Pharmacists are an integral part of health delivery system and without them the goal of health for all cannot be achieved said Senator Haseeb Khan while speaking as the Chief Guest at the 1st National Conference on Pharmacy Profession and Scientific Research Poster Competition.
The 2-day 1st National Conference on Pharmacy Profession and Scientific Research Poster Competition was organized by Dow College of Pharmacy, Dow University of Health Sciences as a part of its academic activities at its Ojha Campus,Karachi. The aim of the Conference was to provide a platform for the Pharmacists in academics, clinical pharmacy practice, pharmaceuticals industries, regulatory affairs and in research for exchanging and upgrading their knowledge in different fields of pharmacy and also to highlight their sustainability aspect. The Conference comprises of plenary lectures from speakers and poster competition among participants. Senator Haseeb Khan was the Chief Guest on the occasion whereas Dr. Yasin Malik was the Guest of Honor.
Senator Haseeb Khan further said that the profession of pharmacy is considered a life-saving profession worldwide. Similarly pharmacists also play a vital role in pharmaceuticals industry to look after the production, research and development, quality control, quality assurance, regulatory affairs, sales and marketing and many other capacities thereby leading to an improved overall performance and quality. Furthermore, he praised the efforts of orgnaizing committee in arranging the conference successfully and said the event should prove a positive step towards initiating a thought provoking debate on the important topic of medicine which was directly linked with the lives of people.
Prof. Dr. Muhammad Masroor presenting the key note address of Vice Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Masood Hameed Khan said that Pharmacy is an integral part of Health care system. Pharmacy professionals ensure safe and effective use of drugs throughout the society whether in hospitals, clinics or community whereas pharmacy also aims to enhance public awareness for the appropriate use of medicinal substances and discourage misuse. He further said thatDowUniversityfelt that Pharmacy needed capacity building and its rightful place in health scenario inPakistan. This was the basis of establishment of the Dow College of Pharmacy in 2007. This college is recognized by Higher Education Commission.
Dr. Sumbul Shamim, Principal, Dow College of Pharmacy in her address said that Dow College of Pharmacy provides high competence pharmacy education to its students by utilizing rich resources provided by the university. The Pharm D curriculum is designed to produce a scientifically and technically competent pharmacist who can apply this education in such a manner so as to provide maximum health care services to patients. Students are provided with the opportunity to gain greater experience in patient’s close and cooperative relationships with health practitioners. It is the goal of all pharmacy schools / Institutes to prepare pharmacists who take up responsibility for the safty of patients and assures the provision of rational drug therapy. The college is well equipped with multimedia enabled lecture halls, fully equipped laboratories including laboratory for Pharmaceutics, pharmacology, pharmaceutical chemistry, pharmacognosy, industrial pharmacy, quality management, instrumentation, anatomy, physiology, pathology, microbiology, physical pharmacy and pharmaceutical biochemistry.
Earlier, Chief Guest Senator Haseeb Khan along Yasin Malik and Prof. Dr. Muhammad Masroor inaugurated Scientific Research Poster Competition. Later on, Scientific session was held in which Prof. Dr. Ghazal Hafeez Rizwani, Dean Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Karachi spoke on “Food, Herb and Drug interaction and their consequences on health”, Dr. Latif Sheikh Director Pharmacy Services, AKUH delivered his lecture on on “Hospital Pharmacy practice, global perspective and sceniro in Pakistan”, Prof. Dr. Jawaid Iqbal, Dean, Faculty of Pharmacy Hamdard University spoke on “Modern concept – Role of doctors of pharmacy in drug management” and Ms. Samina Badar, Chief Pharmacist Shukat Khanam Hospital Karachi spoke on New trends in Pharmacy practice.