Mangaluru: “Pharmacists are an integral part of medical care. They should be assertive, demonstrate a proactive role and assume responsibility for their actions,” said Raj Warrier, director of the Centre for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Louisiana State University Health Centre, United States, here on Sunday.

He was speaking at the inauguration of the two-day Third Scientific International Conference on Clinical Pharmacy, CPCON-2018, organised by the Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MCOPS).

According to a release issued by Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) on Monday, over 700 delegates from the United Arab Emirates, Australia and from across the country took part in the conference. The theme of the conference was “New Era of Pharmacy Practice: Beyond Traditional Patient Care”. Delegates from more than 55 pharmacy colleges made 250 oral and poster presentations.

In his address, C. Mallikarjuna Rao, principal of MCOPS, said: “Rendering pharma care to patients is neglected in India. The responsibility to make pharmacy practice strong in India is on us.”

Mahadev Rao, professor and head of the Department of Pharmacy Practice, proposed the vote of thanks.

The resource persons included doyens such as Frank May (University of Queensland), who was instrumental in the development of clinical pharmacy practice in India. Among the speakers were eminent professionals from the U.S., UAE and India from the fields of academia, industry and clinical expertise.