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Placement in India
A Pharmacy student from Leicester is putting to practice the skills he has learnt as part of degree to assist a
charity with diabetes testing in India.
Shailen Karia (pic.), 20, has just
started his third year of study at De Montfort University (DMU)
(pic.) and
headed out to Goa on 20 September to spend two weeks testing people
for diabetes.
The trip has been organised by DMU Pharmacy Professor
Joan Taylor (pic.) and Silver Star Appeal, a charity which campaigns to
provide diabetes awareness.
Silver
Star has recently opened an office in Goa and Shailen
will travel around in one of the charity’s Mobile Diabetes
Assessment Units offering free testing to people in the community.
During
his trip to India Shailen will also spend
some time at the country’s
largest pharmaceutical company, Ranbaxy.
“I have
always wanted to volunteer abroad so was
ecstatic
when Professor Taylor told me I had been chosen for the placement,”
he said.
“My own
brother is diabetic so I know how important it is for people to be
tested and treated properly.
“The
experience I will gain on this trip will be invaluable to my career
and I really can’t wait to go!”
“Professor Taylor said: “I’m really pleased that we have been able
to find someone like Shailen
who has shown so much enthusiasm for
the work that Silver Star do. Shailen will be able to
gain some very
practical, hands on experience and Silver Star will benefit from the
expertise he has learnt during the first two years of his pharmacy
degree.”
Shailen's blog
21st September 2009
“Hello! I arrived yesterday afternoon and the first thing I met was
the heat! I really cant believe how hot it is! 30’C and still
raining a little. On arrival I met a representative from The Silver
Star Appeal, Dilip Francis. He is very nice and friendly. He kindly
took me to my hotel and let me unpack and rest for a bit. Later he
introduced me to Sushila Mendez, a trustee of The Silver Star
Appeal. Today was my first day at Ranbaxy, an Indian pharmaceutical
company specializing in making generics. The plant I’m at makes
tablets and all semi-solid dosage forms. Initially I was introduced
to the managing director of the plant and the rest of the morning
was spent with the product development team, who try and improve
existing formulations for the specific dosage forms they produce.
The afternoon was spent with the manufacturing department and I got
to see all the machinery they use to produce
tablets/creams/ointments etc. This reminded me of the tableting
lectures and practical’s we had in the second year. Actually seeing
tablets being made in real life and reading all the SOP’s helped me
understand the manufacturing process of tablets a lot better!”
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