Quacks Are Everywhere!

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It turns out that there are actually working systems in place in the medical field. I’ve always thought that pharmacists, especially the ones in the streets, were without adequate structure. I found them to be places where anyone at all could go to buy any form of drugs without any prescription, and they would be given. Pharmacists would simply give drugs, after some outlandish symptoms, and not ensure that the drugs would be taken for the reason for which they are made.

I always thought that pharmacists are like this, but recently, I’ve been coming to learn that it’s not the case. I don’t know if that’s how it is everywhere, but it’s good to see that some pharmacists actually demand prescriptions before they can administer some drugs to you. And it won’t just be any prescription, it will also come with a government-approved letterhead and be stamped (I think).

I know that all this is to protect themselves from possible lawsuits and whatnot, because if someone buys a drug that they end up taking simply for recreational purposes, if it ends up causing them major harm, they would be held liable. And it’s good that some pharmacists are taking that into account and demanding prescriptions.

I know very well that not everyone does this. Sometimes, when I hear about the training system some pharmacists undergo, it’s basically nothing but an insult to the entire field. Some don’t learn anything about pharmacy, they simply learn how to sell drugs. They’re kept in the shop, and made to learn how to listen to people who come to lay complaints. It’s kinda like how algorithms operate on logic gates; when you have 1 and 1, then the statement is true. When you have 1 and 0, the statement is false.

In the same way, the quacks do this. Any slight fever and headaches will be attributed to malaria and typhoid. No matter how bad it is, it just has to be malaria and typhoid. This is why self-medication can be dangerous, because if you’re not careful, you could end up going to a pharmacist who doesn’t even know what he’s doing.

We have to be careful. Make sure that your pharmacists are certified, it’s usually displayed in the shop. Not those that when you ask for a particular drug, they give you something else and tell you that it’s the same thing. Run ooo!

Anyway, like I said, it’s good to note that some pharmacists are now being more ethical. We’re saying goodbye to those days when a pharmacist would be selling drugs, bread, biscuits, and soft drinks. Let them focus simply on health-related issues. Let’s have more people who are trained properly in the field, not those who are simply medical salesmen who know nothing about the importance of taking the right drugs for the right ailments.

With the declining health situation in Nigeria, it’s already a risk to fall sick. You can’t afford to make it all worse by treating yourself with the wrong kind of medication simply because you trusted the wrong kind of pharmacist. Let’s shine our eyes. And if you don’t trust pharmacists to be professional, go to a doctor in a licensed hospital and ask them to refer you to one.

Our health lies solely in our hands.

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_{Thank you for reading. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below, I would love to know what you’re thinking. Till we meet in the next post.}

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_{N.B: All images used in this post are mine. The thumbnail was designed using Canva.}

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