21 February 2019 – Brigedier Jeneral Dato’ Dr A Halim bin Hj Basari, Director of Pharmacy, Malaysian Armed Forces Headquarters, Ministry of Defence, was invited by IMU School of Pharmacy to share with IMU BPharm (Hons) and Foundation in Science (FiS) students about the career path of a military pharmacist in Malaysia. To many of us who are not very familiar with the career path as a military pharmacist, it is indeed an eye-opening sharing session. Military pharmacist is a pharmacist who ensures military readiness and maintenance of the fighting strength of the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF). In the recent years, there is a raising need for pharmacists in the Ministry of Defense, giving more opportunities for pharmacists to embark on this challenging yet rewarding career path. Military pharmacists may be assigned to serve the military hospitals or at the headquarters. In addition to this, a military pharmacist may be required to ensure sufficient pharmaceutical supplies in times of natural disasters, eventualities, or emergencies.
| Brigedier Jeneral Dato’ Dr A Halim bin Hj Basari shared, in the past, military pharmacists were actively involved in: |
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| 1992: Tsunami and earthquakes in Flores, Indonesia |
| 2001: War refugees’ assistance in Chamman, Afganistan |
| 2004: Tsunami in Bandar Acheh, Indonesia |
| 2005: Earthquake in Battagram, Pakistan |
| 2006: Earthquake in Yogjakarta, Indonesia |
| 2008: Typhoon in Yanggon, Myanmar |
| 2009: Earthquake in Padang, Indonesia |
| 2013: Typhoon in Tacloban, Philippines |
| 2018: Rohingya Humanitarian Disaster Relief in Bangladesh |
Brigedier Jeneral Dato’ Dr A Halim bin Hj Basari shared that every military pharmacist will receive all-rounded clinical and inter-professional training at the state-of-the-art clinical facilities. They are also well trained to strategically set up disaster relief missions and to effectively source for the pharmaceutical needs of the mission. There are also funding available for military pharmacists to conduct research and development.
| What Our Students Say about the Sharing Session |
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| “The military pharmacist speaker was so intriguing that I found an interest in becoming one of them. Along with gaining insights on this career, I’m able to find out the kinds of personality which would help me build strong soft skills that would be beneficial for me in the future. I am thankful that IMU School of Pharmacy has invited speakers that would arouse one’s interest in different pharmacy careers. Kudos, SOPIMU!” – Nermesh Singh a/l Gurbid Singh, 3rd year BPharm (Hons). |
| “It was definitely an eye-opening talk where I learnt a lot about what a military pharmacist does. Before this, it had never occurred to me that this might be one of the career paths that a pharmacy student can pursue after our degree. After the talk, I realised that being a military pharmacist may be tough, challenging and demanding as it requires a lot of sacrifices and dedication, but it can be a very fulfilling career path as there are ample opportunities to not only be of service and contribute to the Malaysian Army and Malaysians, but also at global level in less fortunate countries that are under-developed or disaster-stricken areas by helping and supporting the people there.” – Jane Lee, 3rd year BPharm (Hons). |
| “It was a good sharing session and we learnt a lot about military pharmacy. I would personally recommend that other pharmacy students attend this session especially since personally, I, who had no knowledge of this job scope, have learnt a lot today about this career path. It was a good opportunity to be able to explore more in this field.” – Lesley Pua, 4th year BPharm (Hons). |
Programme Director of IMU’s BPharm (Hons) programme, Dr Mayuren Candasamy, commented “This event has been put together by the IMU School of Pharmacy to provide the students an opportunity to explore a new area for their Provisional Registered Pharmacy (PRP) placements and also to be aware of the important role of a pharmacist in the Ministry of Defence, working as a military pharmacist. Brigedier Jeneral Dato’ Dr A Halim bin Hj Basari’s session was powerful, impactful and insightful. On behalf of IMU, we would like to thank Brigedier Jeneral Dato’ Dr A Halim bin Hj Basari for his valuable presence.”
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