What is a Pharmacist

Pharmacist is the highly paid profession through out the world. In Europe it is the most paid (per hour) profession even above physician (so called doctors).
Pharmacist are health care practitioners with special focus on medicines (5 years Pharm D degree) as compared to physician who focus disease or pathology. They are employed in medicine manufacturing industries, community and retail pharmacies, in hospitals and as drug inspectors. All the medicine prescribed by the doctor are made by pharmacist. A patient may visit doctor only once or twice during course of illness but he will visit pharmacist regularly to seek guidance about medicines and any additional problem if has occurred. Thus pharmacist are said to be the real man behind health care system. You will be surprised to know that pharmacists are allowed to prescribe medicines in Canada and some states of USA. Otherwise they have this right after doing specialization in certain field.
Unfortunately in Pakistan, hospitals are described as graveyards. If anyone is admitted in hospital, he is more likely to die. It may be due to the fact that patients are carried to hospitals when they are too ill to recover. But I will blame that failure of health profession is due to lack and negligence of pharmacist role. Did you see a pharmacist in a hospital or in a medical store?
Pharmacist are an essential component of allopathic health care system and share equal role as physician do. For a successful system you need pharmacist in;

• hospital for drug procurement and storage
• in wards for optimizing patient therapy
• in retail to provide education and counseling about medication, its risks and benefits
• Burden of patients can be shared with pharmacist for minor illnesses
• Starting research and development of medicines in our country according to our social and cultural needs

Unfortunately in Pakistan, Pharmacist are employed only in pharmaceutical industries where they are paid only 10,000 to 12000 rupees. In hospitals, pharmacist are employed on 17 grade with no time scale promotion and there are no ward pharmacist at all. Drug inspector are only in a little number and with such a low pay that they prefer to resign rather than earning by unfair means. The word Pharmacist With Special Interest might not be heard for decades.
I do not want do discuss any politics why the most prestigious profession is treated like this, but the fact is that a good health care is incomplete without Pharmacist and our community will have to bear deaths with wrong medication till pharmacist have reached.