Pharmacy a healthy option
Daniel Acker

Medicine is no longer the career of choice for many bright young people in our country. The long years of study and the struggles thereafter, particularly in a climate of alienation, force many young people to seek other careers.

Pharmacy is an alternative that takes one quite close to the caring profession. It poses none of the perils of the medical profession, but offers many of its comforts. Pharmacists act as a bridge between doctors and public. Drugs play a vital role in making sick people well, and are increasingly recommended to sustain good health at all times.

Let us look at the opportunities in pharmacy education in the country. The country's annual outturn of graduate pharmacists is less than that of graduate doctors! For every graduate pharmacist, you need at least three times the number of diploma holders.

Sadly, India produces fewer diploma holders than graduates. In the years to come, the distortion is likely to be corrected.

Courses and opportunities:

The minimum educational qualification for pursuing a course in pharmacy is a pass in Plus Two. You have two options: join a two-year diploma course offered in Polytechnics or a four-year degree course offered through EAMCET.

The two-year diploma enables one to get employment in medical stores (better termed pharmacies, as in the West). It is mandatory that that all medical stores have, on their payroll, a qualified pharmacist. Diploma holders also have opportunities in hospital pharmacies, both in the private and public sector. Remember, there are thousands of medical shops in the State and the number increases every year. For the less academically ambitious, D. Pharm is a recipe for quick placement.

The four-year B. Pharm course is more demanding and exciting. The course covers a wide range of subjects -- many of them common to medical students and gives a good grounding in health sciences. A graduate in pharmacy has numerous opportunities for placement. The pharmaceutical industry needs hundreds of young, bright pharmacy graduates in their marketing division.

The job:

The job is increasingly competitive and calls for more knowledge than what Science graduates possess. The industry also provides other opportunities to pharmacy graduates. Many bright people can get jobs in the production division, being involved in jobs related to drug manufacture.

Six months of industrial training enables a graduate pharmacist to be a certified manufacturing chemist and sets them on the path to self-reliance.
Graduate pharmacists are needed in drug control departments of the Government. The duties are, basically, policing and quality control. With concerns about spurious drugs and poor monitoring of drugs in the market, the drug control machinery in the states are likely to be expanded and many job opportunities are there, in the offing.

Specialisations:
For the academically inclined pharmacist, specialisation is another option. There are six specialisations related to pharmacy in which masters course (M. Pharm) is provided.
These include subjects as varied as pharmacognosy and pharmaceutical engineering. A postgraduate degree is mandatory for middle-level and higher teaching posts in colleges that provide graduate training programmes.

Research:
Research in drug development is another exciting area open to graduates in pharmacy. In our country, many new R&D centres have been established by leaders of the Indian pharmaceutical industry. Ranbaxy, Cadilla, Cipla and Reddy's Laboratory are a few examples. More companies are joining the fray and hundreds of junior research positions would soon be available. Screening plants and plant products for powerful drugs is the in-thing in drug research, both in India and abroad.

Community pharmacy is a concept that is implemented in the West with increasing acceptance. Here, the pharmacist is involved in planning, procuring and dispensing drugs that are needed for the health needs of the community. Yet another emerging specialisation is clinical pharmacy. The clinical pharmacist is an integral part of the health care team and is involved in monitoring the progress of the patient and for known and unknown side effects.

Across the seas:
If you are the adventurous type and dream of a life in the U.S., you have to take GRE and TOEFL before even thinking of migration. Another year at least has to be spent taking special examinations. Of course, you need an abiding ambition, much stamina and lots of money to see you through. Restrictions apply in the U.K. and Europe also.

For the young student, who is aware of the limits of his intellect and purse, a career in pharmacy is a rewarding alternative.

Kakatiya University and Andhra University offer the course at the university colleges. Other institutions that offer the course include Siddharatha College of Pharmacy, Vijayawada, G. Pulla Reddy College of Pharmacy, Hyderabad, Bapatla College of Pharmacy, Bapatla, Sri Padmavati Mahila Viswavidyalayam, Tirupati, Nalanda College of Pharmacy, Nalgonda, Sri Venkateswara College of Pharmacy, Madhapur, Shadan College of Pharmacy, Hyderabad, Sri Padmavati School of Pharmacy, Tirupati, and Sarojini Naidu Vanita Pharmacy Maha Vidyalaya, Hyderabad. The Diploma course is offered at Government Polytechnics for Women in Guntur, Hyderabad, Kakinada, Warangal, Tirupati, Cuddapah, Hindupur and Srikakulam. Several private institutes also offer the course.

Prof. C. R. Soman

The article is been published in Indian Leading Newspaper, HINDU
Online edition on Monday, Apr 26, 2004