Diploma in Pharmacy (abbreviated D. Pharm) is a Diploma level course in the field of pharmacy. The course duration of D. Pharm is two academic years. The regulatory body for the program is Pharmacy Council of India (PCI), which is responsible for laying down all norms and regulations for the D. Pharm course. The curriculum and syllabus for the course are prescribed by Board of Technical Education (BTE), Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The core pharmacy subjects are Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Pharmaceutics, Human anatomy and physiology, Pharmacognosy and Pharmacology.
Pharmaceutical Chemistry – Pharmaceutical Chemistry provides a window to peep over chemical spectrum of a drug through physical, inorganic, organic chemistry, biochemistry, medicinal chemistry and analytical chemistry.
Pharmaceutics – Pharmaceutics is one of the core Pharmacy subjects which gives knowledge to the students about the different dosage forms, their manufacturing methods, active ingredients, additives, stability, their storage conditions, rules and regulations to be maintained in handling drugs, GMP, GAP, quality control, in-process control, community pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, pharmacokinetics, posology, pharmaceutical calculations for delivering drug dosage, etc.
Human anatomy and physiology – Anatomy is the science of understanding the structure and the parts of living organisms. Physiology, on the other hand, deals with the internal mechanisms and the processes that work towards sustaining life. These can include biochemical and physical interactions between various factors and components in our body.
Pharmacognosy– Pharmacognosy gives complete knowledge about the natural medicines which are obtained from plants, animals, marine and microbiological sources.
Pharmacology – Pharmacology gives knowledge about human anatomy and physiology, drugs used for different diseases, dosage, routes of administration, absorption, mechanism of action, drug interaction, adverse reaction, side effects, drug excretion, alternative drugs, etc.
Ramratti Devi College of Pharmacy provides a stimulating and productive environment for pharmaceutical education and research oriented. Ramratti Devi College of Pharmacy provides a healthy academic atmosphere for the students in which their performance and growth in the field of Pharmacy.
Why D. Pharm…?
Diploma in Pharmacy Course is a career-oriented program in the medical field of Pharmacy, designed to familiarize candidates with the basic concepts of pharmaceutical science.
The purpose of the program is to prepare students with the necessary skills and academic knowledge for entry-level positions in retail pharmacies as well as pharmaceutical companies. The course essentially provides an overview of the theory, and various principles and practices involved in the science of pharmacy.
Components of study within D. Pharmacy Syllabus include pharmacy software practice, accurate and safe processing of prescriptions, compounding techniques, third party billing, inventory control, adherence to relevant legislation, accurate and confidential record-keeping, and effectively verbal and written communication.
Such candidates are prepared to work as members of an interdependent health-care team. They are taught industry ethics including those involving patient-provider relationships, clinical research, and end-of-life care. This course examines other ethical topics such as distribution of scarce resources, use of stem cells, the role of genetic testing, and issues of human cloning. Students are taught to reviews drug approval processes, drug discovery, pharmaceutical applications. They learn about the vast regulatory requirements involved in testing, screening, pre-clinical, and clinical trials of drugs.
Scope of D. Pharm
D. Pharm. course aims to prepare eligible candidates to:
- Fill orders under a pharmacist’s supervision, enter client information.
- Identify prescriptions, and process paperwork for orders.
- Understand and apply drug and medical terminology, as well as basic pharmacology.
- Understand drug dosage calculations, commonly used pharmacy computer systems, compounding, and pharmacy practices and procedures.
- Apply the ethics, legislations, and workplace safety regulations applicable to pharmacies.
The program aims to build elementary basic concepts of pharmaceutical science involving Pharmaceutics, Biochemistry and Clinical Pathology, Pharmacognosy, Human Anatomy & Physiology, Health Education, Community Pharmacy, etc. in students.
Career Prospects of D. Pharm
Certificate Holders of D. Pharmacy may start practicing as pharmacists in India. They may also work at drug stores in government hospitals, clinics, private hospitals, community health centre, or private drug stores. Across various kinds of work setups, they usually check prescriptions (made by the doctor), provide patients advice and directions, dispense drugs to patients, keep stock of drugs in storage, maintain accounts and inventory.
Other than working for hospitals or private drug stores, such professionals may even start their own private drug stores, with access to decent financial resources and entrepreneurship skills.
In pharmaceutical companies, they work at divisions like process control, manufacturing, quality control, and marketing. While in the marketing sector, they may work for firms involved in pharmaceutical products marketing. They may also work as:
- Medical representatives, medical transcriptionists, technical supervisors.
- Chemists, pharmacists, quality analysts, medical representatives.
- Production executives, scientific officers in private firms.