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The Health and Social Welfare ministry yesterday announced a number of measures, including putting up government pharmacies within hospital premises and removing private drugstores operating from near the facilities.
The measures are being taken hardly a week after President John Magufuli directed that relevant authorities should take steps to improve healthcare in public facilities.
Addressing journalists in Dar es Salaam during his visit to the Ocean Road Cancer Institute, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare Dr Donald Mmbando said lack of medicines in public hospitals is one of the pressing challenges the ministry has to tackle.
The remedy, he said, is to plug the loopholes for corruption, namely the numerous pharmacies found adjacent to almost all health facilities in the country, which will be replaced by government-run ones within health facility premises.
But he cautioned that it will not be a forceful demolition of structures housing such business or violent throwing out of drugs from the shelves.
“We will engage owners of such businesses in talks, we will make them understand why the government does not want to see such businesses near public hospitals,” he said.
It is a common practice for health workers namely doctors and nurses to direct patients to the specific pharmacies where they (patients) should go and purchase the prescribed medicines. Various government officials have been quoted admitting the public fear that most of the drugs sold in such private facilities are swindles from public hospitals, he said.
According to Mmbando, the establishment of those public pharmacies in the hospitals will to a great extent reduce the problem if not bury it away.
“Vulnerable people are the ones who suffer the most because they cannot afford to buy the medicines in private pharmacies due to the cost … I hope this will help a lot as the medicines will be sold at affordable prices,” he said.
In another step, Dr Mmbando said that there are four digital X-ray machines and 17 ultrasound machines that have already arrived and they are on clearing process at the Dar es Salaam port.
One X-ray and ultra sound machine will go to MNH and
others will be distributed to other public hospitals, he said.
He said that the government will buy a new CT-Scan and a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) for Muhimbili Orthopaedic Institute (MOI) so as to reduce congestion of patients at the hospital.
The PS also added that the government has entered into partnership with The Netherlands government to avail all important medical equipment to health facilities.
Worthy euro24m, the programme will include purchasing of MRI, CT-Scans, X-rays, ultrasound machines and other equipment.
He said the equipment will help facilitate medical services at Bugando Hospital, MNH and many other hospitals in the country.
“It is vivid that, now the problem which patients in the country have been facing would come to an end as plans to get new machines are in place to cater for the big number of patients who call at the hospitals to receive treatment,” he added.
He also directed the Medical Stores Department (MSD) to ensure that it sets aside a big stock of cancer medicines.
Asked about what the dept owes the government, Dr Mmbando said that up to June this year, the debt had reached 110bn/-. But the government paid 42bn/- and the remaining amount was 68bn/-, promising that the government is struggling to clears it all.
“I am sure that we are going to clear the problem soon but I call upon MSD to continue serving the public without fear,” Dr Mmbando said.
Recently, President Magufuli dissolved the Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH) health board for poor service provision, failure to maintain equipment and general poor hygiene of the facility.
The president appointed Prof Lawrence Mseru, the Acting Executive Director effective today. He takes over from Dr Hussein Kidanto who has been transferred to the Ministry headquarters.
He had earlier been informed that the hospital’s basic medical equipment such as MRI and CT- Scans were broken down two months before.
He ordered the hospital management to ensure that all essential medical equipment are fixed and function to expectation.
“It is not fair for the national hospital to miss such services while the same are available in private hospitals,” he said.
President Magufuli gave a two-week ultimatum within which the hospital’s management is to replace or mend all broken down equipment.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN