In developing countries like India, there is a shift in Pharma from product-oriented approach to patient-oriented approach, which has increased the importance of community pharmacy. Implementation of Govt. regulations and upcoming trend of entrepreneurship makes community pharmacy (retail & hospital) training highly essential for B. Pharm. students.

In order to inculcate hands-on expertise, expose students to the real field and instill confidence within them, which would be (and has been) greatly beneficial in their future, a Community Pharmacy Training program has been organized by School of Pharmacy, RK University, since 2014.

With this context, this year too the students of 8th Semester B. Pharm took part in clinical pharmacy, hospital pharmacy and retail pharmacy training at Lions Club Hospital, Shree Shivanand General & Multispecialty Hospital and Raghuvir Hospital, Rajkot.

The training in Hospitals exposed students to various clinical and non-clinical areas of the hospital. They got an on-field learning experience regarding Pharmacy practice concepts, Medication Review, Drug Utilization, Drug Evaluation and Selection, Medication Therapy Management, Emergency treatment, Disease State Management, Patient Counseling, Application of Electronic Data Processing (EDP). Making rounds along with the doctors and getting a know-how of Pharmacists’ role in an ICU made the students aware of the broad domain they could work under in a hospital, and the responsibilities they can be entitled with.

Retail Pharmacy (Medical Store) training exposed students to various tasks like prescription handling, arrangement within a retail store, store management, dispensing of medication, OTC medications, Schedule C, X and H drugs, patient counseling, billing, names of drugs and their various brands, etc. They also learnt about softwares like ‘PROMPT’ and ‘STANDARD‘ which are essential and compulsory to run a Pharmacy. Apart from medicines, students also learnt in detail about Nutraceuticals, Cosmeceuticals and Medical/Surgical/Diagnostic Devices sold through a Pharmacy, the knowledge of which is crucial in a retail/wholesale set-up, but the exposure to which is usually limited during a B. Pharm. program.

This training program, apart from regular clinical projects, has benefitted our foreign-bound students immensely and suffices for the clinical training provided in other similar Pharmacy courses/programs.