Pharmacy opened at Karachi University Medical Center

KARACHI: Prof Dr. Khalid Mahmood Iraqi, Vice Chancellor of the University of Karachi, inaugurated the pharmacy at the KU Medical Center on Thursday, emphasizing the vital role of pharmacists in ensuring the quality and availability of medicines.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Iraqi highlighted the importance of pharmacists in the health sector, saying they are legally authorized to oversee the quality of medicines. 

However, he lamented the lack of implementation of laws pertaining to the manufacturing and sale of medicines in Pakistan. He pointed out the scarcity of pharmacists in medical stores across the country, with most medicine vendors being untrained individuals.

He regretted the relatively diminished role of pharmacists in Pakistan's healthcare sector compared to other countries, attributing this partly to a lack of awareness among the public about the role and importance of pharmacists.

Expressing the university administration's commitment to providing top-notch facilities for faculty, students, and administrative staff, Dr. Iraqi expressed optimism that the establishment of the pharmacy at Karachi University Medical Center would ensure the availability of quality, doctor-prescribed medicines at all times.

Kashif Farid from Health Hands Pharmacy assured that all medicines are directly procured from reputable companies to prevent the sale of substandard products. He announced a current discount of 12 percent on medicines, with plans to increase it to 20 percent in the near future.

Dr Akmal Waheed, a Medical Consultant at KU Medical Center, talked about the launch of an app by Health Hands Pharmacy specifically for the KU students and employees. The app enables employees to order medicines within their respective departments via phone or app, while residents on campus can avail themselves of free delivery services for medicine orders to their doorstep.