‘Follow doctors’ lead, plug drug shortages in public hospitals’

THE Government has urged pharmacists to follow the example of doctors who contribute their expertise to both private practice and public hospitals. This dual approach has led to an increase in access to specialist services within Government healthcare facilities.

Health and Child Care Deputy Minister, Dr Sleiman Timios Kwidini, made this call while officiating at a joint conference between the College of Primary Health Care of Zimbabwe and the Pharmaceutical Society of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo yesterday.

Dr Kwidini highlighted the discrepancy between Zimbabwe’s pharmacist workforce and its deployment. The country boasts over 1 500 registered pharmacists, yet public hospitals grapple with a general shortage. This lack of personnel, according to the Deputy Minister, has unfortunately contributed to medication pilferage in public institutions.

“This is great what is being done by our doctors even when they are doing their practices they find some time to come to Government hospitals to give services so that they help the same community they see in their private practice. To the pharmacists we know that they have set good systems which stopped the leakage of medicine to the informal sectors,” said Deputy Minister Kwidini.

“We know we have 1 500 pharmacists so we encourage them to also come on board as private partners so that we try and plug all the loopholes that are causing leakages and drug shortages.”

Despite the Government’s procurement of US$18 million worth of medicine since last year, public hospitals continue to face stock shortages of certain drugs, potentially due to leaks within the system.

“There are some leakages that we want to stop as a ministry, so we want the pharmacists to also set up systems to reduce this to enable people to have access to medicine,” he said.

Deputy Minister Kwidini praised the joint conference, highlighting its potential to foster collaboration between public and private healthcare sectors in tackling challenges, ultimately leading to improved healthcare delivery.

“This conference is a noble idea. These are health practitioners who provide services to the Zimbabwean people. If these people don’t know what is affecting them, automatically it affects healthcare quality. When they meet like this they try to discuss the challenges they are facing to execute their duties. This will enable the Zimbabwean community at large to access quality health,” said Deputy Minister Kwidini.

Dr Patson Mapanda, president of the College of Primary Health Care of Zimbabwe, stressed that delivering healthcare is a team effort. He underscored the importance of ongoing discussions between physicians and pharmacists to develop strategies for providing the most effective medical services to the population.

“The real goal is to deliver a service to the patients. So all players at one time or another have to strategise jointly if they are going to be an efficient team. It would be sad if one hand didn’t know what the other was doing; the manufacturer producing medicine that the patient cannot take. The whole team must jell, the whole team must communicate effectively and for it to work, we must talk to each other. We have to plan together,” said Dr Mapanda.

Member of the steering committee of the Pharmaceutical Society of Zimbabwe, Ms Cynthia Sibanda, stated that the conference has allowed the two sectors to put their disputes behind them to improve healthcare.

“The idea of having a joint congress was so that we could bridge that uncomfortable gap between the two professions. Having had this joint congress, we have been able to coalesce and co-exist for the better good. This partnership needs to be there, needs to be strengthened so congresses like this need to be strengthened,” said Ms Sibanda. – @nqotshili