New health policy to include community pharmacists, medicine vendors

Medical Health Practitioners in the country have recommended the inclusion of community pharmacists and patent medicine vendors in the new Task Shifting and Task Sharing Policy of the federal government.

The policy which was developed in 2014 is due for review in the current year.

The experts said, when done, the implementation of the TSTS Policy would increase from the current 30 percent to 90 percent thereby improving access to quality Primary Health Care Services in the country.

The TSTS was developed and rolled out for implementation in 2014 in the bid by the Federal Government to ensure Universal Access to Quality Health Care Services.

The experts brainstormed at a workshop organised by the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria-Partnership for Advocacy in Child and Family Health at Scale (PSN-PACFaH@ Scale) and the Kaduna State Ministry of Health and Human Services in Kaduna, Wednesday.

Senior Program Officer of the NGO, Edwin Oyoma Akpotor said one of the strategies presented by the government for the achievement of the goal is to expand access to family planning and other primary healthcare services through the non-clinical private providersCommunity Pharmacists and Patent Medicines Vendors.

Kaduna State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Paul Manya Dogo, said the role of patent medicine vendors and community pharmacists in the health sector should not be underrated.