Speaking at the launch of activities to mark the society's 2025 Annual General Meeting this year, the Vice-President of PSGH, Kwabena Asante, said pharmacies and pharmacists had critical roles to play in bringing efficient health care services close to communities.

The AGM is scheduled to take place in Cape Coast from September 22 to September 27, 2025 on the theme, "Strengthening Pharmacy for primary health care."

The logo for the activities was also unveiled.

Mr Asante said primary health care had been prioritised across the world and efforts by the PSGH to ensure policy makers upscaled pharmacists' role in primary health care  was in line with government's primary health care policy.

Mr Asante further stated that primary health care was a community-based concept where essential health services were available to everyone.

He said the concept must be a first point of contact, have comprehensive services delivered by qualified persons and people centred.

He said the PSGH had thus made a case to policy makers in the country to reconsider pharmacists to give primary health care services in the communities.

He said pharmacists trained in the last few years had been equipped with very high level competencies over six to seven years with enough clinical focus and experience, placing them in a position to offer basic primary health care services.

"Our argument or position is that pharmacies and pharmacists have a significant role to play if we truly want to advance primary health care in our country," he stated.

Mr Asante said he was hopeful that the discussions at this year's AGM would help shape further deliberations that would ensure that any policy would position pharmacists to contribute significantly to primary health care.

The Executive Secretary of the PSGH, Rev Dr Dennis Sena Awitty, said community pharmacy practice must intentionally be linked to healthcare provision for enhanced health care.

He said non-communicable diseases, including hypertension, cancer, diabetes and others, were on the rise and required prompt response to patients.

He said the community pharmacists were already in the communities, and as such it would be essential to involve them to help learn and relearn and adjust to the environment and services to help scale up access to prompt health services.

He said pharmacies in the communities could be retooled and their skills enhanced to screen and pick up cases as a first point of call for the next stage of referral.

This, he said, would ensure a seamless integration between the point of patient and health care giver, saying that would ensure universal health coverage.

The Chairman of the National Planning Committee, Abena Esiah-Donkor, said she was optimistic that the AGM would be a platform to promote the sense of unity, focus and purpose for the association to contribute towards an effective primary health care across the country.