ABSTRACT
In Britain, France, and the German states, pharmacy education became increasingly institutionalized combining didactic education in the natural sciences and law with varying lengths of apprenticeship, followed by a licensure examination. In the European system, physicians dominated pharmacy education. Some progress had been made to organize pharmacy formally during the American Revolution, largely to support the war effort, much of this progress lapsed after the war ended and Adam Smith's invisible hand of free market economics dominated the American scene, especially pharmacy. As the young nation grew, safety concerns about the quality of imported drugs led to the Drug Importation Act of 1848, which in turn led to the founding of the American Pharmaceutical Association in 1852. The founding of new pharmacy organization, the vision of the APhA's founders such as William Procter, Jr. have come to fruition, advancing the pharmacy profession in every conceivable field of endeavor.
