Abstract

THE ROLE OF PHARMACISTS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: THE CURRENT SCENARIO IN INDIA

Amita H. Patel*

ABSTRACT

During the past few years, the pharmacy profession has passed several rounds of advancement significantly in terms of traditional positioning criteria of pharmacists as business people into patient centred health professionals. It has been recognized as an important profession in the multidisciplinary provision of health care. In contrast to the situation in developed countries, pharmacists in developing countries are still underutilized and their role as health care professionals is not deemed recognised by either the community or other health care providers. The aim of this paper is to highlight the role of pharmacists in developing countries, the current scenario and portrays the pharmacy profession in India. The paper draws review on the literature related to the health status of Indian population, along with background on the pharmacy profession in the country in the context of the current directions of health care.

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