Nigeria’s pharmaceutical industry needs repositioning ― Don

A Professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, and former two-time Dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Benin, Professor Cyril Odianose Usifoh, has said that he remains committed to using his wealth of experience to reposition the pharmaceutical industries for greater efficiency and production of safe drugs for Nigerians.

Usifoh, a top contender for the seat of the National Chairman of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) stated this while unfolding his plans ahead of the association’s election holding later this week in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.

The university lecturer who had once served as the State Chairman of the association in Edo State as well as Chairman of National Association of Pharmacists in Academia among others said that it was about time the pharmacy profession moved to the next level with pharmacists being recognised and adequately remunerated for their invaluable role in healthcare delivery.

Speaking further on his dreams for pharmacists in the country, Professor Usifoh said: “My vision is to have a united and progressive pharmacy family where pharmacists are respected, increasingly relevant and adequately renumerated for their invaluable role while networking with health team members and other professionals for the growth and development of the society.

“My mission is to ensure that medicines are available such that we are able to project pharmacy in good light so that pharmacists will get what they deserve.”

Speaking on his desire to strengthen the pharmaceutical industry, if elected, Professor Usifoh said he plans to bring into action the recently approved Pharm D programme by the Federal Government.

“We will institutionalise the Pharm D programme at the consultancy cadre which has been recently approved by the Federal Government. We have in Edo State been able to get it approved across the board for all local government and State parastatals of which we will replicate in other states at the federal level.

“It is important that we are able to pull this through such that our relevance in health care delivery working with other health care providers will become more important and we can actually pull this through.

“We also hope to push the production of essential medicines by helping the local industry, we will advocate that strongly and when we don’t have some of these drugs that can easily be produced in the country, we will make sure that they are not in short supply.

“We will also enrich the industry such that developers will be properly carried out and that will also make the participation of academic Pharmacists and Industrial Pharmacists synergise together to bring safe medicine to the doorsteps of Nigerians.

“In addition, we also hope to look at the National Drug Distribution guidelines and work strongly for the total implementation because when we have that we will be able to avoid the chaotic drug situation we have in the country and pharmacists will be able to not only get the benefits but the patients will get standard drugs.”

On what he plans to do to improve the plight of community pharmacists in their effort for recognition as primary healthcare providers, Usifoh added “I would strengthen advocacy such that the community pharmacists are recognised as primary healthcare providers according to the National health care Insurance Act of 2014.

“If this is implemented that would make Community Pharmacists more visible, relevant and accessible to patients and at the end of the day Nigerians will always benefit better because Pharmaceutical Care will be brought to their doorstep,” he said.

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