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Nozibelo Maphosa, Sunday News Reporter
THE United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) in partnership with a private company will tomorrow open a new private pharmacy as a way of helping patients access drugs as the institution’s pharmacy was facing shortages.
Chief executive officer Mrs Nonhlanhla Ndlovu told Sunday News that the pharmacy would operate under the name UBH 24H pharmacy.
“We have done everything that needs to be done and I think we are ready to open the pharmacy, the drugs are also available and we hope that on Monday it will be opened under UBH 24 hr pharmacy,” she said.
Mrs Ndlovu said the hospital board came with an idea of partnering a private pharmacy, to assist people access medicine, which is not readily available at the institution’s pharmacy due to funding constraints especially from the Government.
“The whole idea behind building this pharmacy was to help patients who fail to get medicine from the hospital pharmacy and also we are running away from a case whereby our patients have to travel to town to buy medicines,” said Mrs Ndlovu.
She also said that the hospital pharmacy would not be closed but would be complemented by the new pharmacy
“We won’t shut down the hospital pharmacy, we will still be stocking medicines that we can, to keep it running,” said Ndlovu.
She said the role of UBH in the new venture was mainly to monitor prices to ensure that the private player does not overcharge the patients.
Mrs Ndlovu said UBH was not the only hospital to run a private pharmacy as Parirenyatwa and Chitungwiza already have.
However, some of the staff members were not happy with the opening of the new pharmacy saying they were not told about this new arrangement.
“It becomes confusing when one hospital has two pharmacies. I personally think that the hospital pharmacy should be closed considering the fact that there are no drugs which automatically means that the new pharmacy will be making more money than the hospital pharmacy,” said one of the hospital officials who refused to be named fearing victimisation.
Most public hospitals are facing shortages of drugs.
On 16 September, Harare Central Hospital, one of Zimbabwe’s largest referral hospital, suspended all elective surgeries due to shortages of anaesthetic medication. The situation is also dire at Mpilo Central Hospital where it is reported that the institution does not have adequate drugs.
Online Reporter