Role of Clinical Pharmacologist in Society

Pharmacology is the science of drugs and their effect on living systems. We can find pharmacology present everywhere. In medicine cabinets, when we visit the dentists and when you take any type of medication. Pharmacology is also responsible for painkillers, caffeine drinks and antibiotics. It is the science of what is happening to your body and to the drug itself. 

Every medication, we take alters the chemistry within our body. The role of pharmacology is to understand why these changes are happening, allowing us to develop better drugs.

Pharmacology is crucial for:

• Discovering new medicines to help fight diseases
• Improving the effectiveness of medicines
• Reducing unwanted side effects of medicines
• Understanding why individuals differ in the way they respond to certain drugs, and why some others cause addiction 

Pharmacology lies at the heart of biomedical science, linking together chemistry, physiology and pathology. Pharmacologists work closely with a wide variety of other disciplines that make up modern biomedical science, including neuroscience, molecular and cell biology, immunology and cancer biology. 

Pharmacological knowledge improves the lives of millions of people across the world. It maximizes their benefit and minimizes risk and harm.

As new diseases emerge, and older medicines - like antibiotics - no longer work as well, the contribution of pharmacology to finding better and safer medicines becomes all the more vital. 

Pharmacologists are knowledgeable professionals who focus their work into researching and understanding the chemical processes that take place between living organisms and different substances and compounds. The main purpose of a Pharmacologist is to create, develop, and test new medications.

There are several branches and specializations in the field of Pharmacology. The main difference between them is the type of illness and diseases they study. Toxicology, for instance, studies the effects of various venoms and poisons in order to develop the appropriate antidotes. There’s also Neuropharmacology, which focuses on the chemical processes of the brain and the nervous system in order to develop treatments for neurological and mental diseases.

Pharmacologists are mostly employed by private or public pharmaceutical companies. These companies may specialize in developing new medications and treatments for different diseases or they may focus on improving existing formulas to increase their effectiveness. Pharmacologists’ work is often entirely laboratory-based. 

Clinical pharmacologists are doctors with training in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (CPT), which is the science of medicines and their clinical use. Their main role is to improve patient care through the safe, economic and effective use of medicines.

Clinical pharmacologists often work in hospitals, providing specialist advice to patients who may have complex health problems. The CPT consultant is in a unique position to help with advice about the correct medicines and dosages. They can provide specialist advice on the interactions of different medicines and how these might affect patients. Some patients may have adverse drug reactions, or find that their medicine does not work as it should. A CPT consultant is well-placed to aid in all aspects of medicine management.

CPT consultants may also adopt a generalist role, providing hospital care for patients with complex conditions that affect multiple organ systems and therefore need several different medicines. There is an increased chance of drug interactions and adverse reactions with this patient group, who are often elderly.