PharmD - Global acceptance

PharmD - Global acceptance 

Shalini Sivadasan, M.Pharm, 

Lecturer, Clinical Pharmacy & Pharmacy Practice Unit,

Faculty of Pharmacy, AIMST University,

 Malaysia.

PharmD is a professional doctor degree in pharmacy. The first Pharm D program was established at the University of Southern California (USC) School of Pharmacy in Los Angeles, California in 1950 and remains a pioneer in the innovative education and preparation of tomorrow’s practicing pharmacists. The university offered PharmD program to provide students with challenging clinical experience in the field of pharmacy and thereby provide a valuable career support to graduates entering the pharmaceutical profession. By 1980s, PharmD became a preferred course in the US.

In 1990, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) and Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education mandated that Pharm D would be the basic qualification essential to practice pharmacy in the United States of America. Thereafter, PharmD got migrated to other parts of the world.

Currently, pharmacy graduates from Asian countries with BPharm degree are not eligible to take up jobs as practicing pharmacists in other countries, particularly the western countries. In many countries also the requirement for Licensure as an intern pharmacist/ registered pharmacist is PharmD. This even prompted the Indian authorities to think of introducing PharmD.

The role of a pharmacist in the health care setting varies extensively from country to country. The course is now offered as 5, 6 or 7 years programme in African, Asian, European, Middle East, American countries, depending on the country’s need. To care for the therapeutic needs of patients and populations safely and effectively is the most important concern of the health care team. PharmD program covers the basic science education with extensive clinical experiences so as to prepare the upcoming graduates to contribute to the future of health care through new discoveries and innovations to improve patient lives.  In the Gulf region the main countries offering the PharmD are the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar and Kuwait. Thailand was the first Asian country to set up the 6-year PharmD education system started by Naresuan University in 1999 and until now there are many other universities which have adopted this education system. In Pakistan, a five years PharmD programme was started in 2004 at various Universities. National Taiwan University School of Pharmacy is the first pharmacy school in Taiwan that pioneered the 6-year PharmD program since 2009. Nepal started three years post baccalaureate PharmD in the year 2010 in Department of Pharmacy, Kathmandu University, Dhulikhel, Kavre. In India, the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) introduced Pharm D program in some private institutions in 2008 as an educational improvement in the field of pharmacy to match global needs. The program is aimed to increase the clinical experiences of the pharmacy graduates and as pharmacists; they can contribute to improve patient care. Thus the objective of PharmD program is to produce clinically oriented pharmacist for providing pharmaceutical care to patients. In contrast to countries offering PharmD degree as an established program, in India this brand new program would face major challenges to become a mainstream profession and create its own niche in the Indian healthcare system.

The PharmD curriculum focuses mainly toward clinical aspects of the profession which includes courses such as Pathophysiology, Pharmacology, Community Pharmacy, Microbiology, Pharmacotherapeutics, Forensic Pharmacy, Hospital Pharmacy, Clinical Pharmacy, Pharmacokinetics, Clinical Toxicology, Clinical Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacotherapeutic Drug Monitoring, Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics and Clinical Research. The course also focuses on the mandatory practical training at practice sites to provide a sound background about human body and its physiology to the students. The experiences gained through these trainings will enable the graduated pharmacists to consult & help doctors in dispensing medicines to patients and play their vital role in patient care being part of health care team. There are numerous career options available to PharmD graduates such as in clinical pharmacy practice, community pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, managed care, pharmacoeconomics, pharmaceutical industry, pharmacy education, home health care etc.