World Pharmacists Day- “Pharmacy: Always trusted for your health”

What is a human relationship without an element of trust? Trust is an essential part of human relationships and cannot be overemphasized in all forms of our daily relationships. In the relationship between a pharmacist and a patient, trust is a necessity in ensuring optimum healthcare delivery. And this brings us to the theme of this year‘s World Pharmacist day: Pharmacy; always trusted for your health.

Just like the way trust is essential in human interactions, trust is a central part of health. There is evidence showing that the association between established and trusted healthcare professionals is what leads to and has continued to manifest improved health outcomes. (1)

Pharmacy Practice has changed substantially over the years. Pharmacists have the amazing opportunity of contributing directly to patient care with the sole aim of reducing morbidity and mortality in relation to medication use, as well as promoting health and preventing diseases. This is in addition to the various roles Pharmacists play in the healthcare industry. All of these increase the trust patients have in Pharmacists.

Over the years, the Pharmacy profession has consistently retained its spot among the five top most trusted professionals. There are reasons why we are trusted; prominent among the various factors is the positive patient-pharmacist relationship that is very much consistent and growing stronger. This became very much pronounced during the pandemic. Patients are able to trust us because of the defined competency being witnessed most especially in the clinical settings. This is why this year‘s theme focuses on Trust. As pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Scientists, We have the responsibility of upholding the trust our patients and clients have for us so as to ensure that our impact remains.

REFERENCES

1. Biekhauer J, Gaab J, Kossowsky J et al. Trust in the healthcare professional and health outcome : A meta-analysis. PLoS One.2017.

2. The International Pharmaceutical Federation. (updated 2nd August, 2021)