Resolve drug shortage problem once and for all

Last week, Daily Monitor carried three similar headlines highlighting a perennial problem in our health sector: drug shortage. The three stories brought to light the desperate situation in Arua Regional Referral Hospital, Jinja mental hospital, and a health centre in Mubende District.

These issues are not new. Our public health facilities have for long faced huge challenges, including staff shortage/apathy, drug shortage, and negligence. However, not much has been done to address the matter once and for all and put in place working systems to ensure smooth-running of the health units.

Looking at the cases highlighted above on case-by-case basis, it is clear that through investigations, it is easy to find out where the problem is. If somebody is held accountable for such lapses, it will curb recurrence of such problems. In the case of Arua, a regional referral hospital serving more than 3.5 million people, by the time the story was filed, they had not received any stock for this financial year. The health workers had one option: to send the patients to buy drugs from private clinics. This alternative, however, only serves those who can afford it.

Similarly, in Jinja, it was reported that mental health patients in Busoga sub-region were succumbing to self-inflicted injury following a prolonged shortage of drugs, including crucial prescriptions, a situation that has gone on for nearly nine months now. This has led to more depression, with many patients becoming excessively violent. More than 3,500 mentally disturbed patients are affected.

In the case of Mubende, where Kiganda Health Centre IV is reported to be experiencing a shortage of essential drugs for the last two months, patients are forced to seek treatment from the main hospital, which is about 24 kilometres away. Most essential medicines used to treat common diseases such as malaria, cough, diarrhoea and pneumonia, as well as other essentials like syringes, gloves and cannuals, have been out of stock since June.

In most of these cases, the National Media Stores (NMS) has been blamed by health centres for the delays. NMS has, however, often stated that they supply health units after receiving their orders. So where is the problem? Do the health centres send their orders late?

Does NMS have challenges that affect timely delivery of orders to health facilities? Are there gaps in personnel, both in number and skills? Are medicines and other medical supplies being stolen from health facilities to be sold in private clinics?

These are questions the Health ministry, administrators of health facilities and NMS should critically study and answer if we are to rid our health sector of the chronic problem of drug shortage.

The issue: Drug shortage
Our view: Looking at the cases highlighted above on case-by-case basis, it is clear that through investigations, it is easy to find out where the problem is. If somebody is held accountable for such lapses, it will curb recurrence of such problems.