A memorandum of understanding was signed at Yarmouk University with the Food and Drug Corporation in the field of exchanging scientific experiences, training students of the Faculty of Pharmacy at the university, and conducting joint scientific research. The memorandum aims to consolidate cooperation and partnership, and enhance the exchange of experiences in the academic and professional fields between the two sides, as it was signed on behalf of the university. Its president, Dr. Nabil Al-Hailat, and the Foundation's general manager, Dr. Nizar Mhaidat.

 During the signing ceremony of the memorandum of understanding, Al-Hailat praised the important and pivotal role played by the Food and Drug Corporation in verifying the safety and quality of food and its safety for human consumption and the effectiveness of medicine and related materials, pointing to the keenness of Yarmouk University to develop partnerships that would raise the educational level it provides and raise the level and competencies its educational outcomes.

 He added that Yarmouk University seeks to excel and embody the spirit of leadership and creativity in the quality of education, originality of scientific research and community service, and to prepare qualified and trained graduates that meet the requirements and needs of the labor market, and is keen to stimulate pioneering talents and creative ideas among students and launch them by providing the appropriate environment to stimulate their latent energies Providing training opportunities in cooperation with various national institutions, which contributes to preparing them and arming them with the necessary skills to engage in the labor market and embody the knowledge and sciences they have received in order to serve and develop public sector institutions in a way that advances the wheel of development and reform in all fields.

 In turn, Al-Mahidat praised the scientific reputation that Yarmouk University enjoys in various scientific and academic fields, stressing the readiness of the Food and Drug Corporation to cooperate in all areas of common interest, which contributes to preparing and qualifying the students of the College of Pharmacy at the required level, and integrating the academic and scientific side with the practical in conducting applied research within The scope of the institution’s work in a way that contributes to the development of the services provided by the institution to the local community.

 The memorandum of understanding stipulates that the Foundation will train a number of students of the Faculty of Pharmacy at the university and introduce them to the various fields of work of the institution, its departments, food and drug directorates and laboratories, how to control food establishments, local and imported foodstuffs, control over pharmacies and pharmaceutical factories, and learn about pharmaceutical manufacturing practices. Good, in addition to controlling medical devices, supplies and cosmetics, and the mechanisms of control and regulatory work on tobacco and its products, including electronic cigarettes.

The President of Yarmouk University, Dr. Nabil Al-Heilat, inaugurated the activities of the symposium “The Development of the Pharmaceutical Sector and the Pharmaceutical Industry in the Kingdom”, which was organized by the College of Pharmacy as part of its celebrations of the centenary of the founding of the Jordanian state. The Director of the Jordanian Food and Drug administration, Dr. Nizar Al-Muhaidat in addition to Dr. Hanan Al-Seboul; the general secretary of the Jordanian Federation of Pharmaceutical Producers and Dr. Ahmed Al-Rasasi, representing the community pharmacies.

In a speech he delivered at the opening of the symposium, Al-Heilat said that Yarmouk University has come a long way thanks to the cumulative, effective, and continuous effort, and worked in a team spirit with management, faith, and institutionalism, as we realize that the university’s success in achieving its goals requires the combined efforts of all its academic and administrative cadres.

He expressed his happiness to host the participants in this symposium from the pharmaceutical sector and the pharmaceutical industry, especially since Al-Yarmouk University is keen to consolidate cooperation in the areas that contribute to the advancement of its academic programs and be a window from which our dear students overlook the reality of the labor market, which provides them with basic skills and principles that enlighten their future. Their practical future after their graduation, stressing the university's keenness to support the College of Pharmacy to be one of the leading national pillars in supplying the local and Arab labor market with qualified pharmaceutical cadres.

In her turn, the Dean of the College of Pharmacy, Dr. Mervat Al-Sous, said in her speech that human care is not complete without concerted efforts and strengthening and the integration of the responsibilities and duties of the health and pharmaceutical sectors, pointing out that Jordan is one of the leading countries in the field of pharmaceutical sciences at the academic level and at the level of the pharmaceutical industry, which is considered one of the leading countries in the field of pharmaceutical sciences. The most important local industries because of the accumulation of practical and scientific experiences of Jordan's pharmaceutical cadres, which are spread all over the world.

She added that Jordanian companies have taken the lead in spreading in the Gulf countries and the world thanks to the attractive environment for scientific research, experimentation and testing in the pharmaceutical sector, and they have had the lead in developing the local industry and its contribution to economic growth, noting that in light of the tremendous development of scientific and technological research methods, it has become an obligation for us in universities and in Pharmaceutical manufacturing companies and research and development centers for networking with each other to integrate the circle of pharmaceutical knowledge. If scientific research and development is the basis of progress, then our universities should be the base for this research and an incubator for researchers, scientists, and innovators.

Al-Muhaidat spoke during the symposium about the development of the pharmaceutical regulatory sector in Jordan, reviewing that since the establishment of the Jordanian Food and Drug Administration in 2003, , it seeks to ensure the safety and quality of food, the safety and effectiveness of medicine and related materials through policies and legislation based on international standards and characterized by transparency and participation, pointing out that the institution is the only entity in Jordan concerned with drugs, as it is responsible for it from the beginning of its manufacture as a raw material and during all stages until obtaining it as a preparation ready for use by the patient, stressing that the main objective of the Directorate of Medicine is to ensure the safety, quality and efficacy of the drug (whether manufactured locally or imported) and to provide it to the citizen at an appropriate price. By following up on pharmacological studies conducted on humans and monitoring them at all stages, in addition to following up the import and export of locally manufactured medicines, imported medicines, and slavery Executing and inspecting all pharmaceutical establishments, including pharmacies, warehouses, and pharmaceutical factories, monitoring narcotics, psychotropic substances and drugs raw materials, issuing the required licenses and permits, and following up on the rational use of medicines and the side effects of medicines.

Al Muhaidat also spoke about the history of pharmaceutical manufacturing in the Arab world, and Jordan which established the Salt Pharmaceutical Factory in 1964, reviewing the pharmaceutical forms manufactured in Jordan, pointing out that the volume of Jordanian exports of medicines until the end of May of 2021 amounted to 205.2 million dinars, and that the size of the Jordanian drug market is estimated at 1.3 billion dollars, while the global market for medicines is estimated at more than 1.4 trillion dollars.

He said that Jordan spends more than 3% of its gross domestic product on medicines, but the pharmaceutical sector suffers from poor spending on research for developing its products, so the percentage of its expenditures on research does not exceed 2%.

Al-Sebool spoke during the symposium on the pharmaceutical industry in Jordan, pointing out that the pharmaceutical industry in Jordan is one of the important and vital sectors and constitutes a major supporter of the national economy, noting the strength of this sector, especially since Jordan is one of the countries in which the presence of any medicine has not stopped since the start of the Corona pandemic that affected all sectors in the world, especially the health sector, reviewing the challenges faced by pharmaceutical companies and factories in Jordan during the pandemic, noting that despite the many obstacles faced by the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector during the previous stage, Jordan’s exports of medicines remained continuous and uninterrupted, praising the distinguished supervisory level of the Food and Drug administration in Jordan undertakes on the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector in order to maintain and protect the quality of the Jordanian product, and to protect the Jordanian citizen alike.

For his part, Al-Rasasi spoke about the pharmaceutical practice and community pharmacy in Jordan, stressing the importance of the pharmacist’s role in completing the patient’s treatment process by dispensing the medication accurately and providing the correct information to the patient about how to use the drug, the recommended dosage and times of taking the drug, reviewing the factors behind the growing need to develop Pharmaceutical practices, especially with the spread of patients' use of drugs over the counter without physician’s prescriptions.

Under the patronage of the University President and Prof. Dr. Vice President, we were pleased to akcnowledge and appreciate Prof. Dr. Ali Al-Qaisi in the presence of the academic staff in the Faculty of Pharmacy.We were privileged to have Prof. Dr. Al-Qaisi, a scientific stature and a distinguished professor, among our academics while spending an academic sabbatical leave from The University of Jordan at our faculty.

During the meeting, the Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Mowaffaq Al-Amoush, stressed the importance of cooperation opportunities in the areas of improving educational outcomes at the College of Pharmacy and that they are in line with the requirements of the labor market, especially with the conditions of the Corona pandemic, which affected practical training in scientific faculties.

 In turn, Dr. Faris Zahran, General Manager of the Electronic Library for Educational Services Company, reviewed the origin of the idea of ​​the institution and how it developed to keep pace with everything new in the field of pharmacy and medicine, and the importance of employing modern technology in the field of pharmaceutical education and how to use it in the most effective way.

 This agreement is considered the first of its kind between faculties of pharmacy in Jordanian public universities. The signing of the agreement was attended by the Dean of the College of Pharmacy, Dr. Mervat Al-Sous, a number of faculty members in the college and officials in the company.

The College of Pharmacy at Yarmouk University organized a scientific lecture entitled “Health Supply Chain Management” delivered by Dr. Sufian Miqdadi from the Founder King Abdullah Hospital, through the Zoom application, with the participation of the Dean of the College, Dr. Mervat Al-Sous.

At the beginning of the lecture, Al-Sous welcomed the participants, calling on the students to benefit from the topic of the lecture, which is one of the important areas that pharmacy students must be familiar with and know, pointing out that holding this lecture came with the aim of introducing pharmacists to the management of procurement and logistics services for health supply and supply chains and the associated planning requirements.

 Miqdadi, in turn, introduced during the lecture the concept of the supply chain, which is a set of organizational and strategic coordination processes for the usual business functions and the planning of these functions within companies or factories, indicating the importance and necessity of integrating and interacting between pharmaceutical management and health supply chain management, especially since there are a set of points related to pharmaceutical management It relates to health supply chain management such as relative utilization, affordable prices, sustainable financing, health system and reliable support.

He pointed out that health supply chain management includes sourcing, supply management, and delivery of quality products and services to patients and suppliers, and relies on the main element, which is the transfer of products from the source to the user, pointing to the functions of supply chains, which are customer service, product selection, and quantification, Inventory management.

Regarding inventory management, Al-Miqdadi indicated that it is the process by which the system is provided with the products and services that are required to achieve the objectives and the optimal cost, pointing out that the high level of inventory means withholding financing, large storage space, high processing, and management fees. At the end, the products become obsolete and damaged. On the other hand, low level of stock means running out of stock, and high storage costs, so it is necessary to balance the cost, distribution, storage, and supply.

At the end of the lecture, Miqdadi answered the students' questions and inquiries about the topic of the lecture.

The Faculty of Pharmacy at Yarmouk University participated in the Conference of the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Jordan, which was held on the seventh and eighth of April of this year.

  The college was represented in the conference by the Dean of the College - Dr. Mervat Al-Sous, the Deputy Dean - Dr. Alaa Al-Jabali, the Head of the Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Sciences - Dr. Muhammad Obeid Ayasra, the Head of the Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacology Department - Dr. Yazan Al-Akkam, and from the Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Practice Department, Dr. Rasha Arabyat. Each of them presented and discussed their latest research projects.

  A number of members of the academic staff at the college attended the conference, participating in its discussions, via the electronic communication technology (ZOOM).

The College of Pharmacy held an intensive preparatory program for its students expected to graduate in the second and summer semester of the academic year 2020/2021 and the amounts totaling 170 students, which was held over a period of ten days.

 The program was inaugurated by the Dean of the College - Dr. Mervat Al-Sous, who during the first sessions of the program familiarized students with the university aptitude test, its importance, and the general and special fields of knowledge included in the exam. In the same session, students were introduced to the examination procedures and instructions and how to enter the exam platform.

 The program included a number of lectures in different subjects within the specialty of pharmacy such as pharmacokinetics, pharmaceutical microbiology, medicinal chemistry, pharmaceutical calculations, pharmaceutical robotics, pharmacology, therapeutics, pharmacy technology and pharmaceutical manufacturing, and non-prescription drugs .

 Dr. Mervat Al-Sous, Dr. Rawan Al-Sharideh, pharmacist Rasha Bashatoua, Dr. Bilal Al-Jaidi, Dr. Dima Al-Balas, Dr. Ala Mukhaimer, Dr. Hanin Amawi, Dr. Muhammad Obaid Ayasrah and Dr. Saja Al-Nahar held review sessions, each according to his specialization.

 This initiative comes out of the keenness and interest of the university and college administration in the university aptitude examination.

The Dean of the College of Pharmacy, Dr. Mervat Al-Sous, members of the academic and administrative staff and students at the faculty of Pharmacy mourn their late student Ahmed Al-Saad, 

May he rest in peace and may God instill in his family patience and solace “We belong to Allah and to him we shall return”.