Pharmacist Warned Against Internal Rivalry Undermining Public Trust in Zimbabwe’s Pharmaceutical Profession

HARARE – Zimbabwe’s pharmaceutical profession is fracturing from within as pharmacists increasingly compete against each other instead of uniting against disease, misinformation and poor access to medicines, according to a hard‑hitting presentation by pharmacist Wisdom Muzondiwa titled Building Trust Through Ethical Pharmaceutical Practice. 

Despite abundant talent, experienced leaders, innovative young professionals and respected institutions, many practitioners work in isolation, with unhealthy competition destroying the value of the profession at a time when unity is most needed, Muzondiwa warned.

“Professional trust is the foundation of public trust,” Muzondiwa stated, emphasising that if pharmacists lose trust in each other, the public eventually loses trust in pharmacists. The public relies on pharmacists because they are expected to put patients first, practise ethically, support evidence‑based care and hold one another accountable. However, the current reality sees pharmacists sometimes competing against each other instead of fighting disease, and this fragmentation leaves everyone paying the price.

Ethics, Muzondiwa argued, is more than following the law—it is how professionals behave when regulations are silent, including respecting colleagues, speaking professionally, refusing to undermine fellow pharmacists, and practising fair dealing in pricing, business and leadership. 

He identified destructive behaviours such as selling medicines below sustainable cost, publicly discrediting fellow pharmacists, poaching staff without ethical consideration, spreading misinformation about competitors, and ignoring professional standards for commercial gain as clear signs of unhealthy rivalry.

When the profession fragments, patients lose, businesses lose and the profession loses, Muzondiwa stressed. He drew a sharp distinction between healthy competition, which raises standards through service quality, and unhealthy competition, which destroys professional value. 

His closing message was unequivocal: “The greatest competitor of pharmacy is not another pharmacy. It is disease, misinformation, poor access to medicines, and the loss of public trust. When pharmacists compete against one another, everyone becomes weaker. When pharmacists work together, the entire healthcare system becomes stronger.”