GSK grant enables PSSL to produce examination guide for students

A HANDY guide for students preparing for the External Pharmacists Examination conducted by the Ceylon Medical College Council has been produced by the Pharmaceutical Society of Sri Lanka (PSSL) under an educational grant provided by pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).

The first publication of its kind in Sri Lanka, the 176-page book contains past question papers from examinations conducted between March 2000 and July 2008, and a section containing 39 practical calculations and directions for preparations that are done at pharmacies.

The book is to be distributed by GSK free of charge to students registered for the External Pharmacists Examination, in an initiative that responds to an acknowledged need to raise the standard of pharmacy education in Sri Lanka and promote professionalism among pharmacists.

The first copy of the book was presented to Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena recently, by GSK Pharmaceuticals Managing Director Stuart Chapman and PSSL President Chinta Abayawardana. It was formally presented to students at a ceremony in Colombo last week.

In a message in a preamble to the book, Chapman states: “As a responsible global pharmaceutical company and an industry leader, GSK makes a significant impact on the quality of healthcare in the country by supporting and encouraging professional development of those serving the industry. GSK considers pharmacists to be an invaluable asset, essential to the development of a professional pharmaceutical industry.”

In the preface to the book, PSSL President Chinta Abayawardana expressed the association’s appreciation of GSK for its support to this initiative, and thanked Professor Tuley De Silva who initiated it during his tenure as president and for his guidance throughout the project.

Students registered for the External Pharmacists Examination can obtain free copies of the book by contacting GlaxoWellcome Ceylon Ltd., on 2636341-2, after 19 October.

The printing and distribution of this valuable book is carried out under GSK’s commitment to improving knowledge in the healthcare sectors in the markets the company operates in, and fits in with the GSK’s corporate mission to improve the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer. From a community point of view, GSK focuses on programmes that are innovative, sustainable and bring real benefit to those most in need by investing in health and education.

Rated Sri Lanka’s most respected pharmaceuticals company by LMD in 2010, GSK and its predecessors have been doing business in Sri Lanka since the late 1930s. The world’s leading pharmaceuticals and vaccines company, GSK is the only pharmaceuticals company to tackle the three “priority” diseases identified by the World Health Organization (WHO): HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

GSK distributes 35 doses of vaccines every second; 1,100 prescriptions are written for GSK products every minute; every hour, the company spends ₤300,000 on the discovery of new medicines; and every day, more than 200 million people use a GSK brand.