Need more pharmacists in Uganda
The world commemorated the World Health Workers Week from April 1-7. The week is meant to celebrate the amazing work done by health workers and to raise awareness on the challenges they face. “Most importantly, it is to provide an opportunity to fill in the gaps in the health work force by calling on those in power to ensure that health workers have the training, supplies and support they need to do their job effectively”.
Public discourse on human resource in the health sector rarely talks about pharmacists yet they play a critical role in the delivery of healthcare, and are the most accessible healthcare professionals.
Currently, Uganda has three universities that offer a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy. They are Makerere University, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, and Kampala International University. According to the Annual Pharmaceutical Sector Performance Report 2017-2018, 189 students enrolled in the pharmacy school and 101 graduated, this signifies 53 per cent completion.
Records from the Pharmaceutical Society of Uganda show that a total of 1,010 licensed pharmacists are practising in public and private sector (2017/2018). The percentage of pharmacists in public positions filled is 56 per cent.
Analysing statistics above points to acute shortage of pharmaceutical human resource in Uganda’s healthcare system. There is need to train more pharmacists not just to address the shortage, but also to meet the emerging changes in the landscape of pharmacy practice globally that is becoming clinically oriented, integrated with technology, and offering service such as vaccination.
Pharmacy education needs to be adopted to meet these changes as pharmacists are being made more socially accountable for their role in healthcare.
One way this could be done is by changing the curriculum to be more inclusive of more clinical time , industry and , pharmacy technology. It would develop a competent professionally educated workforce, for example, pharmacists practitioners, pharmaceutical students, pre-service students and pharmacy support work force. Policy makers should make healthcare more inclusive of pharmacists and continue to make them accountable for their role in healthcare delivery.
The government should work on increasing the number of pharmacy schools across the country. Globally, pharmacy education is moving away from Bachelor of Pharmacy towards Doctorate of Pharmacy, which is more clinically-oriented. Pharmacy schools in Uganda should consider the same. As rightly stated in National Pharmaceutical Sector Strategic Plan 2015-2020, there is need to train pharmacists in specialities such as clinical pharmacy, radio pharmaceuticals, pharmaco-economics, etc.
Research has shown better patient outcomes of drug therapy when pharmacists are involved in their management. There is reduced adverse drug reactions and drug interactions, proper doses administered, more patient follow up, and patients better educated about their medicines. More pharmacists in the population will increase access to medicines, optimise use, and save money from misuse on medicines.
Gloria Joseline Imodia,
[email protected],
