Hospitals hit by severe prescription drugs shortage
Govt urged to improve investment in medical commerce
The government has been hard hit by prescription medicine shortage in hospitals across the country. This has obviously raised worry on the health of individuals with chronic conditions, and exposed the cracks in the public health system. Reiterating these concerns this week David Tshere, Member of Parliament for Mahalapye East, who is the chairperson of the Health Committee in Parliament, expressed worry over the acute shortage of essential medicines across the country in most hospitals, clinics and health posts. “The shortage of vital medicine is worrisome and the Government should step up to rise to the occasion and put measures in place to ensure the sufficient rollout of medicines in hospitals across the country.”
An inside source who spoke on condition of anonymity noted that some of the medicines that have been in shortage include venofer and epilim ( vital for kidney disease patients) as well as diazepam, doxyclcline/ azithronyin, among others. “It is rare for patients to get the full prescribed medication, there is usually something short. It is widely believed that the public health system is a ‘ paracetamol’ model to mean that is what you often get from the hospitals and clinics, and unfortunately, that is often the case. “Botswana has always had a problem with the supply of vital medicines but the situation has worsened since the Covid- 19 pandemic started. This could be because supply chains were interrupted. “This development highlights the need to improve investments in medical commerce and empower indigenous Batswana who could be considering exploring this sector”. The government could place a cushion to ensure that in such cases, prices are affordable to the ordinary Motswana, or at least outsource to multiple companies to ensure that the demand is met and hospitals are often stocked, particularly for essential medications for life- threatening health conditions such as high blood pressure, kidney disease, diabetes, rheumatism, low blood ( iron deficiencies) and HIV among others.
In November last year, the government through the Ministry of Health and Wellness confirmed the shortage of vital medicines in hospitals and clinics across the country and squared the blame on Covid- 19 restrictions which had slowed down production and caused delays in medicines reaching their designated destinations. The Ministry emphasised that the problem was not unique to Botswana but was rather a challenge across the world as many nations grappled with the public health catastrophe which had a negative bearing on individual health and compromised public health systems. Minister of Health and Wellness Edwin Dikoloti said the government was expediting procurement, introducing multiple drug procurement, and also sourcing alternative drugs, particularly in cases where the medicine in shortage was for a life- threatening condition. He also noted that in other cases, they were relying on independent pharmaceuticals to help them meet the surplus of the demand and also supply any other vital medicine that the government was struggling or delaying to procure and supply.