Conceptions of homeopathy teaching in the faculties of pharmacy in the State of Rio de Janeiro
Authors: Almeida Giovania Firmino , Holandino Carla 
Published: December 2021

Introduction: Homeopathy is a pharmaceutical and medical specialty practiced in Brazil since 1840 and known by the Federal Council of Medicine since 1980. The homeopathic pharmacy is a recognized part of the pharmaceutical profession regulated and supervised by the Federal Council of Pharmacy (CFF) and the Regional Councils of Pharmacy throughout Brazil (CFF 319/97 and CFF 440/05). Despite the existence of a Federal Law (number 1552, published in 1952) which implemented the teaching of ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã…â€œNotions of Homeopathic Pharmaceutical TechniquesÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã‚Â in all colleges of pharmacy, these lectures are still not present in the majority of Brazilian Pharmacy curricula. This reluctance in the implementation of the teaching of homeopathy consists in an obstacle to the formation of new pharmaceutical homeopaths in Rio de Janeiro.

Aim: To evaluate how the teaching of homeopathy is being taught in undergraduate courses in pharmacy in Rio de Janeiro and register through a specific questionnaire, the students' interest, as well as the availability of internships in the field of homeopathy.

Methodology: The survey was started in May 2011 with a sample of ten pharmacy colleges in the state of Rio de Janeiro (UNIG, UNIGRANRIO, UNIABEU, UNIPLI, Universo NiterÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â³i, Universo SÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â£o GonÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â§alo, UFRJ, UNISUAM, Estácio de Sá and UFF). A specific previously developed questionnaire was applied to undergraduate students to register their interest and availability for internships in the field of homeopathy. Moreover, the students were interviewed for relevant information about their interests in the area of homeopathy.

Results: Preliminary results showed that 57% of the respondents presented interest so far in qualifying in homeopathy pharmacy, 32% of them did not show any interest in the area and 11% reported not having a definite position. Regarding working with homeopathy, 51% expressed interest in working in this area, 36% showed no interest and 13% were indecisive. As far as conducting a refresher course in homeopathy, 57% showed interest, 35% showed no interest and 8% expressed no definite opinion. The traineeship of at least 240 hours, required by the Federal Council of Pharmacy to all pharmacists who wish to assume responsibility for technical laboratory or industrial homeopathic pharmacy, has not been offered by the majority of Pharmacy Faculties, considering that 89% of the respondents have not done this traineeship. Data collection will be finished by the second half of June.

Conclusion: The spread of homeopathy should be done from the beginning of the undergraduate course in pharmacy to evoke the interest in the discipline, especially in colleges where it is not compulsory. Most of interviewed students were not informed about the legal obligation of the training in the laboratory or pharmacy of homeopathy. Almost all colleges used in this study do not provide the internship for the students who show an interest in homeopathy. This scenario draws our attention to the necessity of new projects that enable a comprehensive and systematic teaching of homeopathy, providing new possibilities for homeopathic professional activities.