From: Pharmacy education and workforce: strategic recommendations based on expert consensus in Lebanon
Internal factors | |
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Strengths | Weaknesses |
Education  • Pharmacy is a profession that attracts good students with a low attrition rate  • Admission criteria take grades into account; select the best through the entrance examination  • Time to graduation is acceptable for more than 90% of students  • All pharmacy programs are accredited by international authorities, which is a quality label  • International accreditation of programs is an opportunity for continuous improvement of pharmacy programs  • There is no deficiency in community pharmacy distribution, as urban and rural regions are well served  • Continuing education is mandatory by the OPL according to the law  • Interprofessional education has been implemented in some universities  • Several universities have established residency and PhD programs in collaboration with international partners  • Universities graduate students of good quality, accepted in many international positions  • Interprofessional education is being applied in some universities, paving the way to interprofessional collaborative practice Workforce  • A decree has been issued to limit the position of medical representatives to pharmacists to increase employment opportunities for pharmacists; however, it is not yet applied  • The clinical pharmacy law has been suggested but has been awaiting approval for more than 20 years  • Universities have highly qualified academics who can upgrade curricula based on new competencies frameworks | Education  • There is no legal framework for pharmacy education  • There is no national pharmacy workforce strategy   • Collaboration between universities is minimal  • There is no clear guidance for undergraduate and postgraduate training  • There is an oversupply of non-specialized pharmacists  • Curricula need to be updated according to the latest international recommendations  • New sections related to public health and soft skills should be added to curricula in some universities  • There is no official up-to-date core competency framework  • There is no official specialized competency framework  • Specialized competencies are not assessed  • There is no adequate competency-based licensure examination  • There is no national accreditation agency, thus no homogeneous conditions for graduation from different universities  • There is no national research strategy Workforce  •There is an oversupply of non-specialized pharmacists  • There are no exact figures about the employability of graduates  • The number of pharmacists who graduated from outside Lebanon is relatively high  • Pharmacy specialties are not formally recognized  • There is no early career training program  • There are no regulations for a pharmacy support workforce (pharmacy technicians)  • Market needs for specialties are not assessed  • Some pharmacists are resistant to changes related to continuing education and other new concepts (digitalization, accreditation, and others)  • There is no framework for interprofessional collaborations, which causes overlapping education, practice, and competing interests |
External factors | |
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Opportunities | Challenges/threats |
 • Policy suggestions related to pharmacy education and the workforce are waiting to be approved • The MOPH is working on a comprehensive national strategy for health • The OPL is leading on a national pharmaceutical strategy in collaboration with other stakeholders (ministries, WHO, pharmaceutical sector, and other healthcare professionals) • Ongoing strategies that are being prepared should be complemented by a pharmacy workforce strategy • The pharmacy sector benefits from collaborations with international agencies (FIP, WHO, CIOPF, etc.), which would optimize the exchange of ideas and capacity building • International non-governmental organizations are offering positions for pharmacists, in particular, to organize medication and pharmaceutical services delivery for underprivileged populations | Education  • Severe socioeconomic and ongoing sanitary crises are affecting education conditions  • Experiential education during severe economic and sanitary crises is not immersive, as it is done virtually  • Online education is given in difficult circumstances (shortage of power and internet supply), which might jeopardize its quality   • Highly motivated young pharmacy graduates have international aspirations, which might increase emigration Workforce  • Severe socioeconomic and ongoing sanitary crises contribute to the deterioration of financial conditions  • The professional situation of all pharmacists is currently disastrous (extreme financial difficulties)  • Many pharmaceutical companies are closing their local offices  • Many working pharmacists are leaving the country for better opportunities  • Medication shortage is very severe, putting at risk the health of professionals and patients  • Interprofessional education and collaborative practice are cultural challenges; healthcare professionals are reluctant to collaborate  • The presence of refugees in very high numbers is pressuring the scarce resources of healthcare and educational systems |