Dr.B.Suresh : Commitment and Passion for Pharmacy Profession are Secrets of My Success

Exclusive interview with,

Dr.B.Suresh

President, Pharmacy Council of India  .

Interviewed by A.R.Khan,R.Ph,Kuwait.

 1. We believe you are the youngest president of PCI. What is the secret of your success?

I believe so too. As per the records there is no other person who has become president at the age of 45. I thank my colleagues in the council putting their confidence in me and elected me as president. The secret of success is nothing but is the commitment to the profession, which I have, and also the passion which I have that the pharmacy profession should develop and reach out to the world.

2. What do you suggest for young pharmacy students, if they would like to become successful leader like you?

See I would like to first tell them to believe in themselves and believe in their capabilities. Because many pharmacy students when they join the profession, they have a issue of what they are going to do, how they are going to achieve and since they joined as second or third choice of the course after training for medicine and engineering, they themselves are not confident on whether they are successful or not. So, I always believe in telling them, believe in themselves that you have joined the right profession. Second one, of course is action. They have to have a vision first. They should aim high and automatically they go high. Vision doesn’t come unless you have a dream first. From the dream you go to vision and come to reality. I am sure if they believe in themselves and if always have a vision on what they want to achieve, I think everybody can be successful in this world.

3. How would you like to develop pharmacy education in India?

Pharmacy education is doing very well in India, particularly in the pharmaceutical industry sector. You all are aware that, we are producing 30,000 core rupees worth medicines and we are expecting to go in next 5 years to 100,000 cores (12B US$) worth medicines. We are almost exporting 30% of our medicines to Arab countries. Job opportunities are growing, R&D is growing, clinical research is coming to India. Lot of pharmacy graduates are getting opportunities. But only graduation in pharmacy will not help. They have to update their knowledge further. That means knowledge base needs to increase further. Now pharmaceutical industry is looking at post graduates to come in and help in their R&D work rather than in manufacturing area. Beside this growth, what I am looking in the next 5 years is more and more people taking into practice area like community pharmacist or clinical pharmacist and give a face to the pharmacy profession in health care system towards the physician and patients. We are part of the health system. This is what I am looking at in the next 5years in the pharmacy profession in India.

4. What is the role of AICTE in controlling pharmacy education system?

The pharmacy act was formed in 1948 and at that time it was an act for the governing of the pharmacy profession and education in the country. Governing the pharmacy profession means to create a provision that only qualified trained pharmacists are there to practice profession. Before 1948, an unskilled person also can practice pharmacy profession. After this act, they have to have specific qualification and register in the pharmacy council and become the registered pharmacist to practice. For that minimum education required is Diploma in pharmacy, which was described in the act. As the days pass by, the profession grew but Pharmacy Council of India did not perhaps feel that it should bring it to its old other aspects of pharmacy education. In the meantime, the AICTE act was passed in 1986, where they brought pharmacy also under the definition of technical education. Impact of this act was to start a pharmacy college, AICTE will give approval and to practice profession of pharmacy PCI will give approval. Now, PCI is approaching government that even starting and running of pharmacy colleges should be brought under single preview of PCI only. So, we do not want to be a under a technical act, when we have our own pharmacy act.

5. What are the opportunities you see for Indian pharmacy students in India and as well in abroad in next five years?

As I said before, the pharmacy graduates should not be satisfied with B-Pharmacy. Currently there is a need for higher knowledge both in India and abroad. Pharmacy Industry is not expecting to just stand still in front of the machines from pharmacy graduate. Now they are looking for pharmacy graduates who can develop strategies for the company, research the market for them, and to guide them for submitting documents to the regulatory authorities, etc. For that Bachelor of pharmacy (B-pharm) education may not be alone enough. It is necessary to add on post graduate qualification and if possible research qualification also. Similarly, if you look at practice side, B-Pharmcy graduates does not have enough competencies to deal with physicians. It is important that these pharmacy graduates also should undergo either post graduate qualification in practice or like developed countries, Pharm D program. Perhaps it may not be faraway in India, {josquote}we are also introducing Post Bachelor Pharm.D program.{/josquote} With this background, I can say a person is ready to have a good knowledge base and he will have excellent opportunities in next 10 to 15 years both in India and abroad in both pharmaceutical Industry and practice.

6. We believe current pharmacy education system in India is more focused on producing Industrial pharmacists unlike in North America. Do you see any change in philosophy in future?

Yes, I am sure there will be some changes. The focus for Indian pharmacists was more on pharmaceutical industry. When we got independence, there were two areas needed to be strengthened. One was to develop quality medicines for our country. Second was to provide qualified pharmacists for pharmacy practice. For the need of industry, we produced pharmacy graduates, who went and worked in Industry.

For pharmacy practice, we thaught Diploma pharmacists are adequate to start with and started Diploma in pharmacy. Now with changing times, we also feels pharmacy graduates play a more leadership role in practice area also. Now I am sure, more and more pharmacy graduates are entering in to practice area and be a part of the health care system. Moreover we are also amending pharmacy act that community pharmacist will be much more accountable in providing services both to the physician and patients. Now, his role is just to dispense medications and get away with that. But in next few years, scenario will change due to changes in the act.

7. What is your opinion in harmonization of pharmacy education systems? What are all the challenges you expect?

See this is diverse world and there are countries with different back grounds and different development stages. Like if you take the weston and european countries, there pharmacy is about 200 to 250 years old profession. It has undergone necessary developmental phases, where it has matured from dispensing profession to practicing profession and now it is developing to clinical profession. Where as in India and other asian countries, the development was started 70 or 80 years back only. We are trying to adapt developed countries policies and procedure directly into our system without going through growth phase they have gone, to fill the gap. There may be set backs but we have to keep up the rest. There is no other choice. For this purpose International Pharmaceutical Federation has got committee to develop international frame work for pharmacy education with this frame work harmonization will be easy.

8. What other caps you are wearing other than PCI President?

I always wear one cap that is pharmacist, of course rest are all just things you take on your way of role of fulfilling your responsibilities. I am head of the pharmacy school (J.S.S.C.P) at Ooty, PCI president and this year I am elected as president of this year Indian pharmaceutical congress (58th IPC).

9. It is general opinion that pharmaceutical industry professionals are not keen to visit IPC and majority of the attendees are from educational institutions. What do you say?

Initially when the conference was planned, planner thought that Indian pharmaceutical Association (IPA) should conduct pharmacy congress where scientific deliberations can take place. Then other associations started taking part. Now there are 5 associations as part of IPCA. Same time number of institutes also increased from 500 to 1000. Now we are looking at 5,000 delegates in the congress. Now IPCA is not just scientific based program or industry based program. Now IPCA is the spirit of the pharmacy profession. Every pharmacist who is passionate about his profession to be a part of this congress every year. This is shown by number is increasing every year consistently. Industry people also participating . Mostly from industry, CEO’s one participating. Because they feel they are part of policy development. Also number of academic institutions almost double which is why you might see more numbers from academic discipline.

10. What are your future goals?

I have kept three targets for future goals. One is I want to see pharmacy education or pharmacy profession being regulated by pharmacists. I don’t want engineers, doctor’s or lawyers to govern my profession. That means all the regulations of pharmacy education and regulations should come under pharmacy council of India (PCI). Second one is I would like to see pharmacy profession as practicing profession like doctors and lawyers in India. Pharmacist is providing service to patients and he is not “selling medicines”. I want remove the concept of pharmacist is "selling medicines”. In fact he is doing service to this world honorly and I feel this is the time to pay him some rewards. The third goal I gave is, I would like to see pharmacy education of India is on par with international standards. For the first time from our country I have started dialogue with ACPE,USA, PEBC,Canada.