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@ Halal | January-February . 2021

Aziz

BY CAMILIA REZALI

The market opportunity for halal pharmaceuticals today is boundless throughout the globe , especially in Malaysia . Communities become increasingly discerning and demanding that only the purest and finest ingredients are used in the making of pharmaceuticals , more so in the times of Covid-19 .

In this context , maintaining an informed choice - informing the status and ingredient of product to consumers - despite their religious background is an essential task and doing so grows into one of the responsibilities of a pharmacist .

Pharmacists essentially provide services at public facilities and either in a community or an industrial setting .

Although having a piece of sufficient knowledge on halal helps in prescribing medicines , more importantly , the presence of a halal logo on a product acts as a closer reference point for pharmacists .

A community pharmacist from D ’ ansara Pharmashoppe & Healthcare Sdn Bhd , Abdul Aziz Jamaludin said : “ The halal logo mainly plays a significant role . No doubt , pharmaceutical products with a halal logo gives more confidence to the patients to choose .

“ Most of the pharmacists in Malaysia , especially the community pharmacists are very familiar with the need of a halal certificate for most of the products that we sell in our outlet ,” he added .

Every halal pharmaceutical product owns a registration number , and these products generally go through a complete halal certification review process .

Aziz said : “ Among pharmacists , we normally keep an eye on the halal logo and also the list of ingredients on pamphlets or packaging of the particular product . In most situations , we will try to request for product details from the manufacturers or sales representatives .”

Sales representatives from drug companies will share supporting documents with the pharmacists to notify on product ’ s halal status , halal manufacturing processes and ingredients . Pharmacists also use Google to look up on product details .

“ Normally , it is easy for us to get information . We can also login into the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency ( NPRA ) and Department of Islamic Development Malaysia ( JAKIM ) websites to know the list of halal pharmaceutical product ingredients ,” shared Aziz .

For more in-depth knowledge , pharmacists often times will refer to past research papers on that particular drug .

Additionally , prescribing substitutes or alternative pharmaceutical products to consumers is an unworried matter for pharmacists as they are easy to find .

“ With the existence of our modern technology , producers of pharmaceutical products normally have their own list of alternatives for non-halal ingredients and these products are easily reached by consumers .”

He said pharmacists played a vital role in educating the consumer through the Malaysian Pharmaceutical Society ( MPS ) on how to distinguish a halal product from a non-halal product . He further notified that this issue is always highlighted by the MPS in seminars and conferences .

Santhanathan

BY CAMILIA REZALI

The importance of halal is becoming more relevant to us now ; don ’ t you agree ? People are demanding for halal food , halal financial services , halal cosmetics , and even halal health products . We are even looking forward to a halal-certified Covid-19 vaccine .

While many are preferring halal products , some especially the non-Muslims are still not understanding the actual concept of halal . ‘ Halal ’ is more understood as a religious concept than a lifestyle concept .

Having a clear insight on ‘ halal ’ and ‘ halal pharmaceuticals ’ is exceedingly vital notably among medical professionals and also the patients or consumers . This is to ensure professionals such as doctors and pharmacists can provide the right information and consumers , on the other hand , can make the right choice of medication .

According to a pharmacist from Well- On Pharmacy Sdn Bhd , Santhanathan Rajendran : “ In terms of knowledge on halal pharmaceuticals and expertise on the concept behind the halal logo for the pharmacists , I don ’ t think there is enough especially for the non-Muslims .

“ Unless they attend training . There is less dissemination of information . Pharmacists don ’ t have enough background information ,” said Santhanathan .

Muslim pharmacists will not have many issues on understanding the halal concept as compared to non-Muslims . He believed , there is a misconception among customers where they thought ‘ halal ’ products are only for Muslims .

“ To break the misconception , the dissemination of information on halal pharmaceuticals is essential . And the right organisation to do this will be companies like Duopharma Biotech Bhd since it is currently at best-positioned in the pharmaceutical industry ,

“ After I went to a training conducted by Duopharma , I became more aware of what constitutes halal such as the process and the importance ,” he justified .

As more information is shared , there will be less misconception . It will also help the pharmacists become better pharmacists and thus help the public to make a better choice of medications .

Are pharmacists aware of halal ?

In terms of awareness , pharmacists are more aware of halal pharmaceutical products as there are times where they need to deal with Muslim customers .

Santhanathan said : “ When we encounter a Muslim customer , automatically our priority is that we have to show them the halal product .

“ If there are no other suggestions for halal products , then we have to show them ones without a halal logo . As long as there is no porcine ( pig ),” he said .

Either way , pharmacists hold their integrity by being truthful to customers when it comes to pharmaceutical products which are authorised halal by an international authority instead of the local authority . Customers will be provided with all the information there is to know , and at the end , pharmacists will leave them to decide .

It is not a matter of selling the product . It is more about providing the right information to make a choice .

Because there is less dissemination of information on halal , pharmacists are very much dependent on the presence of halal logo on a product .

“ The halal logo itself is crucial . I can confidently recommend products with a halal logo to customers . It cannot go wrong .

“ For me , it is based on the logo on the bottle . The halal logo is the standard . However , we will request for an authorisation letter for products with no JAKIM halal log ,” he added .

Are substitutes for halal products available ?

So , if a specific halal medication requested by the customer is not available , are substitute products easily obtainable ? The answer is “ only a few ” said Santhanathan .

“ Choices of substitutes would be available for the essential medicines such as for diarrhoea , cough and cold .

“ Substitutes , especially for originated drugs , are not easily available for patients . Only for supplements are available , but not drugs .”

Knowing which is a halal prescribed drug is a little bit more complicated . Supplements are much easier to recommend as the product comes with a halal logo .

As pharmacists , they also hold the responsibility to follow exactly the medications prescribed by the doctor .

“ Pharmacists cannot suggest any substitute products to customers . If the patient insists on having a halal-based product , we will ask them to refer back to the doctor to see if there is any other choice ,” he clarified .

At the end of the day , pharmacists can only suggest a range of medicines and making the decision would be in the hands of customers . But customers would want to make the ‘ right ’ decision . Therefore , they need to be well-informed .