Roles and Challenges of Pharmacists in the Public Healthcare Institutions of Malaysia amidst Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Pharmacists have been playing important roles in promoting health, prevent diseases and deliver healthcare services to individuals, communities and nations. Such functions have further emphasised and expanded amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Notwithstanding, most of the recent publications highlight the roles of community pharmacists amidst this pandemic but paid little attention to the functions of pharmacists in public healthcare institutions. The knowledge gap is particularly urgent in Malaysia as most of the pharmaceutical services catered by the pharmacists in the public healthcare institutions. This commentary highlights the roles and challenges of pharmacists in the public healthcare institutions of Malaysia amidst Covid-19 outbreak. We discover three leading roles concerning (i) supplying of personal protective equipment, (ii) advancing of pharmaceutical cares and services; and (iii) monitoring of off-label drug use. We found, two aspects of the challenges pertaining (i) shortage of personal protective equipment; and (ii) unpredictable pandemic. This commentary may benefit those pharmacists, who practice in the public healthcare institutions from other countries with a similar healthcare delivery system.