Bachelor of Pharmacy(B.Pharm) Curriculum Tribhuvan University IOM 

Bachelor of Pharmacy(B.Pharm) Curriculum Tribhuvan University IOM

Introduction

T.U. Institute of Medicine (IOM) has been a pioneer institute in health professions education in Nepal. Over the last three decades, IOM has demonstrated its commitment to produce different categories and levels of Human Resource for Health (HRH) as per the changing needs of the nation. In response to the growing demand for the quality pharmacy manpower required for the country (National Drug Policy, 1995) and along with the national and regional-level policy to develop pharmaceutical education in academic institutions, the Institute of Medicine has been entrusted to offer that opportunity to the country. Looking retrospectively, IOM has established its credibility over the decades through creatively blending the progressive world trends in health profession education with country-specific national and local needs. Prospectively, as a public institution in the forefront, it has the responsibility and challenges to produce qualified health personnel with minimum resource input that the larger public could afford in the long run.

In this context, keeping in view of the formal request made by Ministry of Health to the IOM, the curriculum for B. Pharm. was designed and Bachelor of Pharmacy Program was started in 2000 AD (2057 BS).

In a way, the need to launch a B.Pharm course at the TU-IOM was a direct response to a huge demand in the Pharmacy human resources needed for the country. Partly, it was also a response to the call at regional level to formulate proposals to develop undergraduate, post graduate and continuing education of pharmacists in the country as recommended by the WHO consultative meeting at New Delhi in Dec. 1988.

The course of B.Pharm.has been introduced at the Institute of Medicine in the year 2000 AD. Since the inception of this curriculum the course has been introduced in Maharajgunj Medical Campus (MMC) and various campuses affiliated to IOM.The need for revision or modification of the curriculum has been felt for a long time. The shifting of pharmacy profession from product-oriented to patient-oriented had made the compulsion for modification of the curriculum accordingly and hence the Department of Pharmacy, IOM has initiated the process for the updating of the curriculum. Strategies of this curriculum focused on Problem Based, Learning, Self Directed Learning, Cometency Based Learning, Evidence Based learning, Community Oriented Learning, Integrated Teaching Learning and Need Based.

The Department of Pharmacy, after numerous consultations with experts from different departments of MMC, as well as affiliated campuses of IOM, has prepared a draft of the updated curriculum considering the various aspects of the current contents and to give the students more relevant information pertaining to the course, which will eventually help them in their endeavour of becoming responsible health professionals.

Goals

The goal of the curriculum is to produce qualified pharmacists who could provide pharmaceutical services, research and education in the capacity of:
1. Community and hospital pharmacist
2. Herbal drug development experts
3. Drug/medicines regulatorss
4. Specialists in technology and research
5. Managers of pharmaceutical services
6. Specialists in various scientific aspects of pharmacy

The basic professional education will enable the graduates to demonstrate a broad understanding of the scientific principles and techniques of the pharmaceutical sciences. At the same time, it will also enable them to continue their studies to undertake postgraduate training and research. The curriculum has been inspired by the values that pharmacists should be the vital members of the health care team and on graduation they will hold job either in government or private sector in important areas such as community pharmacy, clinical pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, regulatory control and drug management, pharmaceutical industry, quality assurance, academic activities, training activities and research.

Objectives

In order to provide quality services in the above-mentioned areas, the graduates will be able to

• Maintain professional dignity and respect
• Demonstrate broad understanding of the scientific basis of the specialty of pharmacy
• Integrate and apply the skill and knowledge in practice creatively as per requirement in various pharmacy related areas confidently
• Appraise critically the national legislation on drug and related fields, National Health Policy and National Drug Policy and other regulations related to pharmacy in the context of total health care system of Nepal
• Show the leadership for collaborative research projects
• Recognize and promote alternative perspectives in the effective utilization of natural resources available within the country
• Demonstrate competence in searching, handling and integrating information and applying knowledge, skills and attitudes in professional problem solving.

Competencies to be achieved by B. Pharm graduates

B. Pharm graduates should acquire knowledge, skill and attitudes, which will enable them to

• Demonstrate handling, dispensing, procurement, drug storage, formulation and small/large scale production.
• Maintain professional ethics and code of conduct
• Communicate effectively with different healthcare professionals and stakeholders
• Demonstrate professional competence to work as member of the multiprofessional health care team
• Counsel the patients
• Maintain Interpersonal Relationship Skill with Patients, Doctors, Nurses and other healthcare professionals.
• Perform as a team member of health workers in clinical setting.
• Evaluate drug-interaction and avoid drug incompatibility.
• Provide drug and poison information to the doctors, health personneland users.
• Manage the hospital pharmacy.
• Provide over-the-counter (OTC) drugs rationally to the community and generate awareness.
• Monitor the implementation of National Drug Policy and drug regulations.
• Plan, manage and evaluate retail and wholesale pharmacies and drug industries.
• Demonstrate the ability to conduct further studies & research work on different pharmaceutical fields.
• Perform as a teacher in educational institutions.
• Perform drug quality assessment using different methods.
• Monitor and evaluate quality assurance system serving as GMP superintendent in drug industry.
• Inspect the drug manufacturing plant, storage conditions, drug handling, drug distribution, use and record keeping.
• Perform in an industry as a production manager, marketing manager or quality control manager.
• Perform on the capacity of Good Manufacturing Practitioner and as advocator of WHO/GMP.
• Demonstrate the promotion of ‘Certificate of Pharmaceutical Products ‘moving in the international commerce.

Duration of the course: The course is for four academic years, concentrating mainly on professional pharmacy courses and the supplementary subjects which are essential for the professional pharmacy courses.

Entry criteria into the programme and entrance exam: Minimum 2.4 GPA will be required in 10+2 Science (Biology Stream) or Equivalent. Minimum C Grade will be required on all subject separately including English, Physics, Chemistry and Biology in Theory and Practical.

The number of student intake: The number of intake per year will be as per the rules of IOM.

Medium of instruction and examinations: Medium of instruction and examination shall be in English.

Course outline
The first year consists of six-theory papers and three practical carrying a total load of 990 Teaching Hours (46) including both theory and practical. In the second year, there are six theory papers and six-practical carrying a total load of 1080 Teaching Hours (48). In the third year, there are seven theory papers and three practical carrying a total load of 900 Teaching Hours (48) and in the fourth year there will be four theory and one practical paper carrying a total load of 450 Teaching Hours (36). The course consists of total of 3420 Teaching Hours (178). Apart from these papers, a 3 months’ period is allotted to Dissertation and a 2 months time is allotted to the in-plant training in the fourth year.

Curriculum structure of Bachelor of Pharmacy

For the dissertation work, each student should develop a thesis topic, which will be carried out under the guidance of teachers. The students should submit a thesis and defend it.

Recognizing the need to develop the ability to translate theory into practice, students are placed for in-plant training in pharmaceutical manufacturing units, hospitals, drug stores as a part of curriculum at the begining of 4th year.

There will be One-week field trip for Pharmacognosy and One-week field trip for Community Pharmacy Management during the second year. There will be a One-week field trip for visiting various Domestic/Multinational pharmaceutical industries in third year.

Brief outline of the subjects:

Anatomy, physiology and pathology: This course makes student to learn the structure and function of human body and relate them with common disorders of various systems so that the students will be able to explain the scientific basis of use of drugs in our society. The knowledge of this course is essential for the professional pharmacy courses as Hospital and Clinical pharmacy, Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapeutics.

Biochemistry: This course deals with general principles of biochemistry applicable to pharmaceutical sciences. It provides the students the knowledge on biochemicals, their formation, transportation, storage, metabolism and roles in physiological processes, their physical and chemical properties and estimation.

Pharmaceutical Microbiology: The students will gain the knowledge and skills related to the isolation and identification of microbes, sterilisation and sterility testing of different pharmaceutical preparations, evaluation of preservatives in pharmaceutical preparations and applications of fermentation technology in manufacturing drugs and vaccines, principles and methods of different microbiological assays and standardisation.

Pharmaceutical Chemistry: This course will provide the basic knowledge and skills in the preparation, properties, purity and limit tests of inorganic as well as organic compounds used in pharmaceutical preparations of medicinal importance. It will be directly helpful in achieving the competencies in the professional pharmacy fields like natural product chemistry and medicinal chemistry.

Pharmacognosy and Ayurvedic and Herbal Technology: The aim of this course is to provide the knowledge and skill of basic principle and techniques in Pharmacognosy and to make the students familiar with the herbal drugs in different systems of medicines, phytochemistry, evaluation and standardisation of crude drugs.

Biopharmaceutics & Pharmacokinetics: This course intends to give the students an insight into the biopharmaceutics, significance of plasma concentration time profiles and its measurement, pharmacokinetic processes, bioavailability and bioequivalence. This course will help the students to develop the competency in their role in formulation development and clinical setting.

Pharmaceutics I (Physical Pharmacy): This course will provide students the knowledge of physicochemical phenomena including chemical reaction, interfacial phenomena, phase equillibria and different types of homogeneous and heterogeneous systems. This course will thus provide knowledge, which is essential for drug formulation.
Pharmacology I and II: This course gives students the basic knowledge of drugs acting on various systems, pharmacotherapeutics management of some disorders and skills to carry out some selected pharmacological experiments. This course will help the students to develop the competency in pharmaceutical practice and research, in evaluating drug-interaction and drug incompatibility and providing drug information in community and clinical settings.

Medicinal Chemistry I and II: This course gives the students the knowledge and skill of synthesis and structure activity relationship of selected medicinal compounds. The basic principles of this course can be applied in pharmaceutical sciences in drug development, production and analysis as well.

Pharmaceutical Engineering: This course deals with pharmaceutical designing and operation of various equipments in the pharmaceutical field. The students will be familiar with the engineering aspects of pharmaceutical plants including industrial operations and processing.

Pharmaceutics II (Various Dosage Forms and Formulations): This course will give the students basic knowledge and skills in the formulation of different dosage forms which will help students to work in pharmaceutical fields and design drug dosage.

Biostatistics and Research Methodology: The knowledge of biostatistics and research methods are basic tools to carry on further studies of all professional pharmacy courses.

Pharmaceutics III (Industrial Pharmacy): This course provides the students the knowledge on various novel drug delivery systems, technology transfer and pilot plant scale up techniques. The subject will also provide the students on various utilities services in pharmaceutical industries, documentation and quality management aspects.

Pharmaceutical Management: This course deals with the managerial function in the projection, production, procurement, dispensing, distribution and sale of pharmaceutical products in an innovative and cost effective manner. It will be helpful to plan, manage and evaluate retail and wholesale pharmacies and drug industries.

Community Pharmacy and First Aid: The course will provide students the knowledge and skill for competently handling dispensing, patient counseling, dose calculations, identification of incompatibilities, drug storage, formulation, procurement and assimilation of pharmaceutical care in the community pharmacy and to generate awareness. This course also helps in taking vitals and management of emergency conditions of patients.

Pharmaceutical Jurisprudence: This course gives the knowledge of legal and ethical aspects of pharmacy practice including national and international rules and regulations and their enforcing bodies.This also includes pharmaceutical ethics and the codes of conduct for pharmacists. The students will familiarize themselves with role of regulation in relation to man and animal and gain skills for applying the drug-related legislations, regulations pertaining to pharmaceutical products and practices.

Pharmaceutical analysis and quality assurance I and II: This course deals with the knowledge and skills of various analytical methods including separation and purification techniques of chemicals and pharmaceutical products to ensure the quality of raw as well as the final product. This course will also help students to develop the competency to monitor and evaluate quality assurance system in drug industry.

Clinical and Hospital Pharmacy: This course gives the students the knowledge and skills of pharmacy as practiced in hospitals and clinical settings. This will enable them to work as a member of the health care team, manage the hospital pharmacy and provide drug and poison information with the integrated knowledge of pharmacology/pharmacotherapeutics including and other courses.

Pharmacotherapeutics: This course is designed to impart knowledge and skills necessary for contribution to quality use of medicines. Chapters dealt cover therapeutics of various diseases. This will enable the student to understand the common diseases and their management.

Evaluation

There will be internal assessments (formative) done by the teachers during the period of the course including class tests, written assignments, seminar and case studies. There will be university examinations (summative) at the end of the year.

Theory
The full marks allocated to the subjects with teaching hours 90 are 100 marks for theory and 50 marks for practicals. Out of 100 marks, 20% is allocated to the internal assessment and 80% to the final examination in each subject according to T.U. regulation. Students should obtain atleast 50% marks separately in internal assessment and final examination for passing the subject.

Download IOM BPharmacy Syllabus PDF

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