The Adamawa State Government has approved the domestication and immediate implementation of the Consultant Pharmacist Cadre within the state’s civil service, a policy shift aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery and aligning professional practice with international standards.
The approval, granted by the Executive Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, was formally communicated through an official press release. The decision adopts existing federal guidelines and establishes a structured professional hierarchy across three senior salary grade levels: Consultant Pharmacist (SGL 15), Consultant Pharmacist Special Grade II (SGL 16), and Consultant Pharmacist Special Grade I (SGL 17).
The development follows sustained advocacy by the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), which had earlier written to the Permanent Secretary highlighting concerns over the non-implementation of the cadre in Adamawa. The Society argued that the omission amounted to professional discrimination, particularly as several states and federal institutions had already adopted the framework.
With this approval, Adamawa brings to a close a nearly three-decade campaign for formal recognition of advanced pharmaceutical practice. Although the cadre had long been validated by the **Pharmacy Council of Nigeria and the Federal Ministry of Health, administrative bottlenecks had previously limited its implementation in some jurisdictions.
Adamawa now joins states such as Edo, Ondo, Oyo, Niger, and Kwara in implementing the Consultant Pharmacist Cadre, reflecting a broader trend consistent with practices in countries including the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada, where specialist pharmacists play a central role in patient safety and clinical decision-making.
Pharmacist consultants and members of the wider pharmacy community across the state have described the approval as a historic milestone. Commendation has been particularly directed at the Permanent Secretary of the State Ministry of Health, Zirra Bubanani, whose leadership and sustained advocacy were credited with driving the reform and strengthening institutional capacity within the health sector.
Healthcare experts and the PSN have emphasized that the Consultant Pharmacist Cadre represents a clinical necessity rather than a symbolic designation. They note that the reform is expected to expand pharmacists’ involvement in patient care, medication management, and public health interventions—areas critical to improving healthcare outcomes. According to the **World Health Organization**, medication errors contribute to millions of preventable deaths globally each year, underscoring the importance of specialized pharmacotherapy expertise in modern healthcare systems.
The PSN further highlighted that task-shifting models—widely adopted in advanced health systems—can reduce patient waiting times and help address physician shortages by enabling pharmacists to assume expanded clinical responsibilities.
Beyond its clinical implications, the policy also addresses long-standing concerns around professional equity, aligning with Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution, which prohibits discrimination on any grounds, including professional affiliation. Under the Fintiri administration, the Adamawa State Government has signaled a commitment to progressive reform and international best practice, reinforcing a collaborative healthcare model in which specialized pharmaceutical expertise is recognized as a core pillar of effective, modern medicin
