The Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana (PSGH) has launched activities marking its 90th anniversary with a Maiden Dinner and Awards Night in Ho, celebrating excellence within the profession while making a strong appeal for the immediate employment of pharmacists to improve and sustain pharmaceutical service delivery across the country.

The event brought together pharmacists, regulators, and key stakeholders from the Volta and Oti Regions to reflect on the profession’s contributions to public health and to highlight pressing challenges facing pharmaceutical care delivery.

Addressing the gathering, the Volta and Oti Regional Chairman of PSGH, Dr Pharm. Courage Ketor expressed concern about the acute shortage of pharmacists in health facilities, leading to long queues at hospital pharmacies and OPDs and excessive workload on existing staff.

“What we are seeing in many hospitals is long queues at pharmacies and OPDs due to the heavy workload on the few pharmacists available. We are appealing to the minister and government to urgently issue clearance for recruitment so that more pharmacists can join the workforce,” Dr Ketor said.

He noted that timely recruitment would reduce patient waiting time and significantly enhance the quality of pharmaceutical service delivery, which remains critical to patient outcomes.

Dr Ketor acknowledged that dedication and sacrifice are core values embedded in the training and ethics of pharmacists and appealed to newly qualified professionals to accept postings to rural and deprived areas.

“As we have done it, we encourage the younger ones to also serve in deprived communities. Their impact will speak for them, and we are ready to receive them and make their stay comfortable,” he added.

However, he was candid about the realities confronting young pharmacists, calling on the government to make rural postings more attractive through rural and deprived area allowances, accommodation, and additional incentives.

“After six years of pharmacy school and internship, young professionals have expectations. Posting them to deprived areas without incentives makes retention difficult. Government must make it exciting by fulfilling promises of rural allowances, accommodation, and stipends, at least within the first few years of service,” he stressed.

Delivering an address at the event, Dr. (Pharm) Paul Owusu Donkor described the PSGH as the umbrella body of all pharmacists in Ghana and one of the three oldest recognised professional bodies in the country.

He said pharmacists are often the first point of contact for Ghanaians seeking healthcare and play a central role in ensuring the safe and effective use of medicines.

Dr Donkor explained that the 90th anniversary celebration is also an opportunity to recognise pharmacists who have distinguished themselves in community pharmacy, hospital practice, the pharmaceutical industry, and the training of health professionals.

“By celebrating these stalwarts, we challenge the next generation to bring passion, compassion, and commitment into their work, while strengthening those who continue to go above and beyond in serving the everyday Ghanaian,” he said.

He further renewed calls for increased investment in local pharmaceutical manufacturing, disclosing that Ghana currently produces only about 30 percent of its medicine needs.

Dr Donkor warned that medicines have become national security assets and urged the government to create an enabling environment through tax relief on raw materials, access to land, funding, logistics, and technical support to strengthen local production, generate employment, and support the 24-hour economy.

Meanwhile, the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding public health through strong collaboration with pharmacists in the Volta and Oti Regions.

A Regulatory Officer at the FDA Volta Regional Office, Gameli Goka, said the Authority has worked closely with pharmacists on pharmacovigilance and patient safety, particularly in the reporting of adverse drug reactions from hospitals and community pharmacies.

“These reports allow us to carry out causality assessments and take appropriate regulatory action where necessary to protect public health,” he explained.

Mr Goka noted that the FDA has also collaborated with pharmacists to address the challenge of substandard and falsified medicines, acting swiftly on reported cases.

He added that the Authority has intensified training and sensitisation programme, designating selected community pharmacies as patient safety centres, while extending pharmacovigilance education to nurses, laboratory scientists, and other allied health professionals.

The Maiden Dinner and Awards Night concluded with the recognition of outstanding pharmacists whose dedication has significantly contributed to healthcare delivery in Ghana, reinforcing the Society’s commitment to quality pharmaceutical care, patient safety, and national health security as it marks 90 years of service.