E-drug: Brain drain of pharmacists (cont'd)
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Dear E-Drug members,
Thank you to everyone who has joined in the discussion concerning
the brain drain of pharmacists. A number of very interesting points
have been made, and people are clearly concerned about this issue. I
originally posted because I was curious about the number of
pharmacists working in countries in sub-Saharan Africa, but now I
have another question.
One point that I saw hinted at in several emails is the issue of internal
brain drain from the public to the private or not-for-profit sector. I
wonder now where programs run by the Clinton Foundation's Aids
Initiative, the Bush administration's $15b to fight AIDS, the Global
Fund and others are going to find pharmacists. Recruiting
pharmacists in country could disrupt public sector delivery systems.
Eva Ombaka asked about innovative ways to handle this shortage of
staff. Do E-Drug members have ideas? The volunteer organizations
VSO and JICA already post pharmacists in the public sector in
countries where there are shortages. (Does anyone know if UNV
does as well?) Could this be developed as a short term solution? But
what long term solutions are there?
Regards,
Libby Levison
International health consultant
(And VSO returnee from Malawi)
libby@theplateau.com
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