Brain Drain of Academic Pharmacists: An Assessment of Pharmacy Schools in South-Eastern Nigeria

The emigration of Pharmacist professionals in Nigeria has been on the increase in recent years and may have affected all aspects of Pharmacy practice, including academia, which is the most crucial aspect of Pharmacy practice that ensures the fostering of the Pharmacy profession. The study assessed the level of brain drain among Academic Pharmacists in South East Nigeria, to determine the cause of their emigration and to identify possible solutions to reduce the emigration of Academic Pharmacists in Nigeria. The study was a cross-sectional survey of Pharmacist lecturers of Nnamdi Azikiwe University and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. An English-based research questionnaire was used to assess their knowledge of emigrated Academic Pharmacists and the emigration intent in 103 Pharmacist lecturers, and was analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 21.0). The emigration intent of Pharmacists in academia to more developed countries was observed in 57.3% of respondents. It identified poor remuneration (88.4%), better career opportunities (88.4%), general insecurity issues (86.4%), poor educational system (78.6%), need for current research tools (82.0%), poor economy (91.3%), and low policy considerations (86.4%), as factors that cause brain drain among these professionals. The study showed the need to upgrade remuneration to a globally competitive level, the need to review Pharmacy policies to suit Academic Pharmacists, and also for the government to equip Pharmacy Education in Nigeria with the necessary facilities and funds.