Pharmaceutical Society Calls For Partnership To Tackle Chronic Diseases

The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) in Ogun State has expressed its readiness to collaborate with the state government on the management
of long term and chronic disease conditions.

These, according to the body, include both for communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDS as tuberculosis and also for non-communicable diseases such as Hypertension, Diabetes, Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease.

The State Chairman of the PSN, Otunba Adewale Adenugba said this in his address at the Pharmacy House, Abeokuta, on the occasion of this year’s World Pharmacists Day.

Adenugba said the collaboration becomes necessary because pharmacists are the closest healthcare providers to the community and also the last port of call in hospital.

According to him, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Number 3 sets a number of targets for these disease conditions, saying pharmacists in Ogun state are willing and empowered to collaborate with the state government.

He added that globally pharmacists “are recognized as drug therapy experts, health educators and improved patient care advocates.”

Adenugba said “The Nigeria National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) has already deployed machinery to engage the over 6,000 community pharmacies in Nigeria in the National Vaccination Program.

“Pharmacists as the closest healthcare providers to the community and also as the last port of call in hospital managed patients have proven to be key in management of long term and chronic disease conditions both for communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDS as tuberculosis and also for non-communicable diseases such as Hypertension, Diabetes, Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease.

“The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Number 3 sets a number of targets for these disease conditions and pharmacists in Ogun state are willing and empowered to collaborate with the Government and all other stakeholders in healthcare to bring succor and relief to the good people of Ogun State via a united front.

“Pharmacists in Ogun state in different areas of practice, Industrial/Production, Community/Retail, Academic/Research, Public Health and Hospital Practice are trained and continuously being trained to deliver effective pharmaceutical care following international guidelines and best practices in the prevention and management of these disease conditions thereby improving the overall health status , quality of life and life expectancy of the good people of Ogun state.

“Globally pharmacists are recognized as drug therapy experts, health educators and improved patient care advocates.

“The trust and confidence of people in pharmacy and pharmacists as providers of care will continue to increase as more and more pharmacists provide a broad spectrum of healthcare services.”

Continuing, the Chairman said “In our country Nigeria, following trends already obtained in other advanced countries, patients, policy makers and the society at large are beginning to understand the multifunctional role of the pharmacist. This was revealed in great measure during the recent COVID pandemic where pharmacists across Nigeria being the closest health care providers to citizens played a crucial role in stemming the spread of the disease while also catering for healthcare needs of the majority of citizens who could not access hospital services due to different levels and stages of government announced COVID lockdown.

“Pharmacists were at the forefront in the production, procurement and distribution of personal protective equipment PPEs through various NGOs, Government Central Pharmaceutical Stores and thousands of retail community pharmacy outlets around the country throughout the pandemic.

“As Nigeria exits the pandemic era, pharmacists are also at the forefront the prevention of future disease outbreaks as more and more pharmacists are taking on active roles as vaccinators and more and more pharmacy outlets are becoming recognized points of vaccination in Nigeria.This is also in line with the trend in advanced societies like the USA where Pharmacy Based Immunization Services (PBIS) have been available since the 1980s, as at today all states in the USA have fully implemented the PBIS where citizens can get vaccinated in Pharmacies in their neighborhood.”

The Chairman also appreciated the efforts of His Excellency Prince Dapo Abiodun on his giant strides on healthcare in the state through different measures such as renovation and equipping of primary health centres, the recently launched Ogun State Health Insurance Agency and the Drug Management Agency in the pipeline asking that more and more pharmacists be engaged into these government agencies for better performance.

As part of activities marking this year’s World Pharmacists Day, he said the celebration also includes a Charity Visit to the Nigeria Correctional Service, Ibara on Wednesday the 28th of September and also a Public Health Campaign against Drug Abuse and Misuse at Egba High School, Asero also on Wednesday the 28th of September.

He said ” It is with great delight that I and my entire executives at the PSN Ogun state wish all pharmacists and indeed the entire population a Happy World Pharmacists Day 2022.This year’s celebration also includes a Charity Visit to the Nigeria Correctional Service, Ibara on Wednesday the 28th of September and also a Public Health Campaign against Drug Abuse and Misuse at Egba High School, Asero also on Wednesday the 28th of September.

“I appreciate your efforts and dedication in improving healthcare outcomes in Ogun state. God bless all Ogun State Pharmacists. God bless Ogun State. God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”