The Pharmacy Council has instituted a new licensing regime for pharmacy technicians seeking to practice in Ghana.
As part of the new regime, prospective practitioners would have to sit for the Ghana Pharmacy Technician Qualifying Examinations (GPTQE) after which they would be licenced to practice.
This formed part of measures by the council to ensure standards as well as streamlining activities of pharmacy technicians in the country.
It also aimed at sanitising the pharmacy technician space and weed out unqualified individuals out of the practice to derive efficiency.
Addressing the media in Accra yesterday, the Deputy Registrar for professional development at the council, Mr Albert WireduArkoh, said the maiden edition of the GPTQE was scheduled for October 22 this year.
He said about 300 candidates were expected to take part in the maiden edition of the examination after which those who are successful would be licenced to practice.
Mr Arkoh explained that there were three different layers of personnel in the area of pharmacy practice in the country whose activities are critical for effective healthcare delivery.
This, he said, were pharmacy professionals, medicine counter assistants and pharmacy technicians.
“For the professional pharmacy and medicine counter assistant, all persons who want to practice within that space are licenced and including pharmacy technician completes the reform processes,” he said.
Mr Arkoh explained that for one to qualify to practice as a pharmacy professional in Ghana, one must write the licensure examination known as the Ghana Pharmacy Professionals Qualifying Examinations (GPPQE).
Similarly, those who practice as medicine counter assistants must undertake the Ghana Medicine Counter Assistant Examinations (GMCAE).
On her part, the head of education training and reservations at the council, Mrs Cynthia Yeboah Mintah said the need for pharmacy technicians to write the licensing examination was to help professionalise it.
She explained that like all professional bodies, persons who desire to practice would have to go through a certain training after which they sit for their licensing examination and then licenced to practice.
Mrs Mintah said hitherto pharmacy technicians were only ‘grandfathered’ by the council through the Kumasi Technical University before being allowed to practice.
However, she said with more than one institution offering a course in pharmacy technician in the country, it had become necessary to try and harmonise their activities through licensing.
She noted the 2,480 practitioners who had already been registered and licenced would not take part in the examination.
BY CLIFF EKUFUL
