A university don, Professor Ogbonna Okorie, has stated that pharmacists across Nigeria must urgently reposition themselves as leaders in digital health transformation and pharmaceutical innovation if the country is to overcome widening healthcare gaps and meet emerging medical challenges.
Okorie, a professor of Pharmaceutical Technology and Industrial Pharmacy, gave the charge, while delivering a keynote address titled “ Pharmacy: Leading the Charge in Digital Health and Pharmaceutical Innovation” at the 17th oath-taking and induction ceremony of pharmacy graduands at Madonna University, Elele, Rivers State.
According to him, healthcare globally is undergoing rapid transformation, driven by technology, and Pharmacy must take a central leadership role in shaping how medicines are developed, delivered and monitored.
The former dean of the faculty of Pharmacy, University of Port Harcourt noted that the evolving healthcare landscape presents an opportunity for pharmacists to move beyond traditional dispensing roles into clinical decision-making, research, public health advocacy and digital health leadership.
“Healthcare is changing faster than ever before. This is not a challenge, it is an opportunity,” Okorie said, stressing that Nigeria’s healthcare gaps demand innovative and technology-driven pharmaceutical practice.
He identified digital health as a major force reshaping pharmacy practice, highlighting innovations such as electronic health records, electronic prescribing, telepharmacy services and mobile health applications that improve medication safety, patient monitoring and continuity of care.
The keynote speaker explained that clinical support systems now help pharmacists detect drug interactions, contraindications and appropriate dosing adjustments, thereby reducing medication errors and improving therapeutic outcomes.
According to the don, artificial intelligence is increasingly supporting prescription safety, analysing patient data, predicting adverse drug reactions and accelerating drug discovery, while wearable health technologies allow real-time monitoring of vital signs, including heart rate and blood glucose levels.
Other emerging tools transforming pharmaceutical services, according to him, include digital therapeutics, pharmacovigilance databases, health information exchange platforms, blockchain technology for securing drug supply chains and combating counterfeit medicines, as well as big data analytics for tracking disease trends and guiding health policy decisions.
The professor also highlighted advances that are redefining pharmaceutical innovation globally, including biotechnology-derived medicines, mRNA vaccine technology, pharmacogenomics, nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems and targeted cancer therapies.
He said precision medicine is now enabling treatments tailored to patients’ genetic and molecular profiles, underscoring the need for pharmacists to develop competencies that align with scientific and technological progress.
Drawing attention to Nigeria’s pharmaceutical workforce deficit, Okorie noted that a population exceeding 220 million people is served by fewer than 30,000 registered pharmacists.
He disclosed that the current ratio is approximately one pharmacist to between 7,000 and 8,000 people. He lamented that this current ratio falls far below recommended standards, leaving many rural and semi-urban communities without adequate pharmaceutical care.
“These statistics tell us clearly that Nigeria needs innovative pharmacists, not just dispensers of medicines,” he stated.
The don emphasised that modern pharmacists must function as clinical experts, innovators and healthcare collaborators capable of ensuring safe, rational and cost-effective medicine use amid rising healthcare costs and complex disease burdens.
He explained that electronic prescribing systems help reduce medication errors, telepharmacy expands access to underserved populations, and mobile health technologies strengthen adherence monitoring and pharmacovigilance efforts, adding that artificial intelligence and big data analytics are increasingly supporting drug utilisation reviews and evidence-based practice across healthcare systems.
While calling for a shift in mindset across the profession, Okorie urged pharmacists to embrace innovation with responsibility while maintaining compassion and patient-centred care.
“Be a pharmacist who leads, who innovates and who serves with excellence. If this is not done, others will take your position and lead,” Okorie warned.
He emphasised that the future of healthcare will be digital, collaborative and innovation-driven, stressing that pharmacy must remain at the forefront of that transformation.
