The days when patients search endlessly for prescribed drugs in Nigeria will soon be over, as PharmSlat Online Pharmacy, an innovative online pharmacy with web and mobile applications, is poised to ensure Nigerians wherever they are have easy access to prescribed drugs at the click of a few buttons.
Engr Taiwo Omoboyeje, managing director of PharmSlat, while speaking with Pharmanews on the new initiative explained that with the PharmSlat search engine, Nigerians can search for prescribed drugs online and know which pharmacy premises closest to their location have the drug in stock.
He explained that, considering the fact that millions of Nigerians are now embracing the use of digital channels like mobile phones, tablets and laptops to buy almost everything online, PharmSlat is also now making it convenient and possible for Nigerians to order any prescribed drug online and choose to pick it up at the closest premises or get it shipped to them without breaking the drug dispense law by the regulatory bodies.
He explained further that this initiative is in accordance with the increasing campaign for use of Information Technology (IT) in healthcare delivery, as advocated by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
According to the PharmSlat boss, the company is a subsidiary of MedSlat, a telemedicine and eHealth technology company, which is powered by MedSlat Global Services Limited.
“We are an innovative but simple cyberpharmacy marketplace platform, developed to improve community pharmacy practice in Nigeria and our desire is to help pharmacists grow their pharmacy businesses exponentially by selling on their behalves to customers they would not have had access to due to location constraint,” Engr. Omoboyeje explained.
He equally added that “having observed the trend of information technology in business and various industries worldwide, we have realised that information technology is the future and the future start now, so it is only those that see the future first and take advantage of it that usually win first. Also businesses worldwide are going digital, and Nigerian businesses are following suit, so we implore all business minded pharmacists in the country to join the train of this innovative technology and experience exponential growth in their business revenue.”
Omoboyeje also stated that the company has cordial relationship with all the pharmaceutical bodies under the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), saying PharmSlat will be at the next PSN national conference in Umuahia, Abia State.
While assessing pharmacy practice in the country, the Osun State-born certified systems engineer said Nigeria is progressively advancing by the day, adding that there are many qualified pharmacists practising these days compared to the times when only dispensers were taking charge.
He however added that one of the major challenges confronting pharmacy today is chaotic drug distribution system which exposes medicines to be sold in open markets, and handled by quacks, charlatans and businessmen, most of whom he said are disorderly in selling medicines.
“So, until these open drugs markets are completely annihilated, Nigeria may not know peace in terms of distributing and dispensing of genuine medicine to the public,” he said.
