Practical Webinar with a Stakeholder of the “Pharmacy” Training Program

On October 18, 2023, 4th-year students of the correspondence form of study of TNMU Faculty of Pharmacy participated in the online webinar “Practical aspects of the organization of prescription drugs dispensing in pharmacies”. The webinar presented a detailed analysis of practical examples. The presenter of the event was Natalia Markiv, a stakeholder of the training program “Pharmacy”, General Director of the Ternopil regional production and trade pharmacy association. The seminar was moderated by Olena Pokotylo, Associate Professor of the Department of Pharmacy Management, Economics and Technology. More than a hundred students had the opportunity to gain the genuine insight into the practical work and learn from the experience of the lecturer.

The problem of the correct dispensing of medicines and medical devices has always been open and relevant in today’s conditions in Ukraine in view of the continuation of the successful implementation of the “Affordable Medicines” program, the expansion of the nomenclature of drugs for issuing e-prescriptions and changes in the legislation on the circulation of narcotics ( psychotropic) drugs. The extreme changes and additions made to the Order of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine No. 360 dated 19.07.2005 require not only a detailed study of the regulatory and legal basis by students in practical classes, but also the consultation of a highly qualified specialist regarding the peculiarities of prescription drugs and medical products dispensing, analysis of real-life situations in the pharmacy. The presenter of the webinar focused the listeners’ attention on the types of administrative and criminal liability for pharmaceutical workers for violating the current legislation of Ukraine regarding the Rules of prescription drug dispensing and circulation of controlled substances.

A meaningful presentation and an interesting description of applied cases caused students to have a lively discussion on the topic of the webinar and a number of practical questions, to which Natalia Markiv provided comprehensive answers, taking into account the extreme changes in legal acts. The most interesting questions for active and inquisitive students were: incorrect prescriptions for antimicrobial medicines under trade names, peculiarities of the sale of medical products under the reimbursement program, the problem of public procurement in medical and preventive institutions, the existence of pharmacy points, as well as the issue of prohibiting the return of medicines of appropriate quality by consumers to a pharmacy and, as a modern challenge for pharmacists, “vaccination in a pharmacy”.

We express our deepest appreciation to the General Director of the Ternopil regional production and trade pharmacy association Natalia Markiv for the efforts and time spent on providing invaluable and extremely useful information to the young generation of future pharmacists and new practical knowledge regarding the peculiarities of prescription drugs and medical products dispensing.