Replaceable, or Irreplaceable?

HealthPharmacy
Last updated on
Avatar photo
By Bryan Tan Van Hong

Publicity Associate at YPC. Currently working in Esyms, an online pharmacy platform and Registered Pharmacist at a retail pharmacy. Oh, and not to forget, pun enthusiast.

Written by Bryan Tan – Marketing and Communications Associate at YPC, currently a PRP at a retail pharmacy, and pun enthusiast

 

The director of the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA) Datin Dr Faridah Aryani Md Yusof stated that amidst the impending Industrial Revolution 4.0, pharmacists roles will not be replaced by technology. It is still a field which requires human touch.

“The services and advice provided by pharmacists should not be replaced despite the advancement in technological aspects such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics,” said Dr Faridah after the closing ceremony of the recent Negeri Sembilan Pharmacy conference. “IR 4.0 doesn’t just involve robotics, but also Big Data, which requires humans to operate.”

We know for a fact that the advancement in technology is inevitable, and there WILL be some aspects in the pharmacist profession which will be operated by machines. However, as Dr Faridah stated, the core role of a pharmacist involves humanly interaction with patients and this is not possible with machines alone.

Do you agree with Dr Faridah’s statements?

 

(image source: CommsMEA)

Related

Community Pharmacy Logo

Last updated on

This logo was decided recently from a logo competition carried out by the Pharmaceutical Services Division of the Ministry of Health, in collaboration with MPS.  Through a circular from the Pharmacy Enforcement Division of the Ministry of Health dated 30th January it is compulsory to display this logo at all community pharmacy premise. For existing…

Written by Bryan Tan – Marketing and Communications Associate at YPC, currently a PRP at a retail pharmacy, and pun enthusiast.   What? The critical allowance, or more commonly known as Bayaran Insentif Perkhidmatan Kritikal (BIPK) was a fund started in 1992 for jobs which fulfilled 2 criteria: 1) The job has low remuneration 2)…

We had the honour of meeting the first Malaysian-produced Doctor in Pharmacy (PharmD) graduate. Dr. Chong Chin Pin, or more commonly known as CP by those who know him personally, who is also YPC’s treasurer, recently graduated and received the PharmD title. We sat down and spoke to him in hopes of obtaining a clearer…

Nope, D614G is not the latest breed of durians in town. We hate to burst your bubble, but it is a mutation on the original COVID-19 virus. Simply put, SARS-CoV-2 got an upgrade, for better or for worse. Source: Giphy The recent announcement on 16th August by DG Datuk Dr Noor Hisham that the D614G-type...
At the Malaysian Society of Hypertension’s (MSH) 15th Annual Scientific Meeting, Professor Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman, the Chairman Working Group on 5th Malaysian Hypertension Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) 2018 said that many updates can be expected from the new CPG. One of these new recommendations is the preference for validated electronic blood pressure (BP) sets over mercury sphygmomanometers....

Stop Taking Nan Bao!

Last updated on

If you are one of those who consumes ‘Nan Bao’ capsules, be aware that the Health Ministry’s National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA) has released a statement that all sellers and distributors of this traditional supplement to stop all sales and distribution as it is against the Sale of Drugs Act 1952 and the Control of…

Others

[UPDATE] As of 8/12/2020 The Light at the End of the Tunnel On 8 December, the United Kingdom has been the very first nation to begin vaccinating its citizens. 90 year-old Margaret Keenan was the first Briton to receive the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. The UK has also placed an order for the Moderna vaccines for a...

Compulsory Vaccination a No-Go?

Last updated on

Amidst the governement’s plans to look into compulsory vaccination, The United Nations’ children’s agency has said that this is not the best way to address life-threatening diseases such as measles and diphteria. Marianne Clark-Hattingh, Unicef’s representative in Malaysia said that mandatory laws do not always increase vaccination coverage, according to evidence. After the recent death…

Vaccine, or Vacc-out?

Last updated on

An infant aged 2 years and 1 month recently succumbed to a very preventable disease – diptheria. It was reported that the infant was never once immunised since birth and passed away on 21 February due to severe diptheria with multiorgan failure. Diptheria is caused by the Corynebacterium diphtheriae bacteria and can be communicated via…

Here is a reminder to the smoking ban at eateries which will be officially implemented in 3 days’ time. Like many other laws, it has garnered mixed reactions and divided opinions from the public. Since its announcement back in October, many were sceptical and doubtful on the substance of this. Was the law really going…

Once upon a time, there was a pandemic called COVID-19. It was evil and contagious, causing the deaths of millions across the globe. Everyone feared it, and we were powerless against it. That is, until Vaccine X came about and we were all saved. Everyone could finally resume their day-to-day routine! This sounds like a...

MAP’s e-Learning Portal – Erectile Dysfunction  (CPD Category A8: 3 Points) The aim of this course is to share existing evidence on the diagnosis and management of patients suffering from erectile dysfunction (ED). ED is one of the main growing complaints among males. This course is planned for healthcare providers as a self-study course and…