The Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyemang-Manu has called on Pharmacists in the country to acquire in-depth knowledge in the digital space and as well adopt technology in the discharge of their duties.
He made the call in a statement read on his behalf by the Deputy Minister for Health, Mr Mahama Asei Seini at the induction ceremony of the newly qualified and registered pharmacists by the Pharmacy Council of Ghana.
625 newly qualified and registered Pharmacists were on Wednesday, May 10, 2023 inducted into the Pharmacy Council of Ghana.
The newly inducted Pharmacists were drawn from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (298), University of Ghana (68), Central University College (202), University of Health and Allied Sciences, Ho (30) and Other Institutions (27).
They were inducted after qualifying from two cohorts of the Ghana Pharmacy Professional Qualifying Examination that were conducted in July and December 2022.
The induction ceremony dubbed,”Digital Health Interventions in Pharmaceutical Care Delivery- The Role of the Pharmacist”, was sponsored by the Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited and the Entrance Pharmaceuticals and Research Centre amongst others.
At the ceremony, some of the newly inducted pharmacists were given awards for working hard and excelling in their various subjects.
Aside from being recognised at the event, all inductees also swore the Apothecary’s oath as part of activities of the induction ceremony.
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In a statement read by Mr Mahama Asei Seini, the Minister said Pharmacists will have to examine how they relate to patients and clients who require their professional services and come up with innovative ways of meeting their needs using technology.
He also said Pharmaceutical companies will have to deploy state of the art digital technology to aid in the type of services they provide to the public.
The Minister was of the view that Pharmacists must lead the digital technological drive in their various institutions, be it government, quasi government or private.
“The digital world has brought services so close to the people in all spheres of life and if pharmacists want to be the real custodians of
medicines and the knowledge in medicines, then we have to embrace the digital world wherever we find ourselves irrespective of the role we play,” he said.
He continued,”Let us not forget that technology has permeated every aspect of our lives, such that you can use technology to order for a ride to take you on your daily errands. This should serve as a caution to us as professionals and know that sooner or later, the roles we play as pharmacists will require us to have an in-depth knowledge in the digital space to be able to function well and better serve the pharmaceutical needs of people.”
The Health Minister again said that,”Technology is transcending research, and as we incorporate technology in our work as pharmacists, we may be able to generate the needed data which will fit into the national statistics on health to make the impact that pharmacists make in the community pharmacies to be felt and well acknowledged with data to support. The Industry is now developing new active pharmaceutical molecules using technology. How can a pharmacist who aspires to be in the production industry not keep him or herself abreast with digital and technological advancements in this space. Let us get active in the digital realm so that we do not become professional spectators but rather be seen as real professionals who are contributing our quota to the development of the pharmacy profession and the nation Ghana as a whole to the benefit of the benefit of persons who require our professional services. “
As the government is seriously promoting digitalisation in all aspects of its business, Mr Agyemang-Manu expressed hope that the regulator will be up and doing in its quest to put the relevant regulations and policies in place so as to ensure the smooth transition into the digital space.
“When all stakeholders play their role effectively and efficiently, we will all achieve the main aim of ensuring that the client has access to quality pharmaceutical care and improve health outcomes,” he said.
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