In the words of American author and orator, John C. Maxwell, he said a leader is one who knows the way, goes the way and shows to others. Can we dispute this? Absolutely not. As in the name, a leader is one that leads and to be able to lead one must know the right path to follow and is in that path whilst showing it to the followers.
Leadership as defined by Wikipedia is the ability of an individual or group to lead, influence and guide others. This buttresses the words of Maxwell. People who lead are leaders, they are at the helms of affair of an organization or group.
In every organization, group or association, leaders are always needed, they make informed decisions on behalf of the members, leaders inspire and motivate members to strive to attain excellence for the benefit of the association. Leaders develop team’s strength and also improve weaknesses, they serve as catalyst for the growth of association, group or team as the case may be.
The success or failure of a team relies on it’s leaders, when succeeding, they are praised and when otherwise, they are blamed. Leaders shoulder the responsibility of taking care of a team or group as parents shoulders their children. To be a leader, one must possess several skills; decision making skills, man management, listening skills, integrity and many others.
A leader must know what to do at all times, this is why we have leaders, two or more people leading must know the next step to take, the step to not take, they must know the right call to make, they won’t always be right but the courage to make the choice counts.
A leader must be able to manage his team members, amongst members, conflict is sure to happen, disagreement is sure to take place, it is the duty of the leader(s) to ensure it doesn’t escalate at any time. They must know how to please every members, not possible but they must strive to do so.
Leader(s) must also have listening hears, they must be able to take advices from their members and also know when to follow and not to. One can say a leader must be an approachable individual, one the members loves but is also respected.
In general, leaders must be men of integrity, they must be honest, accountable, fair and must display ethical behaviors at all times, they must never be men of questionable character. To rephrase, leaders are men of honor. Hence, pharmacists are leaders.
Pharmacists, some call them evolved herbalists, some chemists, we might not agree on the names but one thing we all agree is that the pharmaceutical profession is an honored profession, it’s of high class and a big name, as it should be as pharmacist do great things. A pharmacist’s contribution to the health and well being of the general public can not be underrated, from drug production and manufacturing to dispensing, counselling on usage and many others. Pharmacists are not ones to be toyed with.
In an esteemed profession as pharmacy, we are bound to have leaders, the association of pharmacists is bound to have parents who look out for the well being of her members. Whether in industrial pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, community, even in universities, the pharmacist community must have an head.
In Nigeria, we have the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), the Association of Community Pharmacist of Nigeria (ACPN), the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria; a government agency that oversees the activities of pharmacists, at the university level, there is Pharmaceutical Association of Nigerian Students across each of the more than 30 pharmacy schools in Nigeria and others, all association has her leaders; president, general secretary and others.
What is expected of these leaders? It has been said already, to lead, influence and guide the members of the association, for instance, if a pharmacist is wrongly accused, it is the job of the leaders of PSN to come to his rescue, it is their job to stand by their members. The leaders are also the ones to fight for their member’s right, in terms of welfare, say salaries and remunerations at the professional level and a standard education system at the student level. The leaders are to ensure the well being of members at all times.
But is this the reality? Well, partly yes. In a noble profession like pharmacy, it is rare to see an ineffective and inefficient leader, rather it is the degree of effectiveness that differs. Pharmacy leaders are effective, it was just few weeks ago that the PSN led by the society’s Lagos state chairman Pharm. Babayemi Oyekunle urged the federal government to include more pharmacists at the helms of affairs of drug regulatory agencies like the Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), the National Association for Food Drug Administration and Control(NAFDAC), and the likes. Pharm. Oyekunle said there was a need to have pharmacy expert in control of these agencies in order to facilitate the fight against drug abuse and use of illicit drugs and it is rightly so, employment of individuals with drug production background will help drive the right polices towards attaining a clean drug industry. It’s to safe to also say this will also give the chance for pharmacists to occupy higher positions in the society.
This is what a leader is meant to do. Come out and voice what is needed to be done. Another example of an effective leader is the erstwhile PSN chairman, Prof. Cyril Usifoh, under his leadership successes were recorded and milestone achieved. A notable example was the enactment of the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria Act by late president Muhammad Buhari in August 2022 which marked a milestone for regulatory reform in the country. It was also under his tenure that the PSN national secretariat was able to take in it’s first set of internship back in August 2024, allowing more pharmacist-in-view gain more practical knowledge of the prestigious occupation. He bowed out of office in November 2024 and he was well commended by his fellow pharmacist while handing over at the 97th National Convention held in Uyo. This also marked the beginning of the tenure of Pharm. Ayuba Tanko who promised to build on the achievements of his predecessor. Safe to say the PSN will be enjoying for years to come.
Men like this are needed at the helms of affairs of the pharmaceutical profession, not for any other thing but the growth of this noble profession. More of late Dr. Dora Akinyuli and Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye are needed at the helms of affairs, these are great men and women of honor.
For a better future of pharmacist, effective leadership is needed to fight for the progress of pharmacy and ensure the well being of pharmacists at all times.
The future of pharmacy lies in the hands of our leaders and for pharmacy to get to it’s promised land, it is dependent on effective leadership.
Written by,
Al-Ameen Adediran
Intern, OHR Publishing Comms. Unit
Very well said 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾