SCOPE FOR PHARMACISTS IN RADIOPHARMACY

The most artistic branch of pharmacy is radio pharmacy that involves the manufacture and supply of safe and effective radio – pharmaceuticals (radioactive) for the diagnosis and therapeutic treatment of patients with care. It also involves providing advice & support on the use of radio pharmaceuticals.

For  everyday practice, radio-pharmacists  are required to have working  knowledge  in nuclear physics , radiation protection ,chemistry , biochemistry , radiochemistry , immunology , anatomy , hematology and law.

At present, radio-pharmacies generally produce from 2000 to over 10000 doses every year and this taste is absolutely impossible without the contribution of pharmacists in this field.  

So, pharmacists need computer skills and need to know and understand a considerable amount of mandatory legislation and guidance. Since, radio- pharmaceuticals are controlled as both medicines and radioactive substances.

ROLE OF RADIO PHARMACIST

The radio pharmacist’s main responsibility is the procurement, preparation quality control and supply of radio-pharmaceuticals. Radio pharmacists also have a clinical role to play. E.g. providing advice on the use of radiopharmaceuticals and having input to patient care in the nuclear medicine department. In addition they may provide education and training to their own staff as well as other health care professions. There is a scope to get involved in the research and development of new radio- pharmaceuticals including clinical trials and in the development of new dispensing techniques.

EXAMPLES OF ACTIVTIES OF AREAS IN WHICH RADIO-PHARMACIST CAN PROVIDE EXPERTISE:

Advising on

•          Possibility of drug interaction
•     Possible causes of abnormal bio-distribution
•     Use of medicines that will interfere with scan quality or results.
•  Stability  and formulation of radiopharmaceuticals
•   Legal status of particulars products
•   Use of drugs to enhance nuclear medicine studies.
•   Whether a previously administrated radiopharmaceutical will interfere with an isotope scan.
•   Special dosage formulations
•   Health and safety for individuals with using radiopharmaceuticals
•   Use  of radiopharmaceuticals in animals

DAY TO DAY PRACTICE

So what do pharmacists and their teams do in practice? A pharmacist works as a part of multidisciplinary team comprising of nuclear medicine physicians, medical physicists, nuclear medicine technologists and nuclear medicine nurses.

He provides on potential and actual drugs instructions with radio-pharmaceutical possible causes of abnormal bio-distributions scan on nuclear medicines scans, the choice and suitability of using always to enhance nuclear medicine studies, and the stability and formulation of radiopharmaceuticals

A pharmacist may also conduct in house research project with a view to establishing or presenting the results, plays an active role in training new staff and participates in the dispensing and manufacturing process.

Radio-pharmacy provides pharmacists with the opportunity to be key part of a multidisciplinary nuclear medicine team, because it is a job where pharmacist can use the science background that is the part of Pharmacist’s Pharmacy degree, as well as giving them in contact with the patients, managerial experience and practical work.