The Deputy Minister of Health and Sanitation, Mohamed Koroma yesterday made an impromptu visit to government health facilities in Freetown, ordering the institution of a query letter for two hospital managers and suspending two pharmacists.
The minister ordered the query letter for the Ola During Children Hospital Manager Dr Muctarr Jalloh because he was not at the hospital at the time of the visit and his whereabouts could not be accounted for by his colleagues.
During his visit to Ross Road Hospital the deputy minister also ordered that the Manageress Mrs Karen Vandy be issued a query letter as well on the same grounds.
The Pharmacists at the Ola During Children Hospital Joseph Komeh was also suspended. The deputy minister asked Komeh to explain where he got the drugs he sold, but was not quite satisfied with his answer and was asked to relinquish his work and make proper explanation to the ministry.
According to Komeh 2006 was when he received his last supply from government and it was that stock he is still trading up to date.
He explained that the former pharmacist at the Children’s Hospital who he succeeded Aaron Simbo is the drugs storekeeper and he is the one that actually supplied him with drugs he is selling at the pharmacy.
Simbo was also suspended and asked to report to the health ministry to clear the air as to how he handled the drugs he collected since the Jenna Wight Hospital is dependent on the Children’s Hospital for drugs supply and for four years now they have not been receiving supply.
At Rokupr Hospital at the Eastend of Freetown, the deputy minister was updated about the challenges facing the health centre.
One of the issues raised by the doctor in charge, Dr Alhaji Turay was that the hospital is without water.
Dr Turay explained that to address the water crisis the Department For International Development (DFID) once sponsored a project, but sadly noted that the very day the distribution lines were installed it was the very day that it was uprooted by unscrupulous locals in the community.
The minister advised that there is need to have a dialogue with the community to know that the facility is theirs and if they destroy it they will receive its boomerang effect.
At Jenna Wright Hospital the minister advised the head of the family planning unit Jeneba Koroma to ensure that services which are free of cost and those paid for on cost recovery basis must be written boldly on a sign board for patients to know prior to using the facility.
Other issues were highlighted by junior staff including lack of medical gloves, numeration, cleaners and lack of implements used by cleaners.
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