– As Lagos ACPN holds 2020 Continuing Education Conference
Notable personalities in Pharmacy practice, including Pharm. Anthony Bola Oyawole, a Fellow of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), Pharm. (Mrs) Bolanle Adeniran, immediate past chairman, PSN, Lagos State, and Pharm. Iyiola Gbolagade, chairman, PSN, Lagos State, have called on community pharmacists in the state to rededicate themselves and move with the trend, noting that it is either they innovate or become history.
This was the submission of stakeholders at the Continuing Education Conference of the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN), Lagos State Chapter, held recently at the PSN, Lagos State Secretariat, Ogudu, Lagos.
According to Pharm. Oyawole, a former presidential aspirant of the PSN, the continuing education conference for community pharmacists was timely, as knowledge gained would help them to keep their businesses afloat during the current pandemic.
“For any professional, it is about continuous development because the world we are living in today is a changing world and as pharmacists, we must move with the change. This year alone, the world was greeted with a COVID-19 pandemic, and since then, the whole world has not been the same. So, the only thing we can do to be ahead of our practice is by seeking knowledge, and that exactly what has happened with today's programme”, he said.
Oyawole also seized the opportunity to call on government to give community pharmacists the recognition they deserve, saying pharmacists are being made use of judiciously in the advanced world being the closest to the people among healthcare providers.
Also speaking in an interview with Pharmanews, Pharm. (Mrs) Bolanle Adeniran disclosed that the continuing education conference was important as it was a good avenue to upgrade the knowledge of community pharmacists so that they can remain leaders in the pharmaceutical business.
Adeniran further added that knowledge is very important and if one doesn't acquire more knowledge, it makes such a person archaic. ” Drugs are evolving, diseases are evolving, so if we stay on what we learn or acquire in school alone, we would not be able to move with the tide.
Speaking in the same vein, Pharm. Iyiola Gbolagade, the chairman, Lagos PSN, commended the leadership of the ACPN for sustaining the programme which has spanned over ten years, and for raising the bar of the yearly programme and enriching its content.
While lamenting the unconducive environment of community pharmacy practice in the state as a result of unfriendly policies and regulations as well as quackery, the number one pharmacist in the state advised pharmacists to take advantage of the many opportunities offered by the programme to enhance their businesses.
Speaking earlier, Chairman of ACPN Lagos State, Pharm. Olabanji Benedict Obideyi, who was represented by Pharm. Lawrence Ekhator, the vice-chairman, disclosed that the Continuing Education Conference with the theme: “Innovate or Fizzle Out” was designed to promote professional skills, business strategy skills, and practice skills of community pharmacists, saying it would help community pharmacists to better understand current economic realities and the options available for small and medium enterprises.
According to him, the motive for starting the programme was to constantly update members on current changes in the profession and keep them up to date. “Talking about the theme, ‘Innovate or Fizzle out', we are now in a new normal and things are no longer the way it used to be, so for us to remain relevant, there is a need for innovation and rededication”‘, he said.
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