Lagos pharmacists have stressed that their profession remains Nigeria’s most underutilised healthcare resource despite being the most accessible point of care for millions of citizens.
Marking the 2025 World Pharmacists Day in Lagos with the theme “Think Health, Think Pharmacist,” community and hospital pharmacists emphasised that their unique role in safeguarding medicine quality and guiding patients on proper drug use places them at the centre of public health.
At the event, which featured a health walk, free community screenings, and public enlightenment, speakers repeatedly underscored the pharmacist’s position as the first line of defence against counterfeit medicines, unsafe self-medication, and poor adherence to treatment.
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Chairman of the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria, ACPN, Lagos, Pharm. Tolu Ajayi, described pharmacists as “the silent guardians of drug safety,” lamenting that policy neglect continues to endanger citizens.
“Pharmacists are the most accessible healthcare providers in our communities, yet we are treated as an afterthought in policy planning,” Ajayi said. “Pharmacists must be at the heart of drug supply and monitoring if we are serious about protecting public health.”
Similarly, the Chairman of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, PSN, Lagos, Pharm. Babayemi Oyekunle, stressed that pharmacists ensure both access and affordability.
He argued that excluding them from health insurance schemes weakens the system’s effectiveness.
“The pharmacy is often the first point of contact for patients. To ignore this reality is to undermine the entire healthcare system,” Oyekunle said.
Immediate past ACPN Lagos Chairman, Pharm. Lawrence Ekhator, urged practitioners to take ownership of their narrative by amplifying their contributions through stronger media advocacy.
“Despite being indispensable to patient care and drug safety, pharmacists remain under-recognised,” he noted. “We must speak louder, more clearly, and more often about our contributions.”
While calling for reforms in drug distribution and insurance integration, the pharmacists said this year’s commemoration was about more than advocacy, it was about reminding the public that pharmacists remain the most accessible, affordable, and trusted partners in health.
