessors.

E- healthcare professionals are expected to treat professionalism, online reputation management, patients with utmost care and respect. That now and health 2.0 are three new concepts that did applies when conversing with or about them not exist prior to the age of social media. through social media. Face-to-face interactions are no longer the only way that professionalism E-professionalism can be observed and assessed. If you are active on social media, you should consider the Because of social media’s quick ascent to following questions as you prepare to become a worldwide popularity, society has not been able new professional. How do you want to portray to adjust fully to the changes wrought by the yourself to the online public?

Are you openness of social communications. Social comfortable revealing the details of your media is so new that we have not had role opinions, attitudes, and relationships with models from which we learned proper and others? Will you be outspoken regarding your acceptable behavior. Until now, most of our religious and political beliefs? Will you openly privately shared beliefs, attitudes, and opinions criticize others through social media? Which have had little role in the professional aspects of context of your life will dictate your online our lives. However, once we voluntarily share persona? Do you care about how others

Introduction

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perceive you through social media? If you offend someone with what you say or do online, how might that affect your career?

If you examine e-professionalism from the employer’s perspective, you should be able to see the importance. No employer wants an employee who portrays a negative image and runs the risk of alienating patients or other professionals. How one is perceived by his/her patients is a significant matter. It would be difficult for patients to trust a pharmacist who is known to use social media to copmlain incessantly about negative interactions with patients.

These are just a few of the issues to take into consideration. For those who have grown up in the online environment, you may not have given these questions much thought. For those who have lived in a society pre-dating social media, these questions are ever present. Ten years ago, it was easy to separate the different roles we played and contexts in which we lived because they were usually separated by time and space. However, that is no longer the case for social media users. The line between public and private has been blurred beyond recognition.

Whether it is right or wrong, traditionally private information may be considered public if voluntarily published online.

Personal branding management

and

reputation

What is your personal online brand? In other words, if someone were to know you only from your information on blogs, microblogs, and social networking sites, what would the impression be?

As online technologies become more prevalent in all aspects of our lives, your online brand will become an important extension of yourself.

Pharmacists have the opportunity to “define” who they are to the online public. “Online reputation management” is a relatively new concept pertaining to how an individual or organization manages and maintains the impression generated through their online presence. It is very common (and almost second nature for many) to use a search engine (eg, Google) or social networking site to discover information about someone. Individuals, especially young professionals, should project an impression that does not conflict with career goals. The reason is that others in authority positions may seek additional information about you when evaluating you for jobs, fellowships, residency positions, or other career-related honors. The online persona that one projects through blogs, social networking, and other social media applications may influence one’s opinion of your character, judgment, and even professional abilities. Many younger healthcare professionals have missed opportunities due to information discovered through online searches. What may be even more troublesome is that those individuals are probably not even aware that this information negatively impacted their careers.

Most employers will not reveal to an unsuccessful

Like many others, the pharmacy profession can be stressful at times. Sharing job frustrations is one method of reducing that stress. If done in private, complaints about the job, patients, or fellow professionals are usually innocuous.

However, when the grumblings enter the digital sphere, especially through social media, the situation becomes more tenuous as it now is open to a much larger audience. Social networking posts and blogs that expose attitudes contrary to those espoused by the profession may begin to erode the trust and respect that patients have for pharmacists. While blogging about stressful encounters may serve as a release valve and humanize pharmacists, they can also portray the profession in a negative fashion. This is not to say that all social media posts describing problems or issues are negative. There are several examples of pharmacists who are adept at depicting issues in a way that is not demeaning or “whiney”. Using social media to present constructive criticisms is a way for pharmacists to potentially influence the profession in a positive manner by bringing attention to the issues. “Pharmacist’s Place” (http://www.pharmacistplace.com) and “Eric, Pharmacist” (http://eric-rph.blogspot.com) are two prime examples of blogs that seek to advance the profession rather than broadcast anger and vitriol.

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candidate that they were not offered a position due to an offensive Facebook comment.

Instead, they will suggest that someone else was a better fit for the organization or more qualified for the position. If you have not already performed an online search for yourself, do so from the perspective of a potential employer.

What does that information reveal about you?

Do your posts, comments, photos, and group affiliations reflect positively or negatively upon you as a healthcare professional?

major role in impacting health through the use of social media. While popular social networking sites like Facebook and Hi5 may not be the best platform for sharing healthcare information, other social media applications excel at this. For example, PatientsLikeMe (http://www.patientslikeme.com) embodies principles of participatory medicine by empowering individuals to share with and learn from others who have similar afflictions.

Healthcare providers are available to vet information for accuracy. Communications are open and data is voluntarily shared in order to promote healthcare advances on the individual and at the population level. This is in sharp contrast with traditional healthcare models that typically prevent transparency and data sharing for various reasons. Your future role as a pharmacist might involve expanded use of social media to evaluate, recommend, and ensure accurate healthcare information for patients and other professionals..

Health 2.0 In addition to the major role played in social communications, pharmacy students should be aware that healthcare and social media are now crossing paths. Health 2.0 (sometimes referred to as “Medicine 2.0�) is defined differently by different groups, but in general refers to patient involvement in their healthcare aided by Web 2.0 technologies. The vast majority of pharmacy (or any other) professors have not experienced this phenomenon; therefore, it is unlikely that many students are currently receiving formal training in this area. This means that students are entering uncharted territory and will need to adapt to the world of Health 2.0 by learning how to navigate through the issues and opportunities.

Health 2.0 also refers to how members of the healthcare environment (patients, healthcare professionals, biomedical researchers, etc.) utilize social media to connect, share, and learn.

PharmQD (http://www.pharmqd.com) is one example of a professional social networking site for pharmacists. PharmQD was created by pharmacists for pharmacists and was designed to enhance individual and collective understanding of professional pharmacy issues and to help members create and maintain connections with pharmacy peers and employers.

With the push towards patient participation in their healthcare and the increasing use of the internet for information, healthcare professionals’ roles are slowly evolving from that of gatekeeper to more of a caretaker. However, numerous opportunities exist for pharmacists to play a 7

Conclusion As you enter the professional field of pharmacy, you will be confronted with challenges and opportunities that have not previously been encountered. Each individual must decide for him/herself what it means to be a healthcare professional in the era of social media.You will need to define your online presence by carefully considering your conversations and affiliations in online spaces. Even if you choose to use social networking for non-professional reasons only, you should still be aware of your digital footprint and what is says about you as a person. Ethical or not, you may be judged professionally by how you present yourself to the online public. If you really want to be progressive, then stay abreast of developments pertaining to Health 2.0 and consider how you as a pharmacist can take advantage of these new communication capabilities to positively affect healthcare. You will probably still perform a traditional role in a pharmacy or in the hospital, but you can enlarge this role (and hence make yourself more valuable) through innovative uses of technology. The opportunities will continue to expand and probably at a rapid pace, so pay attention and set a positive example for students who follow you.

References

Resources : 1.

Morris A. Nursing student dismissed over blog posts. Available at: http://internetdefamationblog.com/2009/03/14/nursing-student-dismissed-over-blog-posts/.

Accessed July 10, 2010.

2.

Smith C, Kanalley C. Fired over Facebook: 13 posts that got people CANNED. Available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/26/fired-over-facebook-posts_n_659170.html. Accessed April 29, 2011.

3.

Cain J, Romanelli F. E-professionalism: A new paradigm for a digital age. Currents Pharm Teach Learn. 2009;1(2):66-70.

4.

Evans T, Gerwitz AE. E-Professionalism Dos and Don'ts. Available at: http://www.tourolaw.edu/cso/docs/eprofessionalism.pdf. Accessed April 25, 2011.

5.

Thompson LA, Dawson K, Ferdig R, et al. The intersection of online social networking with medical professionalism.J Gen Intern Med. 2008;23:954-957.

6.

Cain J, Dillon G. Analysis of pharmacy-centric blogs: Types, discourse themes, and issues.

J Am Pharm Assoc. 2010;50:714-719.

7.

Clauson KA, Elkins J, Goncz CE. Use of blogs by pharmacists.Am JHealth-sys Pharm.

2010;67(23):2043-2048.

8.

Dutta S. Managing yourself: What's your personal social media strategy? Harvard Bus Rev. 2010;88(11):127-130.

9.

Madden M, Smith A. Reputation management and social media. Available at: http://pewinternet.org/~/media//Files/Reports/2010/PIP_Reputation_Management_with_topline.pdf.

Accessed April 28, 2011.

10.

Eysenbach G. Medicine 2.0: Social networking, collaboration, participation, apomediation, and openness. J Med Internet Res. 2008;10(3):e22.

11.

Eytan T. e-patients: Participate in defining "Health 2.0". Available at: http://www.tedeytan.com/2008/05/07/917. Accessed April 28, 2011.

12.

Bottles K. Patients, doctors and health 2.0 tools. Physician Exec.2009;35(4):22-25.

13.

Cain J, Romanelli F, Fox B. Pharmacy, social media, and health: Opportunity for impact. J Am Pharm Assoc. 2010;50(6).

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Pharmacy Over the Counter Or Moskovich Graduating 4th year pharmacy student School of Pharmacy, Ben-Gurion university of the Negev.

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of polypharmacy in the elderly, are all providing this need with the fuel to only increase demand more. But who will provide the solution for this ever growing problem? The pharmacist is, of course, the natural answer. The increasing complexity of drug therapy described earlier and the state of most national health systems leads to the following fact: Medical doctors and nurses cannot stand alone on the front lines of patient caregiving.

or students, taking a little glimpse of what the future may or should hold for our profession as a whole is often put aside for more pressing matters in the everyday exhausting routine of hard studying, job chasing and occasional partying. Unfortunately, true change starts from the bottom up, so on top of our other duties it is also highly important for us students and soon-to-be graduates to take an active role in mapping out the future of pharmacy as a profession.

It is true that pharmacists in some places of the world are already an integral part of the health providing team, and that the field of clinical pharmacy is growing and developing, but it’s not enough. Taking a quick look into the wonderful world of drug-related problems is the key to understanding this fact. Drug-related problems (DRPs) are defined as ill outcomes of the drug therapy process. It can occur in any stage of the pharmacotherapy procedure- from prescribing to dispensing to following the drug therapy regimen.

The literature indicates that the incidence of hospitalizations caused by DRPs is approximately 4-7%. DRPs are related to considerable morbidity, mortality and substantial financial burdens. About 50% of total DRPs are considered avoidable – that the underlying reason for them is either a medical error, like prescribing the wrong drug, or lack of compliance to the pharmacotherapy regimen.

In this day and age the need for professional personal in the field of pharmacotherapy is bigger than ever. The major advances in the different fields of medicine and pharmacology, such as pharmacogenomics, drug delivery systems, the complexity of drug therapy in managing various chronic conditions like diabetes mellitus, hypertension and other cardiovascular morbidities, different kinds of cancer, etc, along with the growing phenomenon

I met those problems face to face last summer when I took part in research designed to assess the incidence nature and outcomes of DRPs in a government hospital in Israel (Hillel-Yaffe, 9

Hedera). In the course of our research we found that about half of the DRPs that eventually resulted in hospitalization (about 7%) were in fact avoidable. The majority of these were linked to lack of compliance. Most of the patients that suffered the consequences of the DRPs had a chronic condition like diabetes mellitus or heart disease. Not at all surprising, considering the growing prevalence of different chronic conditions. For example, according to current trends more than 360 million individuals will suffer from diabetes mellitus by the year 2030.

patients that have a complex treatment regimen and/or compliance problems on a regular basis.

It may sound unusual, but projects like this (mostly with diabetic patients) already exist, and some of them show very good results. Most of the individuals in my class and I participated in a project that provided guidance and counseling for diabetic patients in the community. Every student held meetings with his patients throughout the semester. In those meetings the students explained to their patients the different aspects of their disease and guided them as to how to use their medications in the correct In light of those facts, as I see it from my humble manner. The students also provided their position of a student that is about to start his patients with moral support and the feeling of hospital internship, the pharmacy profession’s solidarity. Although there were certain difficulties future needs to be shifted more towards the with the process, a lot of the patients showed prevention of DRPs, as well as optimizing and improvement. They had better control of their individualizing personal health care. Those glucose levels, improved HbA1C’s, and better improvements must happen in both the hospital general well-being. Projects like that can take the and community settings. Suitable changes in the pharmacy occupation another step forward. academic curriculum are needed in order to give students and new graduates the tools to reach Making other pharmaceutical services, such as the goal of individual health care optimization. individualized drug counseling and drug therapy Effective ways to approach and guide patients, review more available to the general public is together with further deepening of clinical another way to improve the future of care studies, are among the essential topics that have through pharmacy. All of those changes must of to be present in current and future curriculums. course be accompanied with the proper infrastructure.

In the hospital setting the role of clinical pharmacists needs to be further defined. In Greek mythology, Ascelpius, the god of However besides clinical pharmacy, other medicine, delegated the role of compounding pharmacists in the hospital can also have an medicines to his daughter Hygieia. While her important role in providing the patients with father’s duty was most associated with direct proper guidance. Pharmacists should counsel healing, she was responsible for the prevention patients about how to use their medications as of sickness and the continuation of good health. part of the discharging process. They can also The past seems more relevant than ever… play a role in the detection of DRPs in patients that arrive to the ER as a part of the patient In conclusion, to stay relevant the future screening process, and also detect possible pharmacist should probably leave the safety of drug/drug or drug/food or herbal remedy the counter, and be a more “over the counter” interactions after the patient admission is kind of professional. completed. Pharmacists can also take part in certain aspects of patient monitoring as a part of the hospital’s pharmaceutical care.

In the community setting, a suitable infrastructure needs to be built so that the pharmacist will be able to properly counsel the patient, rather than just sell a drug. They could even guide chronic 12

Role of Pharmacists in Tuberculosis Management

Zamzam Torabi ,third year pharmacy student Semmelwies University

Provisional analysis of this data by age and gender indicates that women account for an B is a curable disease only if patients are estimated 3.6 million cases. Most of these given a complete and uninterrupted course estimated cases in 2008 occurred in Asia (55%) of drug therapy and if they take these and Africa (30%). medications as prescribed. Pharmacists have an important role to play in the management and Why, in defiance of efforts to stop TB, does it prevention of TB especially in aspects related to still kill millions of people each year? improving availability and accessibility of drug treatment, improving adherence to therapy and 1.The Menace Of HIV/AIDS educating patients on the treatment and on the 2.The Increase Of The World's Poor disease.

3.Poor health facilities in impoverished countries 4.Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis 5.Immigration: The Developed World's Problem

Introduction

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Role of the Pharmacist

General facts about Tuberculosis According to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Tuberculosis Control short update to the 2009 report, there is an estimated incidence of 9.4 million cases of tuberculosis (TB) globally.

Pharmacists may not be aware of the recent trends in tuberculosis resistance or of the impact that they can have on educating the public about this disease. The main objectives of the Pharmaceutical Management for Tuberculosis Manual include: •Providing data on TB pharmaceutical management practices •Identifying ways to improve the pharmaceutical management system •Monitoring to ensure an uninterrupted supply of quality TB medicines •Creating country-based operations research capacity by transferring this self assessment technology .

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Pharmacists can deliver quality treatment and care for HIV and TB patients and take part in this process efficiently by: •Maintaining high standards of pharmacy practice and observing any official codes of practice •Working as members of multi-disciplinary healthcare teams •Acquiring skills in patient counseling.

•Promoting holistic and wellness concepts to HIV positive and TB patients and providing psychosocial support or referral to support service providers.

•Supporting families within nationally approved guidelines on MCH supported by the respective governments, or referring patients to appropriate facilities, where they are available.

•Recording and notifying incidents of observed drug resistance

requirements.

•Assisting major data collecting agencies to strengthen and improve systems for the strategic use of HIV/AIDS, TB and MCH related information, providing information on counseling and testing services, and providing consumer information on sexually transmitted infections, including referral services.

•Participating in community, school and faithbased activities Pharmacists and government: As the government has direct access to the country’s statistics, has a strong influence among organizations and owns the tool required to help reach the goal of stopping such global diseases, it is important to have the appropriate communication with government and health administration.

Main goals of pharmaceutical regarding the government can be:

actions

•Build working relationships with politicians and officials within the respective national and local ministries of health •Contribute to policy development and implementation as it relates to pharmacy practice, pharmacy education and public health (with special focus on reducing stigma and discrimination) •Advocate for and assist the government and appropriate agencies to combat the importation and distribution of counterfeit and substandard medications.

•Advocate and negotiate with governments to increase patient access to affordable and sustainable antiretroviral therapy for antenatal patients where appropriate.

Private pharmacies, their role and facts The role of the pharmacist in collaboration with other organizations The private sector offers an acceptable but nonaffordable service for many TB patients. A Working collaboratively, the Pharmaceutical substantial amount of anti-TB drugs are being Associations and their sold in private pharmacies, and therefore a members can maximize impact by: potential role for pharmacists to play in •Interacting with networks of people living with collaborative efforts between the private and HIV and TB to better meet their needs and public sector in TB control exists. In contrast of 14

the helping aspect of private pharmacies, in many cases violation of the laws in private pharmacies may amplify the disease.

Research done in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) Vietnam has estimated that between 1100 and 3400 people buy anti-tuberculosis drugs each month in the 1814 registered private pharmacies in HCMC, and that about a quarter of them do so without a prescription. At least 40% of all antituberculosis drug dispensing in HCMC occurs in the private sector.

patients who did not. The attendance at scheduled visits and urine screen for the presence of isoniazid metabolites yielded better results for adherence in the EDU group, while medication counts did not differ between the two groups.

The important conclusion is that patients’ adherence to TB treatment improved when a pharmacist provided patient education on medication use and addressed patients’ pharmaceutical care issues.

Conclusion

Effect of pharmacist-led patient education on adherence to tuberculosis treatment Pharmacists already contribute to the safe and effective use of medicines throughout the To assess the effect of a clinical pharmacist healthcare system. They also have a critical directed patient education program on the responsibility towards ensuring a consistent therapy adherence of first-time tuberculosis (TB) supply of medicines, promoting rational use of patients and to identify the major pharmaceutical drugs and providing information to patients and care needs and issues of first-time TB and this should be no different for anti-TB multidrug-resistant (MDR)-TB patients, research medications. The private and public sector need was done by several scientists and published in to work together if TB is to be brought under the American Journal of Health-Systems control.

Pharmacy in 2007.

Government needs to begin to involve the private sector in tuberculosis control programs, so as to The final results showed that the adherence in ensure a more comprehensive management of patients who received pharmacist directed TB patients. patient education was greater than that of

Resources : 1.Treatment of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis and role of the pharmacist , Mitrzyk BM. 2008 Oct;28 2.TB management . By Gail Mkele, BPharm, MSc(Med)Pharm SA Pharmaceutical Journal – March 2010 3.Indian Pharmaceutical association The Chennai Statement ,the Role of the Pharmacist ,in the Prevention & Management of HIV/AIDS and in Maternal and Child Health (MCH) and Tuberculosis (TB),2010 4.The Role of Pharmacists in Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Yvette C. Terrie, RPh .Published Online: August 1st 2003 in http://www.pharmacytimes.com 5.Global Tuberculosis Control.

A short update to the 2009 report. http://www.who.int/tb/publications/global_repor 6.Private pharmacies and tuberculosis control ,Lönnroth K, Lambregts K, Nhien DT, Quy HT, Diwan VK. in http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ 7.Effect of pharmacist-led patient education on adherence to tuberculosis treatment Philip M. Clark, Turan Karagoz, Sule Apikoglu-Rabus andFikret Vehbi Izzettin , American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy, Vol. 64, Issue 5, 497-505 15

Pharmacist in my Generation’s Perspective

Jasmit Singh Suri Indian Pharmaceutical Association – Student’s Forum

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elving into the thought processes of a particular profession, especially in the health care arena, is a tough proposition.

The values and goals of a profession cannot be easily defined. There is historical data to be accounted for, as well as a wealth of anecdotal information and observations. But nothing quite takes you to the heart of a matter like a personal one-on-one conversation. Capturing feelings and thoughts in one’s own words and then quantifying them into statistically significant analyses provides a valuable insight in understanding the aspects of a profession.

Here, an effort is made to bring out the common perspective of my generation towards this noble profession of pharmacy by presenting this essay using my personal opinion along with some general public discussion.

Every coin has two faces, one winning side and one losing side, but it is never pre-determined whether a side is doomed to win or lose. One’s own actions and decisions make him/her lose or win. Pharmacy by default is like such a coin, where if one is more basic and spiritual in belief, he will tend to do great towards humanity and nature, but on the other side, if a person is more materialistic in his actions &decisions, he brings out a little ugly side of this noble profession.

Let us try to evaluate & dwell into our generation’s mind and ponder upon the latest views of pharmacy. To understand the depth and essence of this profession over the generations, we begin with a simple question:-What does a

pharmacist of today actually do?

Previous generations had a variety of answers.

A general answer is-“He is an individual in the back of a dispensary wearing a white coat and counting pills”. So, here we see that pharmacy is being set in minds of people of previous generation as a money-making job. Another very interesting answer to the question is-“an individual with some sort of medical degree (though less valuable than a doctor) and working in a medical shop”. Now, here you see people had limited the pharmacist’s role to just a dispensing counter and to a profession not as valuable as a doctor.

Brushing aside these previous generation’s opinions, we now move on today’s generation of pharmacists & students and their views on this noble profession. There are basically two categories of views: - one is business oriented and the other is research oriented. These two categories are seen in most pharmacy students these days, along with a perfect mixture of the 3rd kind- the serving nature.

To begin with the first kind- the business oriented, we bring out a simple but amazing quote – “it is not in the hands of a customer to understand a commodity’s use, but it is the art of the seller to bring to light the importance of it”.

Today’s students studying pharmacy aim high to generate cash out of this highly ranked profession. Pharmacy today is not just a lifesaving profession, it has become a source of plentiful penny too. Some of the students have

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clear cut goals to open a factory or a pharmacy to begin their career and make it big, while others have dreams of obtaining a highly paid job as a retailer or a pharmacist in already well established companies, thus offering their share of expertise towards this noble profession which too requires market and management.

Another portion of students fall into the second category of research oriented. In this second category, students are generally more innovative and focused on doing something big in regards to research and development, and for keeping the spirit of this profession. Also, along with being determined and intelligent, they are frequent opportunity seekers, thus making themselves career oriented in some aspects. They do well within research & tend to shift towards more famous establishments in order to gain publications to publish their discoveries, thus contributing significantly towards this noble profession by drug discovery, testing and maintaining good public health.

These three kinds of views have added variety to the noble profession of pharmacy today. The word noble has been used extensively throughout this article in order to bring out the essence of this profession, which has always been constituted mainly of the services of the third kind, the dedication and intelligence of the second kind and the field work of the first kind in the ratio of 3:2:1.

Today’s general perception of making money, providing management and building a career out of this field of expertise is justified when we look at it in light of the ever increasing economy and population growth, market growth and increasing advancements. The market for pharmaceutical drugs offers great opportunities and moneymaking platforms, but in this race for money, one should never forget to contribute his/her share towards humanity and mankind.

It is often seen today that newly minted graduates try to manage & help with the medication regimens of patients with chronic diseases, by looking for services in hospitals or clinics, and not just in retail pharmacies.

Today, if the materialistic thought prevails in society, an ethical sector too has grown over time. If students of today are aspiring to acheive acash generating career out of this noble profession, they too are getting more involved with the modern benefits of this profession.

Today, pharmacy is not just being limited to doing community service or to sell drugs, it has crossed its boundaries to explore the horizons of public awareness, drug discovery, doctor assistance and patient counseling too.

TThe third kind often seen in today’s generation are those who are more service oriented. Today’s generation tries to gain experience and derive pleasure out of this career and pay off their share of duties and responsibility towards nature and mankind. They seek respect, love and words of appreciation seldom. Along with generating revenues they devote themselves to the local hospitals, in the rural tribes and to the sick and the wounded, just like the older generations of pharmacists.

This essay is to be concluded with a very wise thought which today’s generation still keeps in mind even while making cash out of it, that: “Pharmacy is not about just ‘counter-selling’ of the drugs to the needy and the sick, it is more about patient counseling and drug discovery”.

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How my Pharmacy Education Prepared Me to Be a Pharmacist Written by: Asma Khanniche, a pharmacy graduate.

Shanghai Jiao Tong University-School of Medicine Email: asmakhanniche@gmail.com Tel: +8615921044839

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s a little girl, I used to be a dreamer. I grew up and my dreams grew up with me.

When I got my high school degree, I was the first on my province and among the first twenty in my country (Algeria).My marks allowed me to study any major I wanted to. In Algeria the best students choose to study medicine or dentistry, and my family was expecting me to do so. However, my interest in drugs discovery and helping the sick sparked my passion for pharmacy .I could not find anything more satisfying than being involved in saving lives by dispensing medication or contributing to research on new drugs and vaccines. At that moment, I realized that I was destined to be a pharmacist.

A major that crosses many disciplines I entered pharmacy school full of excitement and I was prepared to endure its hardships and overcome its challenges. The education program was rich and diversified and comprised of three main components: Basic sciences, pharmaceutical sciences and the internship.

Through the first two years I was learning about natural and basic sciences on different levels, I got several classes of: Biology, Chemistry, Anatomy, Physiology, Genetics‌etc.

It was fascinating to learn about the biological and the chemical make-up of the human body and the innumerable processes that are occurring constantly inside us. After acquiring the basics of pharmacy, I started the advanced program and learned in great detail about the different medicines from different perspectives.

The program explored ideas and principles in more depth. A broad range of topics were

covered and the connections between them were emphasized as well as their relation to pharmacy. The Pharmacology and Galenics courses gave me above all the feeling I was waiting for, the feeling of being a drug expert!

The classes offered me the chance to practice as an industrial pharmacist, and contributed to deepening my understanding of the mechanism of action of drugs, their clinical indications, their different pharmaceutical forms and preparations, and the list goes on. The curriculum also included classes of pharmaceutical law and management that taught me the laws and regulations governing the health care system in my country and distilled in me the good sense and the ability to be cunning in difficult situations.

I liked the diversification of subjects and enjoyed most of my classes. However, I was not very satisfied with the clinical practice, and I hope the program will offer a broader range of practice opportunities to the students; and I wish that better educational methods will be taken into consideration, including moving from a lecturebased to a problem-based learning curriculum.

Life outside the classrooms and the labs was interesting; away from the scientific courses I got the opportunity to be actively involved in volunteer work and school activities. I got extra classes in first aid that were of great benefit.

Pharmacy education opens doors for future careers During my final year, the school offered me a hospital internship consisting of several rotations, covering the hospital pharmacy and three different laboratories .It was an amazing experience that gave me the chance to put into

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practice the education I got through the past several years and also the opportunity to explore both hospital pharmacy and laboratory research as future careers; my thesis project allowed me to make my first steps into the scientific research world. By the time my last year of pharmacy was underway, I started looking back through all the past years with a criticizing spirit, I realized that many aspects of my education could be improved, so that the next generations will enjoy better education and get more skills. Therefore I think it is important that the education program focuses more on improving the interpersonal skills necessary for future pharmacists while interacting with patients and other healthcare professionals; and also helping them integrate pharmacotherapeutic knowledge, problem solving skills, and communication skills into their daily practice. Furthermore, it would be interesting if the school would consider expanding strategic collaboration with other health disciplines and in the community to establish participatory leadership programs, pharmacy practice experiences, a virtual portfolio and research activities that not only provide health and wellness programs to a populace, but monitor and evaluate the associated outcomes of these efforts.

Lessons for life Through those five years, I learned the meaning of perseverance and diligence, and that being a pharmacist requires a great deal of commitment.

I realized how essential the roles of pharmacists are to improve patient adherence to drug therapy and ensure optimal therapeutic outcomes.

Moreover, the multifaceted education I received allowed me to speak multiple languages such as the language of genetics, the language of biochemistry and pharmacology and many others, and most of all showed me how to integrate all of it. At the end of my journey, I graduated from my school as a valedictorian and got a scholarship to follow further studies, I am currently completing a master program in Immunology, as I am interested in practicing in an academic institution or more advanced clinical settings. The adventure I lived in pharmacy school was amazing, full of joy and excitement, and it was also rewarding and opened doors for me. Now that I am out of pharmacy school, I can see clearly how that experience forged my personality, raised my scientific spirit and aroused my curiosity to seek more knowledge.

References: 1.

Anne Marie Whelan, David Yung. Moving from a lecture based to a problem based learning curriculum perception of preparedness for practice. Pharmacy education journal. 2007.Volume7Isuue3 2.

Jennifer Silverthorne. Student perceptions of group function in a pharmacy Problem-Based Learning course. Pharmacy education journal. 2009. Volume 9-Issue 1.

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Michael S. Evaluation of Clinical Skills in Pharmaceutical Education: Past, Present and Future.

Am J Pharm Educ. 1995.

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Charlene Y. The Role of Colleges and Schools of Pharmacy in the Advent of Healthy People 2020. Am J Pharm Educ. 2011;71 3Article 56 5.

Smith RE, Kerr RA, Nahata MC, Roche VF, Wells BG, Maine LL. Engaging communities: Academic pharmacy addressing unmet public health needs: Report of the 2004-05 Argus Commission. Am J Pharm Educ. 2005;69 5Article S22.

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O'Neil C, Berdine H. Experiential Education at a university-based wellness center. Am J Pharm Educ. 2007;71 3Article 49 7.

Patterson B. An advanced pharmacy practice experience in public health. Am J Pharm Educ.

2008;72 5Article 125 8.

Popovich NG, Katz NL. Evaluation of a microteaching exercise to help develop specific performance-based abilities in pharmacy students. Am J Pharm Educ. 2009;73 (4) Article 73.

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