How many years of professional practice are required for a pharmacy graduate to open a pharmacy in Vietnam?
I have a question. Is it correct that a pharmacy graduate must have 5 years of professional practice for provincial and city-level pharmacies, and 2 years for district-level and ward-level pharmacies in order to be the chief pharmacist of the pharmacy in Vietnam? Thank you!
How many years of professional practice are required for a pharmacy graduate to open a pharmacy in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Article 18 of the Law on Pharmacy in 2016 stipulating conditions to be satisfied by the chief pharmacist of a drug retailer:
1. The chief pharmacist of a drugstore must have any of the qualifications specified in Point a Clause 1 Article 13 hereof and at least 02 years’ apprenticeship at a suitable pharmacy establishment. The chief pharmacist of a drugstore may also be in charge of clinical pharmacology therein.
2. The chief pharmacist of a dispensary must have any of the qualifications specified in Point a, e or g Clause 1 Article 13 hereof and at least 18 months’ apprenticeship at a suitable pharmacy establishment.
3. The chief pharmacist of the dispensary of the medical station of a commune must have any of the qualifications specified in Point a, e g or k Clause 1 Article 13 hereof and at least 01 year’s apprenticeship at a suitable pharmacy establishment or a health facility; If the medical station is located in an ethnic minority area, highland, island, extremely disadvantaged area, the chief pharmacist must have any of the qualifications specified in Point b or Point h Clause 1 Article 13 of this Article and at least 01 year’s apprenticeship at a health facility.
4. The chief pharmacist of a retailer of herbal ingredients, herbal drugs, or traditional drugs must have any of the qualifications specified in Point a, c, e, g, i, or l Clause 1 Article 13 hereof and at least 01 year’s apprenticeship at a pharmacy establishment or health facility applying traditional medicine, except for the case in Point c Clause 2 Article 13 hereof.
Therefore, in terms of practical requirements, it is not mandatory for the chief pharmacist of the pharmacy to have 5 years of professional practice for provincial and city-level pharmacies, or 2 years for district-level and ward-level pharmacies. If they have completed 2 years of professional practice at a suitable pharmaceutical facility and meet the requirements for qualifications, certifications, etc., they are eligible to be the chief pharmacist of the pharmacy.
How many years of professional practice are required for a pharmacy graduate to open a pharmacy in Vietnam? - image from internet
What are procedures for issuance of the Certificates of eligibility for pharmacy business in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Clause 2 Article 37 of the Law on Pharmacy in 2016, the Directors of Provincial Departments of Health shall issue the Certificates of eligibility for pharmacy business of the pharmacy business establishments (including drugstores, dispensaries of hospitals and medical stations of communes, retailers of herbal ingredients, herbal drugs, traditional drugs).
a. Step 1: Submitting the Application
As a household business owner, you need to prepare a complete application package for requesting the issuance of a Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business. You can submit the application directly or send it via post to the Department of Health where your business is located, as regulated in Article 1 of Article 39 of the Law on Pharmacy in 2016 and Clause 1 of Article 33 of Decree 54/2017/ND-CP.
b. Step 2: Receiving the Application
After receiving the application, the receiving agency will return a Receipt of Application according to Form 01 in Appendix I issued with Decree 54/2017/ND-CP.
c. Step 3: Evaluation of the Application
- In cases where no amendments or supplements are required, the issuing agency of the Certificate of Pharmaceutical Business Conditions will:
+ Issue the Certificate within 30 days from the date indicated on the Receipt of Application for cases where the infrastructure, technical aspects, and personnel have been inspected and evaluated to comply with Good Practices suitable for the scope of business, without the need for on-site evaluation at the requesting establishment.
+ Conduct on-site evaluation at the requesting establishment within 20 days from the date indicated on the Receipt of Application.
- In cases where amendments or supplements are required, within 10 working days from the date indicated on the Receipt of Application, the receiving agency will send a written document to the requesting establishment specifying the documents and specific content that need to be amended or supplemented.
After receiving the amended or supplemented application, the receiving agency will return a Receipt of Application for Amendment or Supplement according to Form 01 in Appendix I issued with Article 33 of Decree 54/2017/ND-CP.
+ In cases where the amended or supplemented application does not meet the requirements, the receiving agency will notify the establishment according to the regulations stated in Clause 4 of Article 33 of Decree 54/2017/ND-CP.
+ In cases where no amendments or supplements are required for the amended or supplemented application, the receiving agency will proceed according to the regulations stated in Clause 3 of Article 33 of Decree 54/2017/ND-CP.
d. Step 4: On-site Evaluation and Issuance of the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business
According to the regulations stated in Clause 6 of Article 33 of Decree 54/2017/ND-CP, after conducting the on-site evaluation of the establishment, the issuing agency of the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business is responsible for:
+ Issuing the Certificate within 10 working days from the completion date of the on-site evaluation for cases where there are no requirements for correction, rectification, or improvement.
+ Issuing a written notification regarding the necessary corrections or improvements within 5 working days from the completion date of the on-site evaluation for cases where there are requirements for correction, rectification, or improvement.
- According to the regulations stated in Clause 7 of Article 33 of Decree 54/2017/ND-CP, within 20 days from the receipt of the notification and supporting documents proving the completion of corrections or improvements from the requesting establishment, the issuing agency of the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business will either issue the Certificate or provide a response for the reason of non-issuance.
- According to the regulations stated in Clause 9 of Article 33 of Decree 54/2017/ND-CP, within 5 working days from the date of issuance of the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business, the receiving agency will publish and update the following information on the electronic portal of the unit:
+ Name and address of the establishment granted the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business.
+ Name of the responsible person for pharmaceutical affairs and their Pharmacy Practice Certificate number.
+ Certificate number of the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business.
- According to the regulations stated in Clause 11 of Article 33 of Decree 54/2017/ND-CP, the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business is issued in duplicate according to Form 22 in Appendix I issued with Decree 54/2017/ND-CP: one copy is issued to the requesting establishment, and one copy is kept at the issuing agency of the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business.
Furthermore, if your establishment has been evaluated to comply with Good Practices, the issuing agency of the Certificate of eligibility for pharmacy business will issue a Certificate of Compliance with Good Practices (GPP) if the establishment applies for it.
Best regards!
