Thunderous ovation reverberated throughout the main auditorium of the University of Benin on 7 July, 2015 as the institution’s deputy vice chancellor (academics), Prof. Abiodun Falodun, announced that the vice chancellor had authorised the erection of another building for the faculty of pharmacy.

 
Addressing the audience, comprising mainly pharmacy students, during the opening ceremony of the 36th annual pharmacy health week organised by the UNIBEN chapter of Pharmaceutical Association of Nigerian Students (PANS), Falodun explained that it didn’t take much convincing for the school vice chancellor to approve a new structure, complete with laboratory and lecture theatre for the faculty.

“It is said that a giant Iroko (tree) begins with a small seed. It is that belief that spurred him to trust that the faculty of pharmacy can also take us (UNIBEN) to a giant height. It is that same belief that made him to appoint me also as deputy vice chancellor,” he said.
The DVC further added, to the delight of the students, that the faculty would soon begin to produce methylated spirit, cotton wool and hydrogen peroxide.
“In fact, as I am talking to you, a committee to oversee the project is in place and headed by Dr Patrick Igbinaduwa, head of pharmaceutical chemistry department,” he announced.
As the students expressed their excitement with deafening applause, the professor quickly added that there were also plans in place to ensure the production of hormonal drugs in the institution.
On the challenges often faced by pharmacy students going for internship, the professor said, “We have also observed that many pharmacy students go through a lot of stress in search for a place to do their internship. We are working on something that should take care of that very soon.”
Earlier in his address on “Self Care In Hypertension and Diabetes – The Role of the Pharmacist”, Prof. Azuka Oparah, a clinical pharmacy professor in UNIBEN had described self-care as the act of taking responsibility for one’s health without professional intervention, but with professional support.
The clinical professor explained that chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes required life-long self care, in addition to professional care in order to achieve the desired clinical, humanistic, and economic outcomes.
“If we live long enough, we stand the risk of chronic diseases,” Oparah noted, adding that “chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes are the major causes of death and disability worldwide. Many studies have demonstrated that a large proportion of patients are not aware of their high blood pressure.”
According to the don, the 1994 WHO resolution recognises the key role of pharmacists and further emphasises their responsibility to provide informed and objective advice on medicines and their use, to promote the concept of pharmaceutical care, and to actively participate in illness prevention and health promotion.
“After all, the mission of the profession of pharmacy is to improve or maintain public health through ensuring safe, effective, and appropriate use of medications,” he stressed.

The opening ceremony of the event was graced by a large number of eminent personalities, including Pharm (Sir) Ifeanyi Atueyi, managing director of Pharmanews Limited; who delivered the keynote address, Pharm (Mrs) Caroline Olumese, deputy director/head of department, University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH); and Pharm Chris Iyare, chairman, Edo State branch of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN).
Others were Pharm. Chukwuemeka Obi, chief operating officer of PharmacyPlus Nigeria Limited; Pharm. (Dr) Mrs Tawa Idubor, PSN national financial secretary; Pharm. Tunde Akanmu, managing director, Monic-Tee Pharm; Pharm. Aloysius Anieke, pharmacist-in-charge of Philip Andy Je Pharmacy; Dr Collins Aireminen, department of pharmaceutics & pharmaceutical technonolgy (UNIBEN); and Prof. Ehijie Enato, lecturer, UNIBEN’s faculty of pharmacy.
Towards the end of the programme, seven distinguished pharmacists were honoured by the PANS executives with two categories of awards – the Pharmacy Legend Award, and the Pa E. A. Osadolor Merit Award – in recognition of their innovative contributions to pharmaceutical excellence.
Recipients of the awards were: Pharm (Sir) Ifeanyi Atueyi and Pharm. Aloysius Anieke (Pharmacy Legend Award); Pharm. Chukwuemeka Obi, Pharm Chris Iyare, Dr Collins Aireminen, Prof. Ehijie Enato and Dr Patrick Igbinaduwa (Pa E. A. Osadolor Merit Award).

Things are useful and thoughts are powerful in the measure that their parts are strongly and intelligently concentrated. Purpose is a highly concentrated thought. All the mental energies are directed to the attainment of an object, and obstacles which intervene between the thinker and the object are, one after another, broken down and overcome.
Purpose is the keystone in the temple of achievement. It binds and holds together in a complete whole that which would otherwise lie scattered and useless. Empty whims, ephemeral fancies, vague desires, and half-hearted resolutions have no place in purpose. In the sustained determination to accomplish, there is an invincible power which swallows up all inferior considerations, and marches direct to victory.
All successful men are men of purpose. They hold fast to an idea, a project, a plan, and will not let it go; they cherish it, brood upon it, tend and develop it; and when assailed by difficulties, they refuse to be beguiled into surrender; indeed, the intensity of the purpose increases with the growing magnitude of the obstacles encountered.
The men who have moulded the destinies of humanity have been men mighty of purpose. Like the Roman laying his road, they have followed along a well-defined path, and have refused to swerve aside even when torture and death confronted them. The Great Leaders of the race are the mental road-makers, and mankind follows in the intellectual and spiritual paths which they have carved out and beaten.
Great is the power of purpose. To know how great, let a man study it in the lives of those whose influence has shaped the ends of nations and directed the destinies of the world. In an Alexander, a Caesar, or a Napoleon, we see the power of purpose when it is directed in worldly and personal channels; In Christ, we perceived its vaster power when its course is along heavenly and impersonal paths.
Purpose goes with intelligence. There are lesser and greater purposes according to degrees of intelligence. A great mind will always be great of purpose. A weak intelligence will be without purpose.
What can resist an unshakable purpose? What can stand against it or turn it aside? Inert matter yields to a living force, and circumstance succumbs to the power of purpose. Truly, the man of unlawful purpose will, in achieving his ends, destroy himself, but the man of good and lawful purpose cannot fail. It only needs that he daily renews the fire and energy of his fixed resolve, to consummate his object.
The weak man, who grieves because he is misunderstood, will not greatly achieve; the vain man, who steps aside from his resolve in order to please others and gain their approbation, will not highly achieve; the double-minded man, who thinks to compromise his purpose, will fail.
The man of fixed purpose who, whether misunderstandings and foul accusations, or flatteries and fair promises, rain upon him, does not yield a fraction of his resolve, is the man of excellence and achievement; of success, greatness, power.
Hindrances stimulate the man of purpose; difficulties nerve him to renewed exertion; mistakes, losses, pains, do not subdue him; and failures are steps in the ladder of success, for he is ever conscious of the certainty of final achievement.
All things at last yield to the silent, irresistible, all-conquering energy of purpose!

Culled from MIND IS THE MASTER by JAMES ALLEN

By   Oluwole Williams, BS.Pharm, Pharm.D

It takes a mixture of clinical detachment and cautious personal attention to respond to patients’ needs in ambulatory care pharmacy. When should a pharmacist apply the brakes in close personal attention to a patient’s need? And, when could an expression of clinical detachment be misinterpreted as a cold shoulder? Here are the peculiar circumstances of patient care in pharmacy practice that normally places a demand on the pharmacist’s personal communication skills and tact.

Patients presenting to the pharmacy have a baggage of personal needs and challenges outside of their pharmaceutical and medical needs that may pose an additional responsibility to their pharmacists. An unemployed patient, a patient in grief on the loss of a loved one, one recently involved in an automobile accident, a young jilted teenager, a woman who only yesterday lost a pregnancy, and an hurting unappreciated police officer are a few examples of the many members of the public who may show up in the pharmacy at an hospital or in the community.

In response to the prescription and pharmaceutical care needs of these patients, the pharmacist must maintain:

1. An understanding attitude and a compassionate albeit unemotional involvement in the plight of the patients.
2. A careful, patient, considerate response in all long-suffering to the potentially irritable behaviour or conduct of the affected patients.
3. A professional response particularly for the purposes of sharing critical drug information and passing on valuable education to the patients.
4. A cheerful mien, listening ear and polite interjections to the patient’s complaints or narration of symptoms.
5. An open yet confidential approach in the exchange of information with the patient for the purposes of privacy and for clarity.
6. Some level of questioning curiosity without appearing to be unduly inquisitive of the patient’s private affairs or activities.
7. A clear clinical distance in a face-to-face conversation with patients to reduce possibilities of droplet infections or direct hand contact with patient’s nose drips or coughed up body fluids.

Community pharmacy practice especially places on the pharmacist huge responsibilities for personal touch in patient care responses, due to the very intense competitions in the market place of prescription sales at this time. The drive for sales goals and profitability may unfortunately make a cold zombie of the pharmacist’ behaviour in any practice setting if care is not taken. It is advisable therefore that pharmacists should read and digest literature on real life clinical plus behavioural approaches to patient care; more so in an era of increasing population of patients living with psychiatric disorders.

Pharmacists in themselves must be vigilant and self-examining; taking note of when the pressures of their professional careers may be taking a toll on their personal mental health, and should not be ashamed to seek therapy if necessary. There are many instances in which pharmacists have personally made financial sacrifices for the needs of their patients and the patients have responded in warm appreciation to the genuine gestures shown by their practitioner in an embarrassing mode of behaviour. It is a good example that must not be extended for too long in repetition, so that the patient does not become an emotional drain on the practitioner.

Opportunities for voluntary exchange of resource information relevant to prescriptions coverage particularly by certain medical philanthropies must be actively sought as a means of assuaging patient’s needs, particularly for those living with chronic conditions such as HIV, diabetes, hypertension and asthma/COPD. It is one of the ways in which a pharmacist can maintain a personal care approach with patients even while retaining a professional clinical detachment.

Pharmacists may refer patients to educational resources online, or direct patients to international agencies responsible for the monitoring or care of certain chronic disorders, so the patient may benefit from expert opinions of which community pharmacy practice time may be insufficient to meet. This allows the pharmacist an opportunity of care for the patient’s need without that peculiar lingering “guilt” of inadequate professional attention, the patient feels fulfilled and the impression of a direct personal touch or care is not lost on the patient.

Pharmacists provide a peculiar service to the public and the health community in their role(s) as custodians of prescription medicines. Patients and other health care practitioners: nurses, medics, dieticians, dentists, physiotherapists as well as the lay staff ALL rely on pharmacists to furnish them with drug information on any prescription drug wherever and whenever they require such. In responding to the needs of these people, the pharmacist is required to demonstrate compassion and professional etiquette, notwithstanding his/her own personal needs or lingering personal challenges; It is a professional duty that must be borne ethically and with great sacrifice for the ultimate public good.

Oluwole Williams wrote from Glenside, Pennsylvania, USA

My earliest mentor, W. Clement Stone, was once described as an inverse paranoid. Instead of believing the world was plotting to do him harm, he chose to believe the world was plotting to do him good. Instead of seeing every difficult or challenging event as a negative, he saw it from what it could be – something that was meant to enrich him, empower him, or advance his causes.

What an incredible positive belief! Imagine how much easier it would be to succeed in life if you were constantly expecting the world to support you and bring you opportunity. Successful people do just that. In fact, there is growing research that the vibrations of positive expectation that successful people give off actually attract to them the very experiences they believe they are going to get. Suddenly, obstacles and negatives are seen not as just another example of “Gee, the world hates me,” but as opportunities to grow and change and succeed.

If your car suddenly breaks down on the side of the road, instead of imagining a serial rapist pulling over to take advantage of you, think of the possibility that the guy who stops to help you will be the man you fall in love with and marry. If your company downsizes you out of a job, suddenly the chances are good that you’ll find your dream job with more opportunity at much better pay. If you develop cancer, the possibility exists that in the process of reorganising your life to effect a cure, you’ll create a more healthy balance in your life and rediscover what’s important to you.

Think about it. Was there a time in your life when something terrible happened that later became a blessing in disguise? “Every negative event contains within it the seed of an equal or greater benefit,” says Napoleon Hill.

Personal experience

The big blessing for me came in the 1970s when they closed the Job Corps Centre in Clinton, Iowa, where I worked as a curriculum development specialist pioneering radical new learning systems for teaching underachieving students. I had unlimited support from the administration, I was working with an exciting team of bright young people who shared the same vision of making a difference, and I really enjoyed my work.

Then, out of the blue, the government decided to relocate the centre. It meant I would lose my job for at least six months. At first, I was upset at the decision, but while attending a workshop at the W. Clement & Jesse V. Stone Foundation in Chicago, I shared my predicament with the leader, who happened to be the vice president of the foundation. As a result, he offered me a job. “We’d love to have someone like you who have experience with inner-city black and Hispanic kids. Come work for us.”

They gave me more money, an unlimited budget, the ability to attend any workshop, training, or convention that I wanted – and I was not working directly with W. Clement Stone, who had introduced me to these success principles to begin with.

And yet, when they first announced the relocation of the Job Corps Centre and my being laid off, I was angry, scared, and despondent. I thought it was the end of the world. I thought it was a bad thing. Instead, it turned out to be the major turning point of my life. In less than three months, my life had gone from good to great. For two years, I worked with some of the most amazing people I have ever met before I left to enter a doctoral programme in psychological education at the University of Massachusetts.

Now, when anything “bad” happens, I remember that everything that ever happens to me has within it the seed of something better. I look for the upside rather than the downside. I ask myself, “Where’s the greater benefit in this event?”

Self-application

I’m sure that you, too, can think back to several times in your life when you thought what had happened was the end of the world – you flunked a class, lost your job, got divorced, experienced the death of a friend or a business failure, had a catastrophic injury or illness, your house burnt down – and later you realised it was a blessing in disguise. The trick is to realise that whatever you are going through now is going to turn out better in the future as well. So look for the lemonade in the lemons. The more you begin to look for the good, the sooner and more often you will find it. And if you take the attitude that it is coming, the less upset and discouraged you’ll get while you’re waiting for it.

Captain Jerry Coffee was a pilot who was shot down during the Vietnam War. He spent seven years as a prisoner of war in some of the most hellish conditions known to humankind. He was beaten, became malnourished, and was kept in solitary confinement for years. But if you ask him how he feels about that experience, he would tell you that it was the most powerful transformational experience of his life.

As he entered his cell for the first time, he realised he would be spending a lot of time alone. He asked himself, “How can I use this experience to my advantage?” He told me that he decided to see it as an opportunity rather than as a tragedy – an opportunity to get to know both himself and God – the only two beings he’d be spending time with – better.

Culled from HOW TO GET FROM WHERE YOU ARE TO WHERE YOU WANT TO BE by JACK CANFIELD

Following a brief interview, Mrs Bello is offered employment in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Benue University. She is to commence work immediately as a Senior Lecturer. Her employment package includes a car allowance and housing on the university premises, in addition to a monthly salary.
Mrs Bello negotiates to be paid annually instead. The day her full package for one year is paid, she moves into the university with her family and starts teaching in the faculty subsequently.
Six months later, a retrenchment exercise is undertaken by the university. Mrs Bello receives a letter, terminating her appointment with one month’s notice. In protest, she writes the faculty, claiming that they have no right to terminate her employment without just cause. Furthermore, she reminds them that the terms of her appointment involve the payment of an annual salary. On that premise, her employment is guaranteed for one year and not on a monthly basis, like the rest of her colleagues. In view of this, what are the legal effects of the terms of this engagement?
Contracts and transactions related to them are concluded within a society of people with social and commercial practices. These practices are, therefore, recognised and accepted as part of the contract even without the express declaration of the parties to it. The terms which may be read into a contract on the basis of the relevant practices are known as ‘implied terms’. To help a business perform effectively, some terms that are unique to that business are presumed to be part of a contract. These are terms implied by custom or trade.
This case involves the following legal issues:
1. The effect of terms implied by custom or trade.
2. Implied terms relating to employment contracts.
3. The effect of express terms in a contract which exclude implied terms.

Over a century ago, the principle of terms implied by custom was outlined by Park in the case of Hutton v. Warren: “It has long been settled, that, in commercial transactions extrinsic evidence of custom and usage is admissible to annex incidents to written contracts, in matters with respect to which they are silent. This same rule has been applied to contracts in other transactions of life, in which known usages have been established and prevailed.”
By application, a transaction between two parties may not be interpreted solely on the basis of the documented contract. Certain customs or practices that are incidental to the line of business will be presumed to be part of their contract. In the case of Mrs Bello and Benue University, there is a contract of employment. It is not sufficient to rely on the express terms of that contract for the resolution of a dispute. One must, of necessity, observe the practices associated with employment contracts. This is because the implied terms will be enforced as if they had been written expressly in the contract.
From the judicial decisions in employment cases, some practices can be observed. In Oki v. Taylor, it was established that a person who employs has the power to terminate the employment where there is no express provision for the latter. Also, from Cayme v. Allan Jones, it has become a standard rule that an employee paid on a monthly basis is entitled to one month’s notice on termination.
The contention of Mrs Bello is that the payment of an annual salary should guarantee her employment for the duration of the year. However, the case of Ahuronye v. University College, Ibadan is in contradiction of that notion. In that case, the plaintiff, who had been given a month’s notice of termination of service, brought an action against his employers for wrongful dismissal, arguing that since he was employed at an annual salary, the duration of his employment for a year was certain. The court rejected his argument and held that it must be presumed that the plaintiff was employed on the same terms as other employees within his category. In effect, when someone is engaged for an indefinite time, “it is common knowledge that neither the master nor the servant contemplates an agreement for a year certain”.
In view of the practices related to employment contracts, it safe to conclude that Benue University, being the employer, had the power to terminate the service of employment. Furthermore, the payment of an annual salary does not provide protection for the employee for the period of one year. The employer is still empowered to terminate services with a notice of one month.
However, it is important to note that a custom can only be implied when it has not been expressly or implicitly excluded by the contract. This means that a party to a contract who wishes to secure any form of protection may insist on the inclusion of the required term in the contract. An express term of contract will be effective in negating any implied term of custom or trade.
In the case of London Export Corporation, the eminent Lord Jenkins declared that “an alleged custom can be incorporated into a contract only if there is nothing in the express or necessary implied terms of the contract to prevent such inclusion and, further, a custom will only be imported into a contract where it can be so imported consistently with the tenor of the document as a whole.”

Principles and cases are drawn from Sagay: Nigerian Law of Contract

For the loyal and enterprising customers of Sun Pharma in Nigeria, the proverbial statement ‘ a rising tide lifts all boats’ will be the most appropriate phrase to describe their situations, as the new management of Sun Pharma, which newly acquired the former Ranbaxy Pharma, has promised them improved products and services.

This assurance was brought to bare by the Country Managing Director, H.S. Arora, during the annual customers forum, which was held recently at the Sun Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos. Arora, who expressed his delight in the outstanding performance of the top 25 distributors of the company in Nigeria, urged them to expect better transactions in the new business year.

He further intimated the partners on the new developments in the company as a result of their merger with Sun Pharma, noting that the company’s new year calendar now starts in March as against April, adding that they just opened a new chapter –‘growing together’ in March 25, 2015.

Explaining the benefits of the merger, he said the combination of Sun Pharma and Ranbaxy created the fifth-largest specialty generics company in the world and the largest pharmaceutical company in India, worth of five billion dollar annual financial transactions.

The Sun Pharma country boss urged his distributors nationwide to plan their purchase patterns towards the new policies of the company as their incentives will be measured according to the rules. Interestingly, he noted that distributors do not need 100 percent to win incentives, stating a maximum of 80 percent will qualify them for a reward from the company.

He however pleaded for the continuous support of all distributors towards achieving the targets for the 2015 business year, as the organisation has got 3,000 products, to the benefits of all customers, and for the improvement of health care delivery system in Nigeria.

Concerning conflict resolution, Arora made it clear to the partners that his doors and lines are always open to anyone who has got any complaint relating to the company and their services, adding that the happiness of one is the happiness of all.

For the 2014 business year, a number of their partners performed excellently as they were rewarded accordingly.

Arora however encouraged them to improve on their business transitions with the firm as there abound several opportunities for as many as will push more this year.

The 3rd international exhibition on pharmaceutical manufacturing technologies, Nigeria Pharma Manufacturers Expo 2015, is scheduled for September 7 to 9, 2015 at the New Haven, Oba Akinjobi Street, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria. NPME 2015 is recognized as one of the largest and highly resourceful international pharma manufacturing exhibition of the Central & West Africa region…. Read more

President of the Nigeria Academy of Pharmacy (NAPharm.), Prince Julius -Adelusi-Adeluyi has charged pharmacists to constantly engage in research activities for the enhancement of national health care.
He said this is necessary for them to remain relevant and prominent in the health care delivery system.
Adelusi-Adeluyi made the remarks recently, while addressing the newly inducted fellows of the West African Postgraduate College of Pharmacists (WAPCP), at the 27th Annual General Meeting and Scientific Symposium, held at Welcome Centre Hotels, Airport Road, Lagos.

The NAPharm. president who was also chairman of the occasion, charged all pharmacists to improve the net worth of the profession, by embarking on teamwork, effectively networking themselves, as well as conducting relevant capacity trainings, capable of projecting them as change agents in the society.
He also urged the leadership of the college to follow the footsteps of renowned international institutions like the Harvard University, in order to produce well-grounded students.
In his contribution, president of the college, Wiltshire Johnson noted that the conference offered participants the opportunity to enrich their careers, demonstrate their academic and professional capacities, while also participating in events and discussions aimed at steering the future of pharmacy and health care delivery in West Africa.
He explained that the theme of this year’s AGM, “Diseases of Public Health Importance in West Africa”, required pharmacists to redefine quality of health care services delivery in West Africa.
Johnson, who led the participants to observe a minute’s silence for the victims of the Ebola virus, challenged pharmacists on their level of preparedness in the event of another disease outbreak on the continent.
“Problems of public health importance run far deeper than an epidemic outbreak of an haemorrhagic disease,” he said. “In our region, it includes, HIV/AIDS, TB, multidrug resistant TB, malaria, meningitis, reproductive maternal and child health issues, gastrointestinal and respiratory infections, non-communicable diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, cancer, and chronic respiratory conditions, to mention but a few.”
He also observed that, over the decades, there had been an upsurge in the amount of resources devoted to combating public health disease in Africa, noting however that such resource investments were already reaching a point of diminishing and marginal returns due to paucity of strong public health facilities in the region.
Johnson added that it was evident that the priority of quick fix and rapid disease-specific interventions had not produced the desired results.
He therefore charged all pharmacists to unite in building resilient health systems.
“Our presence at the micro and macro levels of health care delivery serves as an ideal conduit for preventive and curative interventions; and this provides the opportunity for setting alert and action limits in health and strategic direction for any nation’s health care service”, he stressed.
The high point of the event was the induction of 161 graduands, along with 10 elected fellows of the college. The fellows included Professor Olukemi Odukoya, former dean, faculty of pharmacy, University of Lagos; professor Emmanuel Osazuwa, former dean, faculty of pharmacy, University of Benin; and Professor Chinedum Peace Babalola, dean, faculty of pharmacy, University of Ibadan, among others.

In recognition of their outstanding contributions to pharmaceutical practice and health care in Nigeria respectively, the duo of Pharm. (Sir) Ifeanyi Atueyi, managing director of Pharmanews Limited and Olorogun (Dr) Sonny Kuku, co-founder of Eko Hospital, have been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

The award was presented during the Nigerian Healthcare Excellence Award (NHEA) ceremony, held at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos on 26 June, 2015.

The colourful event attracted several health care professionals, as well as eminent personalities in both the pharmaceutical and the medical subsectors, including Dr Olaokun Soyinka, Ogun State Commissioner for Health; Dr Leke Pitan, former Lagos State Commissioner for Health; Pharm. Gbenga Olubowale, chairman, Lagos branch of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN); Dr Femi Olugbile, former chief medical director of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH); and Dr Anthony Omolola, immediate past national president of Association of General Private Medicine Practitioners of Nigeria (AGPMPN).

Others were Pharm. Bukky George, managing director of HealthPlus Pharmacy; Pharm. Bisi Bright, CEO of the Livewell Initiative; Dr Andy Cunliffe, general manager of Reddington Hospital; Dr Wale Alabi, NHEA’s project director; and Pharm. (Mrs) Clare Omatseye, managing director of JNC International.

In other categories of the award, HealthPlus Pharmacy emerged Best Pharmaceutical Retail Outlet of the Year, for the second time running; May & Baker won the Excellence in Pharmaceutical Research and Development Award; Reddington Hospital won the Private Healthcare Provider Award; Hygeia HMO clinched the Health Maintenance Organisation of the Year Award; while Pathcare Nigeria Limited emerged winner in the Private Laboratory Service Provider of the Year category.

Other winners included JNC – International Engineering Service Provider of the Year (Biomedical category); Mecure Healthcare – Best Eye Care Service Provider; Smile 360 Dental – Best Dental Service Provider; Bridge Clinic – Best IVF Service Provider; St Nicholas Hospital – Best Dialysis Service Provider; LUTH – Best Physiotherapy Service Provider; Fidson Healthcare Plc – Best Pharmaceutical Operation Excellence; and Swiss Biostadt – Best Healthcare Equipment Marketing Company.

On a very special note, the Healthcare Heroes Award was given to First Consultant Hospital, Obalende, in honour of the late Dr Ameyo Stella Adadevoh and others who sacrificed their lives in the campaign against the dreaded Ebola virus.

According to Dr Olugbile, the feat accomplished by Dr Adadevoh and the entire First Consultant team shows that health care in Nigeria is not dead.

“We are honouring you today for your resilience and integrity in the manner you handled the Ebola case. Instead of fleeing for their dear lives after being cleared, survivors of the virus who were hospital workers continued to practise. I think they deserve a round of applause for their heroic act,” Olugbile declared.

Acknowledging the effort put into the organisation of the award ceremony, Dr Wale Alabi, the project director, explained that the award was designed to celebrate and recognise hardworking individuals and organisations who had contributed in a remarkable manner to the improvement of the Nigerian health care sector.

“To remove any iota of doubt about this award, let me reiterate that all votes were done via social media. This is to retain our integrity and non-alignment to any individual or organisation. I use this opportunity to congratulate all the nominees and eventual winners,” he said.

NHEA is an initiative of the Global Health Project and Resources, in partnership with the Anadach Group.

Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko and some stakeholders in the health care industry, including President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), Pharm. Olumide Akintayo, have called on community pharmacists in the country to be more dedicated in the discharge of their responsibilities to the public.

The governor who was the guest of honour at the opening ceremony of the 34thAnnual National Conference of the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN), tagged “Sunshine 2015”, made the call while speaking at the opening ceremony of the conference, held at Jorjein Hotel and Resorts, Akure, Ondo State recently.
The conference, had in attendance community pharmacists in their hundreds from across the nation, as well as other notable personalities, including Pharm. (Sir) Anthony Akhimien, former president, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) and current president, Africa Pharmaceutical Forum (APF); Pharm. Olumide Akintayo, president, PSN; Pharm. Azuibike Okwor, immediate past president, PSN; Pharm. Deji Osinoiki, former national chairman, ACPN; Dr Dayo Adeyanju, commissioner for health, Ondo State; Dr Kola Adenujimi, chief of staff, Ondo State; Barr. Oluwatoyin Akukotu, head of service; Dr (Mrs) Yemi Mamoud, commissioner for women affairs; Princess Adetutu Adesida, Regent of Akure; Pharm. Ejiro Foyibo, immediate past national chairman, ACPN, among others.
While speaking, the governor, who was accompanied by his wife, Chief (Mrs) Olukemi Mimiko, said he was delighted with the choice of the theme for the conference, “Exploring New Frontiers in Community Pharmacy Practice”, saying the theme was apt as it was coming at a time the country was battling with the challenge of fake and counterfeit medicines.
According to him, community pharmacists are the closest health care professionals to the people as they play very vital roles in promoting efficient health care to the people. This, he said, should spur them to be dedicated and passionate about their chosen profession.
The governor added that: “It should be noted that any government that wants to give qualitative health care to its people must also reckon with pharmacists, as their position in health care delivery system cannot be over emphasised.”
Also speaking at the event, the Regent of Akure, Princess Adetutu Adesida, called on all community pharmacists across the nation to imbibe the fear of God in their practice, adding that the practice of community pharmacy was very important to humanity as it entails saving lives.
The regent further stated that community pharmacists should strive to leave their comfort zone and think of establishing in rural areas which she said were underserved in pharmaceutical care.
While making his own contribution, the Registrar, Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN), Pharm. N.A.E Mohammed, who was represented by Pharm. Hammed Babaseun, noted that the theme of the conference: was timely at this definite period in the country, adding that the various issues confronting the association would soon come to an end.
“We are here to inform the association that there is never a cloud that the sun cannot shine on; therefore, the ACPN and the pharmacy profession shall definitely shine, no matter the challenges,” he assured.
In his speech at the conference, PSN President, Pharm. Akintayo, noted that in furtherance of the theme of the conference, community pharmacists across the country must lead the way in the battle for better health and wellbeing of the people as community pharmacies provide a, convenient and less formal environment for those who cannot easily access other kinds of health service.
Akintayo said community pharmacists must be readily available to give sound, professional advice and to help their clients deal with everyday health concerns and problems facing them, adding that pharmacies should have dedicated consultation areas specifically for private discussion. He added that community pharmacists must evaluate emerging realities of retail chain outlets which must place emphasis on home grown chains.
The highlight of the event was the presentation of the “Distinguished Public Service Award” to the wife of the governor, Mrs Olukemi Mimiko, who is the founder of Maternal Pulse Foundation, a foundation that seeks the total well-being of women and provides support for families with multiple births.

On Sunday, 10 May, 2015, Managing Director of Alrange Limited, Mr Ekom Henry Itauma and his wife, Imo, held a colourful party at his Isolo residence to celebrate his 50thbirthday anniversary.

In attendance, aside from his families and close friends, were doctors, pharmacists, nurses and other health professionals.

The preparation for the event, according to the celebrant, started way back in February when the management of Alrange Limited, a professional books and library consultant, donated books on literature and languages to his former department in the University of Calabar (Department of English and Literary Studies) from where he graduated in 1986.

“We went there and were able to equip their literary library with some language and literature books, a gesture which even the vice chancellor of the school has acknowledged,” he said.

Born on 10 May, 1965, Itauma started his dream business, Alrange, in 1999. Although Alrange was incorporated in 1999, it did not commence operations until 2000.

Aside from providing specialised library support services to universities, polytechnics, research and regulatory agencies, as well as institutes such as the National Universities Commission (NUC), the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN), the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), the company also partners with medical schools and professional health associations to source quality, evidence-based reference books for the entire industry.

“This partnership has given us the needed edge in the selection and sale of key books to both students and practitioners,” Itauma said.”We also partner with resident doctors, consultants/lecturers and offer credit facilities for books to aid their research needs and timely qualification.”

Itauma further hinted that Alrange professional books support services are tailored towards meeting the needs of scientific and professional associations in their bid to train, upgrade their practice and accredit new members.

“For instance we provide book support services for the Nigerian Institute of Safety Professionals (NISP), Institute of Public Analysts of Nigeria (IPAN), Institute of Chartered Chemists of Nigeria (ICCON), NAFDAC, West African Postgraduate College of Pharmacists (WAPCP), National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria (NPMCN), Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMLSON), Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the Nursing & Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN),” he stressed.

On how he combines business and family life, Itauma said that having been married for 12 years, he and his wife had succeeded in overcoming their differences and challenges together.

“We don’t know whatever might come in future, but we know that God, who did it for us in the past, will see us through again. So far, the journey has been good. My wife has been supportive and quite humble. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. I have no regret whatsoever,” the Alrange boss said.

He added that “we travel a lot for programmes especially exhibitions. But my wife is quite supportive. She knows the kind of job I do and helps to patch up for me in the office. She receives calls on my behalf and does other things for me as well.”

Advising young people hoping to start a library and books consultancy dream like Alrange’s, Itauma admonished that the fear of God is paramount in not just relationships but also in business.

“This is why I will also advise those who are just coming into business to be patient. Go under somebody and get trained, study and improve yourself so that you don’t become frustrated later,” Itauma urged.

National Association of Resident Doctors of Nigeria (NARD) has called on the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health, Mr Linus Awute, and the Director of Hospital Services, Dr Patience Osinubi, to expedite action towards honouring agreements reached with the association by the federal government through the ministry.

The call which was contained in a communique issued after the 35th Ordinary General Meeting (OGM) and Scientific Conference, held at the Nondon International Hotel, Enugu State, was jointly signed by the NARD President, Dr Prince Dan-Jumbo; the Secretary General, Dr Daniel Gbujie, and the Publicity and Social Secretary, Dr Oluwajimi Sodipo.

During the OGM which was hosted by the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku-Ozalla, Enugu State, several issues affecting resident doctors were raised, including non-payment of workers’ salaries, among whom are resident doctors in Abia, Osun, Oyo, Benue, Plateau and Lagos States; unilateral breach of agreement reached with the government on various issues affecting the association, among others.

NARD has therefore charged its striking members in various institutions to continue until the anomalies are corrected. It also reiterated its stand on skipping allowances for its members, stating that “any hospital where non-doctors skip, residents’ doctors must skip, to ensure universal application, and ensure harmony in all hospitals”.

NARD has also mandated its members in all public hospitals to form a stakeholders’ committee as soon as possible, the role of which is to make in-depth assessment of the cost of monthly payment of personnel in order to ascertain the possibility of the commencement of skipping allowances for its members.

The communiqué read in part: “that all hospitals should as a matter of urgency convoke a stakeholders’ committee comprising state NMA, MDCAN, ARD and representatives of management as agreed on the 27th of May to freely examine the records of personnel monthly payroll, cost implications and the personnel budgetary allocation of 2015 in order to ensure payment of skipping for doctors”

Funding for residency training was also discussed as the association had saddled the government with the responsibility of including residency training fund in the annual budget, as agreed with the federal government and effected in the 2013 and 2014 budgets.

Implementation of employer’s contribution to the Pension Fund was also highlighted, following reports that some institutions were defaulting in this aspect. The association therefore called on the Federal Ministry of Health in liaison with the Ministry of Finance to ensure the payment of the employer’s contribution to the Pension Fund as it affects resident doctors in ISTH Irrua, FETH Gombe, UBTH Benin, AKTH Kano, among others.

The re-enrolment of resident doctors and all civil servants onto the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) was also deliberated upon. It was agreed that the federal government should fast-track the exercise, which has been described as a veritable tool for personnel cost control and corruption-curbing in public service.

In a bid to produce quality graduates of high academic and moral standards, the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ibadan, has held the maiden edition of the White Coat/Orientation Ceremony for its students.

The programme,which took place on 29 April, at the new Faculty Auditorium, was attended by all B. Pharm. students from 100 to 500 levels.

However, the White Coat Ceremony was specifically held to welcome 200 Level students into the faculty.

In attendance at the event were Prof. Chinedum P. Babalola, dean, Faculty of Pharmacy; Prof. Oluwatoyin A. Odeku, professor and head, Department of Pharmaceutics & Industrial Pharmacy; Prof. Edith O. Ajaiyeoba, senior lecturer, Department of Pharmacognosy; Prof. Sunday O. Idowu, senior lecturer, Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry; and Prof. Olusola Gbotosho, senior lecturer, Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics.

Others were Buhari-Alade Akintayo, president of the Pharmaceutical Association of Nigeria Students (PANS);deputy dean of the faculty,professors, heads of departments, sub-dean undergraduate, academic, administrative and non-teaching staff of the faculty.

In her opening address, Prof. Babalola announced that the orientation programme was the first of its kind in the faculty.

According to her, Pharmacy is one of the best professions in the world and was rated by Forbes in January 2015 as the best health care profession in the USA.

She solicited the support of stakeholders,including pharmacy instructors and students, to move the faculty to even greater heights.

Prof Odeku, on her part, spoke extensively on the theme “Student Disciplinary Matters: Malpractices and Sanctions.”

She informed the students that there was a newly reconstituted Student Disciplinary Committee (SDC), headed by the vice chancellor, which had been mandated to deal with cases of indiscipline such as examination misconduct, inappropriate behaviour, membership of a secret cult on campus and other related offences.

“The SDC will also mete out sanctions such as reprimand, rustication for one, two or four semesters, depending on the gravity of the offence, and expulsion. Hence, students with disciplinary cases would be given a fair hearing and allowed to come freely and defend their cases while criminal offences shall be handed over to the police,” she stressed.

Corroborating her view, Prof. Ajaiyeoba emphasised the essence of morality in the society.

“It helps us to judge the difference between right and wrong. Morals come from home and family, friends and peers, religion and church, society and state and emotions. I advise the students to uphold a high level of personal integrity, in school, at home and within the society,” she remarked.

The highpoint of the occasion was the administration of oath of allegiance and the donning of the laboratory coats as a sign of acceptance,which was greeted with a thunderous applause by the elated students.

In her closing remarks, the dean expressed her appreciation to the speakers, guests, professors, heads of departments, sub dean undergraduate, academic, administrative and non-teaching staff of the faculty, members of the committee on student orientation, PANS and the entire students for ensuring the success of the programme.

It would be recalled that the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Idi-Araba, on 13 March, held its second edition of the same White Coat Ceremony, following the success of the maiden edition last year.

A cross-section of the “59 Champions” taking their Pharmacist Oath

    In what has turned out to be an annual celebration of excellence, the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ibadan, has inducted and administered oath on 59 Bachelor of Pharmacy graduands.

The 28th Induction and Oath-Taking Ceremony which was conducted for the 2013/2014 set of pharmacy graduands on 14 May 2015 at the Trenchard Hall, University of Ibadan, had in attendance, dean of the Faculty, Prof Chinedum P. Babalola, deputy vice chancellor (academics), Prof. Gbemisola Oke; deputy provost, deans of other faculties and heads of department.

Also present at the occasion were the first dean of the faculty, Emeritus Prof. A. A. Olaniyi; Pharm. Chidi Okoro, General Manager Africa – Lucozade Ribena Suntory; Pharm. N.A.E Mohammed, registrar, Pharmacist Council of Nigeria (PCN) represented bythe PCN’s Director of Education and Training, Pharm. Anthony Idoko; representatives of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (Oyo State Branch); director of pharmaceutical services; Oyo State Ministry of Health; Oyo State Hospital Management Board; PSN Board of Fellows and families of the graduating students.

In his opening remarks at the event, chairman of the occasion, Prof. I. F. Adewole, congratulated the entire members of staff, students and alumni who had worked tirelessly to ensure stability of the faculty in terms of robust quality training at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

“The Faculty of Pharmacy is so dear to me because I am also part of its history,” Adewole said.”In fact, it was during my tenure as Provost, College of Medicine, that the dream of assuming a faculty stature was realised and my administration has supported the faculty in various ways.”

The celebrated don urged the inductees to be good ambassadors of the university, join the alumni association and contribute to the development of their alma mater. Adewole also admonished them to be heroes, great achievers, role models, life-long learners, and instead of making excuses, make choices that will positively transform their generation.

In her own remarks, dean of the Faculty, Prof Babalola thanked God for the conduct of the inductees, whom she tagged “The 59 Champions”.

She enjoined the inductees to continue to believe that they were the only ones who could determine the kind of career and life they wished to have.

Prof. Babalola further emphasised the need to uphold high level of discipline and integrity in all they do so as to be good ambassadors of the faculty and institution.

Delivering his keynote address, Pharm. Chidi Okoro listed a number of opportunities in the pharmaceutical sector that could make the graduands to reflect and plan ahead for a productive future.

“The pharmaceutical industry has huge headroom for expansion if you can make use of the opportunities that abound in the industry…I charge you not to get distracted in your course of adding values to the society. Otherwise how else can we explain a situation where we have about 3000 registered retail pharmacies in the country to serve a population of about 180 million Nigerians?” he said.

The former GSK (consumer) boss revealed that the current situation (economic and growth potential) in the country presented opportunities for pharmacists to contribute greatly to health care delivery in the nation.

He further advocated for better collaboration between the academia and NAFDAC,especially in the establishment of world class laboratories by NAFDAC in institutions like the University of Ibadan that would be used by NAFDAC and available for teaching and research by the faculty.

The hallmark of the occasion was the administering of the Pharmacist Oath on the graduands by the registrar, Pharmacists Council of Nigeria, followed by the presentation of provisional certificates of registration to the graduands.

In this exclusive chat with Temitope Obayendo, Dr Olugbenga Awobusuyi, a consultant nephrologist of high repute with the Lagos state Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) and an associate professor at the Lagos State University College of Medicine (LASUCOM), opens up on the prevalence of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in Nigeria, implicating uncontrolled diabetes and hypertension as the major culprits. Excerpts:
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), also known as kidney failure, has become more rampant these days, what could be responsible for this?

The reason for the prevalence of CKD is the surge in conditions that predispose people to renal failure, which are hypertension and diabetes. Nowadays many people are coming down with uncontrolled hypertension and diabetes, thus the prevalence of CKD in our society.
There is the World Kidney Day celebration to create awareness on the disease, but there are further campaigns done by stakeholders in the hospitals during our routine clinic visits, to enlighten patients who might be at risk to come for check-ups.
Our kidneys are endowed with functional reserves, which could prevent a patient from having any symptoms years after the disease might have set in, in fact, this could delay symptoms until after 60 -70 percent of the kidney functions might have been damaged.

Before now, kidney failure used to be associated with the elderly, but it is becoming also common among the younger generation. What predisposes a youth to kidney failure?
Just as hypertension is very common, so is what is called glumerulonephritis also common. Glumerulonephritis is a situation where a patient’s body produces some substances like protein, called antibodies, which attack the kidney to destroy it. Although this condition is not common in our environment, it is a cause of renal failure. We have a lot of diabetics, habitual consumers of native medications, and the analgesics addicts, who are already down with the disease. Some infections like HIV, Hepatitis B, Sickle Cell, patients with cysts in the kidney, prostate enlargement, kidney stones, can also cause CKD. Glumerulonepheritis could be responsible for the disease in young people.

During the celebration of the 2013 World Kidney Day (WKD), President of the Nephrology Association of Nigeria (NAN), Dr Ebun Bamgboye, said 36.8 million Nigerians are suffering from kidney disease at different stages. Two years after, what do you think the statistics will look like now?

We don’t have any hard statistics on the prevalence, although the Nephrology Association of Nigeria (NAN) is taking some steps to have a renal register, though it’s still at the infant stage. Nonetheless, there are a number of studies conducted in some communities, which indicated that the prevalence is still between 17 and 21 per cent of the population.

Can you explain the stages of kidney disease, the symptoms, and at what point patients should seek medical advice?

It actually has five stages, based on what we call Glumerulo Filtrating Rate (GFR), which reflects the overall functions of the kidney. The first stage is 90 or more millimetre per minute; stage two is GFR 60-89; stage three, GFR 30-59; Stage four, GFR 15 -29 and stage five is lower than 15 GFR.
It is at stage five we do dialysis for a patient. What we generally do is to treat the underlying disease. We also consider factors that make kidney functions decline drastically, some of which are uncontrolled diabetes and hypertension. However, when the condition becomes uncontrolled, we do kidney transplant, which is very expensive.

Is it possible to treat the disease if detected earlier?
It is one of the messages we are trying to pass across to the populace – that chronic kidney disease is preventable, and many of the causes are treatable. If patients are diagnosed early enough, their diabetes and hypertension can be well managed to prevent renal failure. This could be done by slowing down the deterioration rate of the kidney, thereby ensuring adequate management of the underlying conditions. Patients must always ensure they meet their doctors at the right time, as well as take their medications as prescribed. If this is done, there are chances that the rate of death associated with kidney failure will be reduced.
For everybody to understand the symptoms of the disease, there is need to know the functions of the kidney. The kidney actually excretes water and other waste products from the body; secondly it regulates the internal environment, by making the system conducive for the internal organs e.g., the electrolytes; and thirdly, it regulates blood pressure. It is also responsible for the production of a very active form of Vitamin D, which makes our bones strong. It produces another substance called erytopoietin which stimulates our bones to be stronger.
Thus, once a kidney start failing in carrying out these functions, then it’s a symptom of an ailment. For instance, when a patient cannot eliminate the water he/she takes in, through sweat and urine, when he finds it difficult to pass out excreta, then there will be an accumulation of waste products in the body, which is an indication of kidney failure.
What we usually tell people during awareness campaign is that they should always check their urine; once it’s foamy, it’s an indication of protein in the urine, which is a symptom of CKD. Diabetics need to be more conscious about their health, because it’s a condition that has more tendencies to damage the kidney. Once these symptoms are detected, patients need to visit the hospital for screening. It’s also worthy of note, that the initial medical tests are not expensive. Urine test costs around N500, while blood screening is around N1000.

How many forms of kidney failure exist?
There are two forms of kidney failure, acute and chronic. Acute kidney failure could occur within an hour or two, due to severe infections, loss of blood through childbirth, severe diarrhoea and cholera – but the system normalises itself few hours later. Diarrhoea and cholera patients could be predisposed to this condition. At times, they lose consciousness and may even convulse. However chronic kidney disease is our focus of discussion.

With your involvement in medical practice so far, can you estimate the cost of a successful kidney transplant?
A kidney transplant goes for about N5 million to N6 million. All over the world, I’m not sure many patients can afford that. However, in most cases where they can access the facility, the government usually pays for the chunk of the fee.

How many nephrology experts do we have in the country?
The ratio of nephrologists in Nigeria to patients is about 150,000 to about 40 million patients.

Can it be said that people without diabetes or hypertension are not at risk of CKD?
Yes, they are not at risk, but if they have a family history of CKD, diabetes or hypertension, they should be going for check at least once a year. Especially if they are above 40 years, regular check up is important.

Considering the state of our health care facilities, is there any hope for Nigeria in overcoming CKD?
It depends on the will of the government of the day. If there is political will in the provision of local facilities, building of good facilities, provision of manpower, and monitoring of the administrative section for effectiveness, then cases of CKD would be drastically reduced.

What is your advice to Nigerians as regards kidney diseases and their general health conditions?
They should always participate in medical screening exercises. Hypertensives and diabetics should keep their appointments with their health care givers and also ensure they meet qualified doctors, not roadside quacks.

Regent of Akure Kingdom, Princess (Dr) Adetutu Adesida, and Ondo State Commissioner for Health, Dr Dayo Adeyanju have urged the federal government to step up its war against fake drugs in the country, saying the menace had caused more deaths than the dreaded Boko Haram group and could wreak even more havoc, except drastic measures were taken.

The duo disclosed this at the Palace of the Deji of Akure land, where Princess Adesida received members of the Association of the Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN), led by their national chairman, Pharm. (Alh) Olufemi Ismail Adebayo who visited the palace to receive the royal blessing of the monarch as the ACPN kick-started its”Walk Against Counterfeit Drugs”campaigned, as part of activities for the 34thAnnual National Conference which was held in Akure, Ondo State recently.
Addressing the visitors, Princess Adesida, who holds a PhD in Pharmacy, implored the federal government to emulate the government of Ondo State, under the leadership of Dr, Olusegun Mimiko, whom, she disclosed, had taken giant strides in the fight against fake and counterfeit drugs by procuring a Trustcan machine to test the genuiness of drugs being sold in the state.
According to her, any nation that cares for the lives and safety of its citizens will never take the issue of fake and adulterated drugs lightly.
“We all know the dangers fake and counterfeit drugs portend for the health of the citizens and as such, serious campaigns, through the media, electronic and print, must be used so that more people could be aware and well-informed about the dangers it poses to their health.”
Also advising the Nigerian populace, the regent said, “I want to implore our citizens as well to desist from buying drugs anyhow and anywhere as drugs are too dangerous to be taken anyhow; therefore they should ensure they get their drugs from approved places across the state. The campaign will not end here as all my chiefs here present will as well take the message back to their people and with that, everybody, especially our ageing mothers and fathers, will be aware of it.”
Speaking in the same vein, the state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr Dayo Adeyanju, disclosed that aside the procurement of a Trustscan machine to test the originality of drugs being sold across the state, government had also set up a task force which comprising officials of the Ministry of Health, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and security agencies, to inspect drugs being sold in the state.
He added that with the use of the scanning machine, officials from the ministry and other agencies would be able to know the genuineness of drugs put up for sale in stores, adding that any stores found selling fake drugs would be blacklisted and the findings of the inspection team would be made public so as to serve as a deterrent to others who may be nursing the idea of starting such illicitbusiness.
The Commissioner, while highlighting the harmful effects of fake drugs, noted that the danger was much more than the effects of dreaded diseases like HIV/AIDS, cancer and malaria combined.
“It is funny when you see people taking drugs for same ailment over and over and the ailment refuses to go and they assume the ailment has spiritual connection, not knowing that it is actually as a result of fake drugs. It is therefore pertinent that we fight this scourge now before it kills us all,” Adeyanju said.
While thanking the association on behalf of the king of Akure Kingdom, High Chief M.A Adebayo, who was referred to as “Akure Warlord” appreciated the health commissioner for creating an enabling environment for the ACPN to hold its conference and for his effortsin the fight against fake and counterfeit drugs in the state.
“The influx of fake and substandard drugs has done a lot of havoc to our healthcare sector in this state and the entire nation; therefore the decision to organise this ‘walk’ in order to sensitise our people and create awareness is a welcome development and we are happy about it. We therefore assure you of our maximum support, while we enjoin you not to hesitate to ask us for anything that will ensure smooth running of your programme because its importance to the lives of our people,” Adebayo stated.
In his response, ACPNnational chairman, Pharm. (Alh) Olufemi Ismail Adebayo, appreciated the state government for its efforts at ensuring the state was rid of fake and substandard drugs. He also thanked the regent of Akure for sharing the passion of the association, regarding the theme for the ‘walk’.
“I want to assure your majesty and entire people of this state that and my members and I will not rest on our oars until the war against fake and counterfeit drugs is won.I therefore enjoin members of the public to cooperate with the association by reporting matters relating to the issue of fake and counterfeit medicine to the appropriate authorities, while patronising only authorised pharmacies for their drugs,” Adebayo stated.

The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has appealed to the newly elected government of President Muhammadu Buhari to appoint a pharmacist as next minister of health.

In a communiqué signed by its president, Pharm. Olumide Akintayo, the society argued that such appointment had eluded its members for several years under various administrations.
“The norm now is to appoint seasoned administrators and managers with cognate experience to run modern day health care. With benefits of insight, we assure relevant decision-makers that we have a preponderance of such persons in the pharmacy profession.
This development is coming on the heels of speculations that a technocrat or a health professional with medical background could emerge as the next minister to pilot the affairs of the health sector. The last time a pharmacist rose close to a similar position was during the short-lived interim government of Ernest Shonekan when Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi (incumbent president of Nigeria Academy of Pharmacy) was made the minister of health and human resources,” the statement said.
The PSN further stressed that the marginalisation suffered by pharmacists is not limited to the ministerial level but equally affects other areas, such as the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), the Consolidated Health Salary Scale (CONHESS) and the amendment bill to correct the obnoxious decree 10 of 1985.
“In the spirit of broad spectrum of reforms, the PSN recalls the monumental injustice meted out to its teeming members in Nigeria’s version of a social insurance scheme. For over 5 years now, the NHIS encourages unlawful payment mechanisms dubbed global capitation, while HMOs also capitate secondary and tertiary facilities which outrightly disrupts the equilibrium of the health system,” the PSN stated.
The Akintayo-led society demanded a well-defined welfare package for health workers, which redresses controversies that have led to recurrent and perennial strike actions.
According to the PSN communiqué, some of the recurrent welfare issues the society considers relevant include:implementation of the circular on promotion of its members from CONHESS 14 to 15, as directors, which places premium on the need to sanction defaulting hospital managements; specific steps to be taken by head of service of the federation to ensure expedited issuance of an enabling circular authorising consultancy cadre for health professionals that have adhered to due process to be vested with consultancy status.
“We want payment of arrears of specialist allowances to qualified hospital-based health professionals with effect from January 1, 2010, to be ensured with further delay. Flowing from those two earlier requests, the PSN strongly demands that the federal ministry of health must come up with a circular on residency programmes for all health professionals in Nigeria” it emphasised.
Aside from calling for immediate and full payment of arrears accruing from skipping of CONHESS 10 which remain outstanding since 2010, the society said it was high time an amendment bill was sponsored to correct, once and for all, the litany of contentious provisions in the obnoxious decree 10 of 1985 (CAP U15 463) LFN 2004 which formalises marginalisation of all health workers by doctors in the country.

Christ is the Spirit of love, which is the abiding and indwelling reality in man. In this principle of love, all knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom are contained, and until a man realises it as the one vital reality of his being, he does not fully comprehend the Christ. Such glorious realisation is the crown of evolution, the supreme aim of existence. Its attainment is complete salvation, emancipation from all error, ignorance, and sin.
When Jesus said, “Without Me ye can do nothing,” he spoke not of His perishable form, but of the universal Spirit of love of which His conduct was a perfect manifestation; and this utterance of His is the statement of a simple truth; for the works of man are vain and worthless when they are done for personal ends, and he himself remains a perishable being, immersed in darkness and fearing death, so long as he lives in his personal gratifications.
Man is of the substance of love; this he may realise if he will relinquish the impure, personal elements which he had hitherto been blindly following, and will fly to the impersonal realities of the Christ Spirit; and these realities are purity, humanity, compassion, wisdom, love.
Every precept of Jesus demands the unconditional sacrifice of some selfish, personal element before it can be carried out. Man cannot know the real whilst he clings to the unreal; he cannot do the work of Truth whilst he clings to error. Whilst a man cherishes lust, hatred, pride, vanity, self-indulgence, covetousness, he can do nothing, for the works of all these sinful elements are unreal and perishable. Only when he takes refuge in the Spirit of love within, and becomes patient, gentle, pure, pitiful, and forgiving, does he work the works of righteousness and bear the fruits of life.
The vine is not a vine without its branches, and even then it is not complete until those branches bear fruit. Love is not complete until it is lived by man; until it is fully understood by him and manifested in his conduct. A man can only consciously ally himself to the vine of love by deserting all strife and hatred and condemnation and impurity and pride and self-seeking, and by thinking only loving thoughts and doing loving deeds. By so doing, he awakens within him the divine nature which he had heretofore been crucifying and denying.
Every time a man gives way to anger, impatience, greed, pride, vanity, or any form of personal selfishness, he denies the Christ, he shuts himself out from love. And thus only does one deny Christ, and not by refusing to adopt a formulated creed.
Christ is known only to him who by constant striving has converted himself from a sinful to a pure being, who by noble, moral effort has succeeded in relinquishing that perishable self which is the source of all suffering and sorrow and unrest, and has become rational, gentle, peaceful, loving, and pure.

Culled from MIND IS THE MASTER by JAMES ALLEN

Godwin is a sales representative for Richmond Pharmaceuticals in Jos, Plateau State. His primary assignment is the marketing of the company’s brand of paracetamol syrup. While supplying retail outlets on a Monday morning, he comes across Daily Need Pharmacy on CBN Road. On getting into the pharmacy, he is warmly received by Aisha, the sales attendant. Godwin introduces the product, informing her that the drug is very effective and in high demand. He offers her a carton to sell on a trial basis. Aisha inspects the medication and considers putting it up for sale in the pharmacy. Eventually, she agrees to sell. She explains that her boss is out of town till the weekend. She would try to sell the product as long as her boss approves of it.

On Thursday, Godwin calls Daily Need Pharmacy. He is pleased to hear that four bottles of the syrup have been sold. The following Monday, he arrives at the pharmacy with an invoice for one carton of paracetamol syrup. Unfortunately, Aisha has bad news for him. Her boss had returned over the weekend. He saw the product and decided against selling it. The unsold bottles have been packed to be returned. Considering that the drugs are already being sold, Godwin suggests that they sell the rest and pay for the carton afterwards. From a legal perspective, what are the effects of the terms of this transaction?

In every business transaction with a valid contract, it is necessary to determine the measure of obligations committed by each party. This can only be done by identifying the terms and the importance of each one. The terms of a contract will vary in weight, from the fundamental terms (the most important), to the conditions and the warranties. The nature of the term of a contract will determine the liability of the party committed to it and the consequences of a breach.

The legal issues to be considered in this situation are:

1. The distinction between a contractual term and a mere representation.
2. The nature and effect of terms of a contract.
3. The incidence of collateral contracts.

While negotiating an agreement leading to the conclusion of a contract, parties may communicate certain things aimed at securing the other person’s commitment. If a dispute on a term of contract arises, it may become necessary to determine whether the issue involved was a ‘contractual term’ or a ‘mere representation’. This is because, in the case of a breach of a term of the contract, the aggrieved party can sue and receive a remedy in damages or in both damages and cancellation of the contract (depending on the seriousness of the breach). On the other hand, should the issue involved be a mere representation, the remedies available may be little or none at all.

The case of Shawel v. Reade established the principle that if the person who made the statement had special knowledge or skill, as compared to the other party, then the statement is taken to be a term of the contract. In our scenario above, during the presentation of the paracetamol syrup, Godwin asserted that the medication was “very effective and in high demand”. This would rightly be taken as expert information, inducing the other party to rely on it.

Having seen that the obligations in a contract are not of equal significance, it is understandable that the consequence of a breach of terms will vary. For this reason, a distinction should be made between a warranty, a condition and a fundamental term. Section 11(1)(b) of the Sale of Goods Act 1893 defined a condition as a stipulation in a contract of sale, the breach of which may give rise to a right to treat the contract as repudiated (or right to damages), and a warranty as a stipulation, the breach of which may give rise to a claim for damages but not to a right to reject the goods and treat the contract as repudiated.

Going by this definition, a term of contract which gives a party the right to cancel is a condition. Thus, an agreement which is premised on the occurrence of a specific factor is one subjected to a condition precedent. That agreement is not binding until the specific factor has occurred. In our case with Godwin and Daily Need Pharmacy, there was an agreement to sell the product on the condition of the approval of the boss. This situation is similar to the facts of Pym v. Campbell. In that case, an agreement by the defendant to buy the plaintiff’s invention was made subject to the approval of an engineer. It was held that there was no binding agreement until that approval was obtained.

Finally, some statements by a party may not qualify as terms of the contract but are still relevant to the incidence of it. These will come under the doctrine of collateral contracts. The rule established in the City & Westminster case is this: if a person makes a statement or promise which is intended to induce the other party to enter into a contract, then if that party makes a commitment on reliance on that promise, the person who made the promise will be held bound by it. The statement or promise is regarded as part of a preliminary or collateral contract.

In view of this, it should be noted that Aisha received a carton of paracetamol syrup from Godwin to sell “on a trial basis”. This trial basis was the premise on which she entered into the transaction in the first place. That means that the attempt to sell the product was simply a test which could be cancelled in the event of any vitiating factor.

Principles and cases are drawn from Sagay: Nigerian Law of Contract

Former President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) and current President of the African Pharmaceutical Forum (APF), Pharm. (Sir) Anthony Akhimien, has called on community pharmacists to do more with their skills and training as professionals, urging them to delegate the daily routines of prescription filling and counting of tablets to their support staff.

Akhimien, a Fellow of the PSN, gave the charge while delivering his keynotes address at the 34thAnnual National Conference of the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN), recently held in Akure, Ondo State.

He noted that, globally, task-shifting is the order of the day in the health care industry, adding that pharmacy technicians can be supervised to handle most of the pharmacist’s routine, so that the pharmacist can concentrate on pharmaceutical care, using his deep knowledge and skills in clinical pharmacy.

The APF president further disclosed that the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), which kicked off about 10 years ago became moribund, largely due to poor implementation. He therefore urged the ACPN to reflect, return to the drawing board and engage relevant authorities in other to bring back community pharmacists into the scheme.

“We have a primary duty to protect the enrollee by guaranteeing the quality of drugs produced and dispensed to Nigerians who are in the scheme,” hestated.

Akhimien also observed that community pharmacists could be valuable assets in the management of chronic diseases in the neighbourhood, as the treatment of such diseases often requires long term use of medicine.

“Also, community pharmacists should advocate for inclusion in the provision of health screening for chronic diseases as diabetes, hypertension, cancer and others; counsel patients on appropriate use of medicines; advocate for lifestyles changes that prevent a chronic disease; and improve outcomes of drug therapy”, Akhimien said.

The former PSN president also bemoaned the attitude of community pharmacists in the country towards veterinary medicine, noting that this leads to loss of potential income.

In his words, “In this part of the world, community pharmacist shy away from stocking and dispensing of veterinary products; yet there is a growing need for veterinary products.A section of the pharmacy can be allocated to veterinary pharmaceutical products, such as mineral supplements, antiseptic, milking ointments, hoof softeners, flea and tick repellants, etc. This can improve the economic fortunes of community pharmacy practitioners,especially those in urban dwellings.”

The veteran pharmacist also encouraged community pharmacists to participate in government health programmes, adding that such could be achieved by working closely with other health care providers.

“Pharmacists should sharpen their skills and knowledge by attending short time certificate courses as approved by International bodies like USAID, PEFAR, WAPCP, WHO etc,” he said.

Explore new frontiers, Akhimien urges community pharmacists

By Adebayo Oladejo

Akhimien equally tasked community pharmacists to explore herbal medicine, adding that this would boost the image of the profession and the economic value of the individual.

“I am one of the proponents that herbal medicines are the future of pharmacy practice as evidences abound that where orthodox drugs fail, herbal remedies have taken over and done very well. These products are not cheap but our clients search and go for them. It is also economically viable to engage in them. ACPN can also invite a Director of NAFDAC and the Herbal Medicine Department of the Federal Ministry of Health to offer training to members that are interested,” he counseled.

Poised to reduce the alarming rates of mortality and excruciating pains in people living with sickle cell, medical doctors with specialty in Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) have suggested bone marrow transplantation, good nutrition, mandatory screening policy, comprehensive and holistic management as life saving measures for sickle cell sufferers.

The experts, who converged at the National Sickle Cell Centre, Lagos, on June 19, 2015 to commemorate the World Sickle Cell Day, took turn to advise the patients on best options available for the management of the disorder, and possible means of staying healthy.

Fielding questions from journalist, Dr Adediran Adewumi, consultant dermatologist, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, said sickle cell is an unwanted guest in Africa, which was brought about by genetic mutation, and it has done a lot of damage to Africans.

His words: “To get rid of this disease, bone marrow transplantation is the sure way out. Also, if our government could make sickle cell screening policy mandatory from secondary schools through to intending couples level , the spread of the disease can also be curbed. Another alternative is for our government to adopt the European policy with a deadline of transforming our sickle cell patients to normal patients through bone marrow transplantation”.

Another specialist on strokes in SCD, Professor A. A. Akinsulie asserted that comprehensive and holistic management from birth will go a long way in cutting down on SCD crisis. He said the implication of this is that a mother must know a child’s genotype from birth, in order for proper care to takeoff from birth. “Preventive health care like the provision of folic acid, good nutrition and proper hydration, will put the children in steady state. If by the age of two, a child with the tendency to develop stroke is monitored with a Transcranial Doppler (TCD), then such stroke can be preventable.

The representative of Lagos State Ministry of Health, Dr. Eniola Erinoso intimated the participants on the activities of the state government in giving succour to people living with SCD, stating that the government has recognised the plight of this group of people and has provided free medical treatment for children under 12 years with the condition, describing it as the most prevalent period of the disease in children.

“We have finalised the treatment guideline for the management of Sickle Cell Disorders and machinery has also been put in place towards developing a comprehensive state policy on Hemoglobinopathies. A key component of this policy would be support for enlightenment activities at all levels with particular emphasis on young persons who are yet to be committed in marriage to their partners”, he stated.

By Adebayo Folorunsho-Francis

Against all odds, representatives of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile Ife, have won the grand prize at the 2015 edition of the Sir Ifeanyi Atueyi Debate Competition.

The contest which took place at the Banquet Hall of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) on 8 July, 2015 was part of activities lined up by the Pharmaceutical Association of Nigeria Students (PANS) to celebrate the Annual Pharmacy Health Week.

Debating on two topical issues – “Should Nigeria Practice Free Education?” and “Should Euthanasia be Legalised in Nigeria?” academic gladiators from both OAU and UNIBEN metaphorically went for each other’s jugular in a bid to garner maximum points through their arguments.

While representatives of UNIBEN claimed that education could not be completely free, citing the huge budget earmarked annually for the educational sector, the OAU team maintained that it was indeed possible, considering the near-100 per cent literacy model of countries like Korea and Sweden.

Team UNIBEN however countered the argument with the claim that the countries cited succeeded simply because of their moderate population figures.

“Now imagine Nigeria with a huge population of approximately 177 million to contemplate the idea of offering free education. Where is that done?” the team asked rhetorically.

On legalisation of euthanasia in Nigeria, Team OAU canvassed that Nigeria was not ripe for such “obnoxious act of ‘mercy killing.’” One of the contestants cited the remarkable case of Karen Quinlan of the United States who survived after she had been removed from mechanical ventilation and even went on to live nine more years in vegetative state before her eventual death in 1985.

Team UNIBEN however countered the notion, pointing out that their opponent (OAU) was not putting peculiar cases, such as those suffering from cerebral cancer, into consideration.

“When dying patients cry out for euthanasia, they know the reason for it. After all, don’t we humans clamour for analgesics and opium in the face of excruciating pains? How then can you justify the need for patients with terminal diseases to go through a lifetime pain? It is totally uncalled for!” the team argued.

At the end of the debate. Team OAU was announced winner.

Announcing the result, the panel of judges, comprising Dr Patrick Osarenmwinda Igbinaduwa, head of department, Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, UNIBEN; Barrister Theodora Ewah, administrative assistant, UNIBEN; and Barrister Omoduwa Osaduwa, administrative assistant, UNIBEN, said that they considered a number of factors, which included number of points garnered, manner of presentation, dress code and composure, to arrive at their final decision.

In the same debate category, Ojelabi Jesujoba, who led the OAU delegation, was declared the best speaker.

In the essay writing category, Ezekiel Efeobhokhan, a 400 level pharmacy student in UNIBEN emerged winner, with his article, “Performance Enhancing Drugs: Is it Justifiable In Sports & Academics?”

Praising the contestants and the organisers for their outstanding contributions, Pharm (Sir) Ifeanyi Atueyi, managing director of Pharmanews Limited, said he was particularly impressed with the institution that won the debate contest, given the fact that OAU was his alma mater.

Remarking on the essence of the annual event, which is hosted in his honour, the Pharmanews boss said it was necessary to understand that great men and women do not become successful or prominent overnight, noting that so many hurdles and challenges must have been surmounted along the way.

“There will always be obstruction and challenges. It will get to a point where you might start wondering why those things are happening to you. But know that God is with you even with those challenges.

“I am where I am today because God has destined it. Pharmanews might look like an accident, but I assure you that it is not,” he remarked.

Reminiscing on how the journal was birthed in May 1979, Atueyi narrated the story of how he was compelled to abandon employment to pursue his dream.

“As you go on with your programme, some of you are finishing; let nobody tell you that you cannot be the person you hope to be. Let God decide that for you,” he counselled.

The quest to have a well-ordered drug distribution system in Nigeria through the implementation of the new National Drug Distribution Guidelines (NDDGs) has received a big boost as Pharm. Olumide Akintayo, president of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) and other eminent pharmacists have backed the 30 June implementation commencement date.

The pharmacists spoke at the official launch of Ultra Logistics Company (ULCO), a Mega Drug Distribution Centre (MDDC), promoted by the PSN, held recently at MAN Centre, Ikeja, Lagos.
Speaking with Pharmanews in an interview at the event, Pharm. Akintayo noted that the MDDC was a product of direct consultation between the federal government, through the Federal Ministry of Health, and the PSN, alongside its various appendages, including the technical groups and the strategic platforms like PMG-MAN, APIN and NIROPHARM.
He disclosed that the PSN had urged the FG to keep to the implementation date,adding that there would be a ministerial press briefing in June to announce the commencement of the policy.
The PSN president, who was the chief host at the event, in his opening remarks, noted that one of the underlying principles behind PSN promoting ULCO is to have pharmacy solution to pharmaceutical problems, especially that of drug distribution.
He noted that ULCO was set up to protect the interest of pharmacy practice and the general public in the implementation of the NDDGs, adding that, in recognition of the value-based principle of the pharmacy profession, the company would operate as a commercial organisation with social enterprise ethos, while growing the investment of shareholders.
The PSN helmsman explained that ULCO will aim to achieve three main objectives, namely, effective and efficient pharma supply management; distribution of safe, efficacious, effective and affordable drugs of good quality; and access to affordable pharma products to the public.
Pharm. Akintayo noted that the Nigerian pharmaceutical market is presently confronted with key challenges which include: fragmented and chaotic nature of drug distribution network; limited advancement in regulatory reforms; poor healthcare infrastructure; limited spending power of citizen; policy inconsistency; poor storage of drugs, leading to deterioration of active ingredients; reliance on imported pharmaceuticals; as well as limited market data, asoperators do not have real time data on quantities of drugs sold, where, when, by who and to whom.
He stated further that if the industry gets drug distribution right, the role of pharmacists will be clearer and there will be better professionalised detailing and less of selling, adding that the desire to see this come to fruition prompted the PSN to play a fundamental role in putting together the 2011 NDDGs.
Pharmacists, he said, must be in charge of ensuring that there is a model of practice in drug distribution, which other players must follow, stressing that, it is part of the responsibility of pharmacists to create confidence in the drug distribution system and ensure the safety and efficacy of drugs.

ULCO, Akintayo said, would be part of providing solution that will ensure an elimination of the current unprofessional practice in drug distribution, as the centre will provide an opportunity to change how drugs are distributed, while also serving as a platform for wealth creation for the pharmacy profession.
While urging pharmacists and pharmacy institutions to see the company as an initiative for financial empowerment, the PSN helmsman hinted that ULCO’s aspiration is to be the market leader in ensuring the Nigerian public get good and quality drugs at reasonable prices.
In his presentation at the occasion, the managing director of ULCO, Dr Lolu Ojo, said that the company was established to provide an opportunity for practitioners to be part of the positive changes that would reposition and boost the Nigerian pharmaceutical industry.
ULCO, Lolu Ojo said, has a mission to emerge as the preferred MDDC and ensure that drugs that are available are affordable and of good quality.
He added that ULCO will establish physical presence in Lagos with zonal hubs in each of the geopolitical zones, so as to meet up with its operational and regulatory requirements.
The ULCO MD stated that the company will focus on densely populated urban areas with large scale wholesalers to maximise business cost of distribution.
He also noted that ULCO will seek competitive advantage by offering highly diverse products at competitive pricing, noting that pricing remains the strongest key buyer value in the Nigerian market.
Chairman of the occasion, Dr Dere Awosika, in her closing remarks, urged all pharmacists to support the ULCO and the new NDDGs, stating that with the support of everybody, the company would succeed and the NDDGs would be effective.

Managing Director of the HealthPlus Group, Pharm. Bukky George, has charged community pharmacists to regularly evaluate their business success to ensure better performance and profitability.

She gave the charge at the 2nd Annual Alumni Lecture of the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos (UNILAG), which took place at the main auditorium of the institution in Akoka, on 3 March, 2015.

Speaking at the event, which also coincided with the institution’s 30th anniversary of pharmacy education, Pharm. George said she had observed over the years that most pharmacists were laid-back and not willing to take risk in their businesses.

“As an entrepreneur, pharmacists must ever be willing to take risk,” she urged.

While advisingthe 2013/2014 graduating students present at the lecture, the HealthPlus boss recalled that from the inception of her business, her mission was to be Nigeria’s first integrated pharmacy, a dream that eventually materialised.

According to her, Healthplus commenced operation 15 years ago in a modest18-square-metre room in Ikeja GRA, with just three staff, adding that, since then, the business had progressively grown to include40 branches nationwide.

“This is why I said that you need to evaluate the success of your business from time-to-time. Being a leader is beyond just opening a store and sitting there. We all have entrepreneurial spirit and skills within us,” she said.

George, who was once a staff of GlaxoSmithKline, equally encouraged young community pharmacists to seek mentoring.

“As young pharmacists, you must learn to look at the big picture. Everything you need to know about life, you don’t know yet. Graduating from school is just a step into preparing you for the journey ahead,” she stressed.

The pharmacist-turned-entrepreneur also called for professionalism on the part of the graduating students, adding that a professional pharmacist is mature, dresses appropriately, comes to work with a good attitude, is always willing to learn, gives appropriate feedback and is a team player.

Quoting the FIP description of a professional pharmacist, George said that such pharmacist is a 7-star pharmacist who is a communicator, manager, leader and teacher.

“I believe that is what you all are. If there is anything I learnt from my role models (Aliko Dangote and Richard Branson), it is to do big things at all time. That has always been my mantra,” she said.

While emphasising the need for careful thinking and planning before venturing into the world of entrepreneurship, the retail mogul also charged the students to be confident and inquisitive.

“You need to be bold and speak as you would like to be remembered. One of your lecturers, Pharm Tosin Adeyemi, once interned with HealthPlus after his graduation. He was bold, brash and quite inquisitive, always asking questions.That is the hallmark of a good pharmacist. I encourage you to do the same wherever you find yourself,” she admonished.

Sharing Pharm. George’s optimism, Pharm. Remi Adeseun, chairman of Rodot Nigeria Limited charged the graduating students to be emboldened and empowered by their history,rather being than being enslaved by it.

“The skill-set you have acquired in the course of your training can also be deployed to create and share value in other fields such as telecommunication, sales and marketing, retail banking and management education services,” he said.

Adeseun urged the young scholars to hold on to their dreams as there would be challenges on their way to becoming outstanding pharmacists.

Sharing his personal experience, the Rodot chairman said, “Competition is in my nature. That is why it was easy for me to seek a career in pharmaceutical sales and marketing. After my internship in community pharmacy and national youth service in the hospital, I knew my future professional happiness lay in deploying the clinical pharmacy knowledge I had acquired from the university to help healthcare workers give their patients the best treatment choices using my products from my Sandoz to Novartis to Janssen-Cilag days.”

Dignitaries at the event included Prof. Olukemi Odukoya, dean, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos; Pharm. Wale Oyenuga, managing director, Evans Therapeutics and Prof. Fola Tayo, pro-chancellor and chairman of council, Caleb University.

Others were Dr Ayodele Ogunleye, chairman, UNILAG Alumni Association, Dr Arinola Joda, PSN assistant secretary, Pharm. Ike Onyechi, managing director of Alpha Pharmacy and Prof. Cecilia Igwilo, Director, Foundation Programme Unilag

According to Dr Odukoya, the lecture was intended to bring prominent and successful alumni to the campus to share their wisdom and experience with the faculty.

“Lecturers are also chosen amongst the alumni who have repeatedly proven themselves with tremendous achievements at the highest levels in their respective fields. In this way, both the students and faculty benefits in terms of alumni support and overall exposure,” she said.

Chairman of the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) Pharm. Bruno Nwankwo has said that, to consistently meet the drug needs of Nigerians, patent medicine stores are indispensable .

Speaking at the three-day education summit organised by the Nigeria Academy of Pharmacy (NAPharm.) in collaboration with the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria and the PCN which held at the University of Lagos Guest House and Conference Centre, Akoka on 22 April, Nwankwo explained that such sub-cadre was essential to support pharmacists in the onerous task of meeting their obligations to the community.

He added that his stance was “not so much out of love for the vendors but out of concern for the council’s responsibility to the nation.”

The PCN boss further remarked that while he was aware that many pharmacists would be repulsed by his seeming endorsement, especially considering his office as the chairman of the PCN, there was no denying that patent medicine dealers were indispensable in the present circumstances.

“Current statistics show that only about 25 per cent of our 774 local government areas have a pharmacist; yet their residents need basic medicines,” Nwankwo noted.

He said rather than denounce patent medicine dealers, pharmacists must “come up with an appropriate training model for them and then go on to recruit, train, relocate and regulate them to provide the intended limited services in the rural and remote places where pharmacists cannot presently serve.”

He also added that “our profession has a responsibility to provide medicines and medical supplies to the entire population of Nigeria. Unfortunately, we are not doing so. WHO guidelines in this area require countries to have a pharmacist to population of 1 to 2,300 persons. In Nigeria, we presently have about 19,000 pharmacists for a population of 168 million people – a far cry from the ideal.”

Pharm. Nwankwo’s pronouncement echoes a similar call made by Dr Moyosore Adejumo, Director of Pharmaceutical Services in Lagos State Ministry of Health, recently.

Speaking at The Panel, an annual entrepreneurial summit for young pharmacists organised by Shyne and Cloe Consulting, Adejumo had declared that it was wrong for people, especially pharmacists, to victimise patent medicine dealers over their role in the health sector.

“Let me categorically say that patent medicine dealers equally have their right. We register them especially to in areas where pharmacists are in short supply or don’t exist at all. For instance, we need them in remote places like Badagry, Ikorodu and environs,” Adejumo said.

To justify her statement, the Lagos DPS explained that a team of inspectors once visited a community called “Cele Village” in Ikeja and was shocked to discover there was no single pharmacy in sight.

“Should we leave such areas to suffer? I don’t think so. What’s fair is fair! If you (pharmacists) don’t want them, we admonish you to move to those areas and cover up the lapses. Because one thing I can tell you is that they are recognised by the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) and the DPS in Lagos State for as long as they comply within the ambiance of the law,” she noted.

Dr Adejumo, however, conceded that only the PCN had a final say on the issue. Accordingly, with the present thumbs-up coming from the PCN chairman, the contentious issue appears to have been laid to rest.

In a similar vein, Pharm. Azubike Okwor, immediate past president of the PSN, has also called for the incorporation of pharmacy technicians into the society, saying that the world was facing a chronic shortage of trained health workers.

During his presentation at the academy summit, he remarked that the WHO statistics had shown that there was a global health workforce deficit of more than four million, adding that countries with lower economic indicators such as those in Africa tend to have relatively fewer pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.

As a way out, he recommended to the summit that task-shifting, the process of delegating assignments to less-specialised health workers should be implemented alongside other strategies that had been designed to increase the total number of health workers in all cadres.

“Pharmacy technicians are a vital part of the pharmacy team working under the direct supervision of pharmacists. However, a relatively small percentage of graduating technicians are registered with the PCN,” he observed.

Okwor further canvassed protection and fairer treatment of technicians by pharmacists.

“With sufficient supervision and support, technicians can be assigned more roles to enable pharmacists concentrate on more patient-centred roles. I also urge the PCN to ensure that there is ‘One Register, One Entry Point and One Standard for Technicians,” he proffered.

The distinguished pharmacist who has been officially recognised as the first African Fellow of the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) charged community pharmacies to engage the services of pharmacy technicians to relieve them of the daily stress, stressing that task-shifting could provide a platform for the incorporation of the technicians’ services into the pharmacy team efforts in health care delivery.

“The PSN should understudy other professional associations and how they relate with their technicians with a view to incorporating pharmacy technicians into our society,” he suggested.

For the record, the summit organised by NAPharm. marked its first formal programme since inauguration at a ceremony chaired by former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd.) GCFR, in June 2014.

The summit was created to provide the necessary window for the pharmacy profession to look outwards with a duty to society, with the purpose of working with other members of the health professional team in order to create a larger health system that would deliver on quality health for Nigerians including diagnostic, preventive, curative and rehabilitative health care.

In attendance at the summit were Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi, former minister of health and president of NAPharm; Prof. Rahamon Bello, vice chancellor, University of Lagos; Prof. (Mrs) Cecilia Igwilo, chairman of the NAPharm.’s Education Committee; Prof. Fola Tayo, NAPharm’s general secretary; Pharm. Olumide Akintayo, PSN president and Pharm. N.A.E. Mohammed, PCN registrar.

Others were Sir Ifeanyi Atueyi, vice president of the Academy; Dr Teresa Pounds, assistant dean for Clinical Pharmacy Education of Mercer University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences, USA; Dr Bugewa Apampa, director of pharmacy, University of Sussex, United Kingdom; Prof. Chinedu Babalola, FPSN, FAS (dean, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ibadan) and Prof. Augustine Okhamafe, FPSN (Former dean, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Benin).

Atrial fibrillation (Afib) is a disorder of heart rhythm, also known as an arrhythmia. It is now an increasingly common disease, particularly in elderly persons of over 60 years of age. There are approximately 160,000 new incidences of Afib annually in the United States alone, each patient requiring proper care and management to prevent the occurrence of a stroke due to circulating blood clots.
People with Afib may be on medication treatments to stabilise/normalise their heart’s electrical conduction; or they may be surgically treated by the placement of a pacemaker device.
Among those that may suffer an Afib are people suffering from hyperactive thyroid glands, those with diseases of the heart’s mitral valve, and those with genetically induced malformations of the heart’s musculature. These patients will require a well co-ordinated counselling and treatment programme for better understanding of their ailment and for survival.
Some symptoms of an atrial fibrillation are: chest pain, palpitations, syncope and or fainting spells due to an heart failure. The irregular heartbeats and misfiring of electrical impulses seen in Afib may lead to pooling of blood, stasis and clot formation in the upper chamber of the heart. The clots formed may dislodge and travel through the blood vessels into the brain causing an occlusion and stroke.
Prevention of a stroke, management of Afib and treatment compliance, especially for oral anticoagulants is critical to the management of patients living with atrial fibrillation. Warfarin is an important oral anticoagulant that is commonly used in Afib, and its role as an anticoagulant is discussed comprehensively in this action plan. Aspirin, an antiplatelet is also used for its efficacy in preventing clot formation.

What drugs are used in Afib?
Your prescriber may recommended different kinds of medications in the management of your condition, depending on the diagnosis and perceived origin of the atrial fibrillation. Examples of these medications are listed below:
• Anticoagulants: Warfarin, Enoxaparin, Heparin.
• Antiplatelets: Aspirin, Clopidrogel, Cilostazol, and Dabigatran.
• Beta-blockers: Sotalol.
• Antiarrhythmics: Quinidine, Procainamide, Flecainide, Propafenone, Disopyramide, and others, Amiodarone, Dronaderone, Dofetilide ,Ibutilide.
• Calcium channel blockers: Verapamil and Diltiazem.
• Digoxin.

Warfarin as an oral anticoagulant in atrial fibrillation
The use of warfarin in the management and prevention of complications of Afib is discussed here in detail because it is the most widely used oral anticoagulant agent for the prevention of strokes in Afib patients. Other than the need for monitoring of its effectiveness with an INR or PT Time test, warfarin is efficacious, cheap and tolerable in most patients with Afib.
Warfarin is superior to aspirin or clopidrogel, whether both agents are used singly or combined. It is preferred over dabigatran because it’s hepatically metabolised and can be used in patients with renal failure. The starting doses of warfarin in most cases are: 5MG in the elderly, 7.5MG in obese patients or 2.5MG in patients with very lean body mass.
Warfarin’s effect may take up to seven days to manifest, therefore most patients are first given heparin or low-molecular weight heparins (LMWH) together with oral warfarin if patient can be orally dosed. Most hospitals in the US do have standard warfarin dosing protocols for initiation therapy and for maintenance based on the patient’s Lab values of the INR and comorbid conditions.
Warfarin education and treatment counselling is an essential component of pharmaceutical care for patients who require continuous anticoagulant therapy in atrial fibrillation management. Following admission for an acute episode of Afib, and subsequent patient stabilisation and effective resolution of blood clots (if any) with LMWH or heparin infusion, the patient is initiated on warfarin for a continuous anticoagulation therapy.
Warfarin doses have to be taken daily and continuously for a life time in most Afib patients. The patient, if active, and family members or care-givers are educated appropriately by the clinical pharmacists on duty on the anticipated side-effects, adverse drug reactions, precautions, food-drug interactions and herb-drug interactions of warfarin.

How warfarin works in preventing complications of Afib
Warfarin works by inhibiting a liver enzyme known as vitamin K epoxide reductase(VKOR) which converts natural vitamin K to the active form for the production of clotting factors (II, VII, IX and X). In this way, warfarin helps reduce the chances of blood clot formation, reducing the risks of a stroke in atrial fibrillation. It also slows the production of certain proteins: Proteins C, S and Z which are called anticoagulant proteins.
Warfarin doses must be taken daily to be effective in the prevention of clots in Afib. If doses are missed or skipped, the effectiveness is compromised. If warfarin doses are doubled, the risks of bleeds from the nose, gums, skin cuts and other body cavities are increased. Warfarin’s effect may be reduced or increased by some other drugs that a physician or dentist prescribes. The effect of warfarin is increased by drugs such as: Aspirin, Clopidrogel, Dabigatran, Cilostazol.
Some pain relief drugs used in arthritis may increase your risks of bleeding with warfarin, examples are: Naproxen, Ibuprofen, Nabumetone, Ketorolac, Diclofenac, Sulindac and Indomethacin. Inform your dentist appropriately that you are a warfarin patient. Use of certain steroids, orally or topically, may also increase your chances of skin bruises and bleeds with warfarin. Drugs or medications that interfere with warfarin metabolism or elimination from the body may equally prolong its effects and adverse reactions. These include: metronidazole, co-trimoxazole such as Batrim or Septra brands and their generic equivalents, as well as some medications used for high lipids- rosuvastatin, atorvastatin and simvastatin.

What’s the duration of warfarin treatment?
Oral doses of warfarin prescribed by a doctor or clinical pharmacist must be taken regularly and consistently as instructed, to prevent unfavourable circumstances and complications of Afib. Clinic visits need to be adhered to, so the doctor’s office may check the effectiveness of warfarin through the INR (International Normalised Ratio) Test, or by the PT (Prothrombin Time) Test.

Side-effects of warfarin use
These include skin bruises, purple-toes syndrome, gum bleeds, stomach upsets, nausea, taste alterations, chills, numbness, muscle weakness, dizziness etc. Inform your physician or pharmacist immediately if you notice or experience any of the following:
*Bruises, Gum bleeds, or Bright-red colour stools.
*Head injuries from falls
*Unusual dizzy-spells, fainting, light-headedness or extreme weakness.
*Pregnancy, excessive period bleeds or blood in urine.
*Bright-Red or coffee-brown coloured stools.

Monitoring of warfarin effects
The effectiveness of warfarin is measured at clinic visits by the test known as the International Normalised Ratio (INR). The INR is a standardised test used in monitoring whether warfarin levels in the blood are maintained and normal for the prevention of blood clots.
In Afib patients, an INR goal of 2.0–3.0 is the target. INR values of less than 1.8 has been shown to double the risk of a stroke.

General goals of treatment in atrial fibrillation
(a) To reduce rapid heart rate
(b) To effect a control of irregular heartbeat or tachycardia
(c) To use an anticoagulant for stroke prevention
(d) To get the patient into normal heart rhythm.

References
1. Lopes RD, Crowley MJ, Shah BR et al, Stroke Prevention In Atrial Fibrillation(Internet); Agency For Healthcare Research and Quality(US); 2013 Aug. Report No. 13-EHC113-EF
2. Stuart J et al; Dabigatran versus Warfarin in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation. N Engl J Med 2009, 361: 1139 – 1151, September 17, 2009.
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