Today's Role of the Pharmacist in the Philippines

In the late 20^th century pharmacist's function in the Philippines is simple and focuses on the needs of the community and hospital. Among them are to compound and prepare prescription drugs which mainly their job. Pharmacist kept and stocked chemical ingredients that will be used to prepare and make medicines. Today pharmacists are dispensing manufactured drugs, which do not need to compound anymore, which are properly packaged, labeled and/or in different kinds of dosage forms. Also a key role that attached to them is drug informant.

But today the revolution on their roles are changed. They have integrated and challenging in terms of work. Some of them are in the community, hospital, distribution and laboratories. Mainly the pharmacist are involving much now within the variance of jobs that may overlap sometimes with the other professions. These mean that the profession is versatile and very alive.

• Community Pharmacist – Wherein the job of pharmacist is to supervise and manage a drugstore. It is a full time job. He does procurement, ordering, receiving deliveries, inventories of the products, dispensing and a lot more. The common job landed by a pharmacist is this. The pharmacist usually wages from 10k-20k, depending on the drugstore's income. He must adopt to different functions within the drugstore that required by Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Such of these are: 1) eight straight hour duty that may vary depending on the drugstore's operation 2) filing filled and partially filled prescription orders, checking and removing expired drug or recalled drugs. He is the nearest informant about drugs.

• Ghost Pharmacist – it is simply recognized as the leasing of one's license to a certain drugstore so that it can operate. The pharmacist is not full time rather part time job which is illegal and unlawful. This is basically happened when a drugstore is to start.

• Hospital Pharmacist – The setting is basically within the hospital premises. Pharmacist are ranked according to the years of service, educational attainment and experience. The role is no difference with that of community pharmacist; however, a very unique in this job is that of involvement in Pharmacy Therapeutics Committee (PTC). This regards that the pharmacist is the secretary of the committee and has the action to choose among the bidders and procure drugs that are appropriately stocked and dispensed in the hospital pharmacy.

• Clinical Pharmacist – This type of work is not much established yet. But because of the immediate evolving of the function of pharmacists, it is been started to practice in the Philippines. St. Luke's Hospital is the pioneering institution who practices and deploys clinical pharmacist in the country; moreover, other leading hospitals have already adopted and practiced it. But because of the lacking of schools offering Clinical-Base-Pharmacist, the hospitals are giving series of trainings and education, to enhance their knowledge and skills more, before they are placed to the actual setting.

• Liaison Pharmacist – acts as a link between the company and Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It is an outdoor work and not much on office base.

• Production Pharmacist – Laboratory base job. Function is to produce finished drug products which must be tested before packaging, warehousing and consumption.

• Quality Control Pharmacist – Few are employed in this kind of job because they prefer chemists or chemical engineers. But the function is to test if the finished drug product conforms to the standard, USP/NF or other pharmacopoeias. Makes sure that the drug is safe, effective and standardized.

• Warehouse Pharmacist – Receiving placed orders, invoicing and dispatching drug products to be delivered in the registered drugstore clients only.

• Administrative Pharmacist/ Working under the Government

The different roles of pharmacist in the Philippines defines that continuing need of them in the society. I take courage to say that in the years to come more jobs will be opened for them and focused more in the healthcare of the people that need to be cured.