Senate passes bill to standardize pharmacy education 

ISLAMABAD: The Senate passed The Pharmacy (Amendment) Bill, 2023, in a clause-by-clause manner, with the aim of enhancing and standardizing pharmacy education across the country and increasing the number of professionally skilled human resources in the field.

The bill, introduced by Senator Mushtaq Ahmed, focuses on recognizing qualified pharmacists and creating avenues for postgraduate specialized diploma programs to further enhance their skills. Moreover, it aims to address unchecked and substandard pharmacy education programs by implementing robust recognition procedures and prohibitions.

The existing Pharmacy Act, promulgated in 1967 during a time when the country faced a shortage of qualified professional human resources, is in dire need of amendments.

Initially, only a couple of universities, namely the University of the Punjab and the University of Karachi, offered degree programs in Pharmacy. However, there are now nearly 100 institutes offering pharmacy degree courses and over 200 institutes providing education in pharmacy technician programs.

The proposed amendments to the Pharmacy Act are crucial to bring it in line with international standards, where health professions are segregated into different categories to meet the challenges of modern medical and healthcare services.

This professional restructuring, through amendments in the existing act, is deemed necessary to ensure the availability of legally qualified and professionally competent human resources in both domestic and international healthcare sectors.