King Saud University (KSU) has launched a summer training program designed to develop the skills of Saudi pharmacists.
The program, initiated by MSD, was launched in collaboration with King Saud University (KSU) for a period of three weeks providing future generations of pharmacists with an opportunity to understand pharmaceutical marketing and sales from an industrial point of view.
The three-week program would provide students with the number of hours required for them to complete the academic portion of their training curriculum.
“Such summer training programs, organized by pharmaceutical companies, are an important aspect for students to acquire knowledge and skills that will help them in their career. The transfer of knowledge is important for the development of the pharmaceutical industry,” Hisham Aljadhey, KSU vice dean for academic affairs and director of medication safety research chair for the College of Pharmacy, said, thanking pharmaceutical companies for their support.
“At MSD we are committed to the development of future generations of Saudi students and believe that supporting the growth of Saudi pharmacists is crucial. Pharmacists play an important role in society. We do not just support them at local pharmacies, but we also help them in hospitals and hospital pharmacies, purchasing departments, pharmaceutical and manufacturing companies, government authorities like the Ministry of Health and Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) and even in the academic and research community,” Managing Director of MSD Saudi Arabia and Pharmacist, Wail Al-Qasim, said.
He elaborated, saying: “At MSD we believe in nurturing the vast talent pool of pharmacists by providing our industry expertise to these individuals, to ensure they have a greater grasp of the opportunities available in the pharmaceutical industry for Saudi pharmacists to expand their horizons.”
The summer program entails training students in a variety of different topics including regulatory affairs, medical affairs, market access, government relations and customer service, in addition to focusing on key disease areas that affect the Saudi community, such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
The training program is just the latest in a long line of initiatives that the MSD Saudi office has undertaken to support the development of Saudi pharmacists.
Since 2001, MSD has committed to numerous programs, including most recently, the sponsorship of the graduation ceremony of King Abdul Aziz University’s class of 2013 pharmacists — the largest group of pharmacists to graduate in Jeddah to date.
Summer program for pharmacists launched
