Drug Inspector: An Upcoming Field In India

11 April,2023  |  By Brainwonders

Drug Inspector: An Upcoming Field In India

• Inspector of Drugs

A Drug Inspector is a pharmacist who specializes in monitoring and implementing medicines' efficiency, safety, quality, and usefulness from the manufacturing stage through the selling stage.

With the tremendous growth of the Indian pharmaceutical industry, this profession is experiencing significant advancements in education and employment. A job as a Drug Inspector is regarded as one of the most diverse jobs in the pharmacy field. Candidates must pass a selection process conducted by the UPSC and SPSCs to become drug inspectors. Those that make it through the selection procedure can have a rewarding career with a good salary.

• Qualifications to work as a Drug Inspector

Those of you who wish to know how to become a Drug Inspector, consider the following eligibility criteria.

1) Physics, Chemistry/Biotechnology, and Biology/Microbiology are some of the subject combinations.

2) Exams for Admission: The UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) and many SPSCs perform drug inspections as well (State Public Service Commission).

3) Whenever there are vacancies for the position of Drug Inspector, the authorities hold some admission exams for the same.

4) The minimum age requirement to sit in these exams is 21 years.

5) Maximum age beyond which they cannot sit for these exams: 30 years with 5-year age relaxation for reserved category candidates in selective organizations.

• Educational Background: 

Candidates must have a degree in Pharmacy, Medicine, or Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Microbiology or Clinical Pharmacology degrees with specialization are often preferred.

Key Competencies:

Rules of Conduct

Being patient

Believing yourself

A drive to excel in one's field

The ability to conduct tests

Expertise in coping with various salt combinations

Keeps you up to date on what's going on in the pharmaceutical industry.

 

The Selection Process for Drug Inspectors

A candidate must complete the following procedures to become a Drug Inspector.

This is the first step:

Obtaining a bachelor's degree in pharmacy is the first step to becoming a drug inspector. For admittance, several institutes hold entrance tests.

Step two:

Obtaining a master's degree in pharmacy would be the next step. Although a postgraduate degree is not required for the role of Drug Inspector, it is always beneficial to have a greater understanding of the area to flourish in it.

Last Step:

Whenever there are vacancies it is advisable to take the UPSC and other SPSC entrance tests.

Drug Inspector: Roles and Responsibilities

Drug inspector has a variety of responsibilities throughout their employment. These responsibilities are listed below:

Pharmacovigilance: A specialist in this discipline gathers, monitors, investigates, assesses, and evaluates information on various medications, blood-related tests, biological products, vaccines, herbals, complementary medicines, and so on from patients or health care providers.

Officer in Charge of Drug Safety: Drug Safety Officers are experts in observing the negative effects of medications or treatment on patients. The officers then transmit the results to the officers in charge of drug review and modification.

Medical Examiner: Medical Reviewers audit medical records containing health care facilities. Medical reviewers who are also known as medical auditors, examine data to ensure that drug quality assessment records are complete and accurate.

A physician specializing in drug safety: A drug safety physician collaborates with the drug safety team to assess a drug's performance and provide future suggestions. Understanding how medications influence the human body and different disorders is critical for a drug safety physician.

Associate in Drug Safety: A Drug Safety Associate performs the same duties as a Drug Safety Officer.

Drug Inspector Employment Sector/Industry

The government appoints drug inspectors to ensure their quality, limited usability, and efficacy. They have the opportunity to collaborate with major pharmaceutical companies. A drug inspector is in charge of a variety of duties such as

• Assisting the efficacy, quality, and safety of pharmaceuticals, as required by the Drugs and Cosmetics Act of 1940.
• Monitoring documentation to assist CDSCO officials.
• Field roles include aiding superiors in enforcing activities such as inspections and raids.
• Working with samples

Drug Inspector Salary and Pay Scale

A drug inspector appointed by the federal government may have a different remuneration structure than those established by state governments.

A drug inspector can make anywhere between INR 44,900 and INR 1,42,400 per month, according to the Pay Matrix Level - 7.

The starting salary is usually about INR 40,000 or more.

A list of books to prepare for the drug inspector exams is provided below:

• C. Kokate's forensic pharmacy
• Gupta's Pharmaceutics-I: General and Dispensing Pharmacy is a textbook that covers the basics of pharmaceutics.
• Cooper and Gunn's Dispensing Pharmacy
• Cooper and Gunn's Pharmacy Tutorial
• GP Mohanty's Forensic Pharmacy Textbook
• Lucent's General Knowledge is a book written by Lucent's

Benefits of Working as a Drug Inspector

• High-paying job
• Benefits of working for the government
• Extremely powerful
• Respectful job

The disadvantages of working as a drug inspector

• Several responsibilities
• A frantic job

Drug Inspector Frequently Asked Questions

Q.1 What is a Drug Inspector's average beginning salary?

Ans. A Drug Inspector's typical beginning salary ranges from Rs.4.5 LPA to Rs.6 LPA.

Q.2 What are some of the most common Drug Inspector job profiles?

Ans. Drug Safety Officer, Drug Safety Physician, Drug Safety Associate, Medical Reviewer, and other common job profiles under Drug Inspector are some of the job profiles.

Q.3 What is the minimum age requirement to become a drug inspector?

Ans. To apply for the position of Drug Inspector, you must be at least 21 years old.

Q.4 Is there an entrance/recruitment exam for a position as a Drug Inspector?

Ans. The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and other State Public Service Commissions recruit Drug Inspectors (PSCs). These authorities have their own admissions exam.

Q.5 What is the role of a drug inspector?

Ans. Inspection of all business units involved in the manufacture, retail, storage, food sale, narcotics, cosmetics, or related products is part of a Drug Inspector's job.