Department of Pharmacology

OBJECTIVES:

A.      Knowledge skills

At the end of the course, the student should be able to:

1.       Know the general principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs in children, elderly, lactating and pregnant women and those having a renal and/or hepatic disease and genetic variations.

2.       Prescribe drugs rationally based on suitability, tolerability, efficacy and cost.

3.       Understand National Health Programmes and emergency medical conditions management.

4.       Foresee, prevent and manage adverse drug events and drug interactions.

5.       Understand and implement the concepts of essential medicines, pharmacoeconomics and evidence-based medicine for improving the community health care.

6.       Describe the clinical presentation and management of common poisoning including bites and stings.

7.       Understand the basic concepts of new drug development with emphasis on design and conduct of clinical trials and interpretation of their results.

B.       Psychomotor skills

At the end of the course, the student should be able to:

1.       Write a correct, complete and legible prescription for common ailments including those in the National health Programmes and emergency medical conditions.

2.       Calculate the drug dosage using appropriate formulae for an individual patient.

3.       Administer the required dose of different drug formulations using appropriate devices and techniques (e.g. injections, inhalers, transdermal patches etc.).

4.       Advice and interpret the therapeutic monitoring reports of important drugs.

5.       Identify, analyze and report adverse drug reactions to appropriate authorities.

6.       Retrieve drug information from appropriate sources including the electronic resources.

8.   Analyse critically drug promotional literature in terms of pharmacological actions of the ingredients, rational/irrational nature of the preparation, economics of the use and claims by the pharmaceutical companies.

9.       Interpret data from in-vitro and in-vivo experiments designed to study the effect of drugs in animals and human beings.

C.      Attitude and communication skills

At the end of the course, the student should be able to:

1.       Communicate with the patient regarding optimal use of drug therapy, devices and storage of medicines.

2.       Follow the drug treatment guidelines laid down for common diseases including those covered under the national Health Programmes and emergency medical conditions and be capable of initiating and monitoring the treatment, recording progress and assessing the outcome.

3.       Motivate patients with chronic diseases to adhere to the line of management as outlined by the health care provider.

4.       Appreciate the relationship between cost of treatment and patient compliance.

5.       Exercise caution in prescribing drugs likely to produce dependence and recommend the line of management.

6.       Understand the legal and ethical aspects of prescribing drugs.

7.       Evaluate the ethics, scientific procedures, social and legal implications involved in the development and introduction of new drugs.

At the end of the course, the student should be able to:

1. Diagnose and manage common health problems of the individual and the community, commensurate with his/her position as a member of the health team at the primary, secondary or tertiary levels, using his/her clinical skills based on history, physical examination and relevant investigations.

2. Practice preventive, promotive, curative and rehabilitative medicine in respect to the commonly encountered health problems.

3. Appreciate rationale for different therapeutic modalities, be familiar with the administration of the "essential drugs" and their common side effects.

4. Appreciate the socio-psychological, cultural, economic and environmental factors affecting health and develop humane attitude towards the patients in discharging one's professional responsibilities.

5. Familiar with the various National Health Programs, and the ways in which they are being implemented.

6. Demonstrate communication skills, both verbal and written to establish effective communication with the clients (patients, relatives, and general public), health team partners, and scientific community.

7. Develop attitude for self-learning and acquire necessary skills including the use of appropriate technologies, for pursuing self-directed learning for a life time.

1. Describe the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of essential and commonly used drugs in dental practice.

2. List the indications, contraindications, interactions, and adverse reactions of commonly used drugs in dental practice.

3. Prescribe drug for common dental ailments.

4. Evaluate pharmacy exercises and drug formulations.

5. Analyse certain clinical problems and therapeutic exercises.

6. Solve dose and percentage calculation pertaining to dental practice.