Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences of Faculty of Allied Health Sciences at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura organized an awareness talk series for the Pharmacy graduates and undergraduates to discuss the scope of the Pharmacy profession in Sri Lanka from 08th to 17th of September, 2021. The following eminent resource persons of Pharmacy alumni were invited as guest speakers to share their knowledge and experiences.
First session was on ‘Overview of regulating medicines in Sri Lanka’ by Mr. Gopi Krishantha De Silva who is a Senior Regulatory Pharmacist at the National Medicines Regulatory Authority. In this session, he briefed on the NMRA Act, laws pertaining to medicines, and how medicines are regulated in Sri Lanka.
Next session was on ‘Regulation of medicines and devices from a perspective of a medicines importer/manufacturer’ by Ms. Hemamali Tibbotumunuwa who works as the Senior Manager – Regulatory Affairs at GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (Pvt) Ltd. She discussed about the regulatory framework related to medicine and device manufacturers and the process of drug manufacturing in a pharmaceutical company.
Third session was by a Lead Consultant in Sales and Marketing; Mr. Shantha Katipearachchi on, How to “Walk the Talk” when a graduate gets into the real world. The main objectives of the session were to discuss on expectations of an employer, impressing superiors and developing a career within a short period by developing and identifying one’s own strengths and weaknesses.
Next session was by Mr. Kelum Jayasuriya, Group Manager of Pharmacy Operations at Asiri Health. The topic of the session was ‘The positive attitude of a hospital pharmacist and how a pharmacy graduate can save lives in the new era’. During his talk he mentioned the key responsibilities of a hospital pharmacist and the importance of detecting medication errors to ensure patient safety and to uplift patient’s quality of life.
Fifth talk was on the ‘Role of a pharmacy graduate in the field of pharmaceutical manufacturing’ by Mr. Nalin Kannangara; the Managing Director of Emergen Life Sciences (Pvt) Ltd. He emphasized the importance of adhering to Good Manufacturing Practices, quality control procedures in a manufacturing premises to ensure quality, safety and efficacy of a finished product. Also, he briefed on the responsibilities of a pharmacist and the avenues available for pharmacy graduates in the drug manufacturing field.
The sixth talk which was the final of the series was by the Head of Exports and Regulatory Affairs of Link Natural Products (Pvt) Ltd., Ms. Chamari Wickramathilake on ‘Prospects in a career in herbal medicine manufacturing’. The session highlighted the modern trend towards the herbal drug industry and the measures taken by Sri Lankan herbal drug manufacturers to cater the global demand.
Each session had an average participation of 145 students and the student feedback received was very gratifying. An overwhelming majority of students expressed their gratitude towards the eloquent guest speakers and the department for conducting this event.
The talk series was a great success as it has enlightened and motivated young minds to achieve their future goals in the Pharmacy profession.
