Sierra Leone News: $30,000 for better Pharmaceutical services

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Four Government hospitals, Connaught, Ola During-Children’s, Princess Christian Maternity, and Makeni referral hospitals, are beneficiaries of a $30,000 United States Dollars support for training and equipment from the United States Aid for International Development (USAID). The support is to establish Hospital Drug and Therapeutic Committees to enable hospital management in the four hospitals perform better, in terms of pharmaceutical service delivery. USAID, Health Advisor, Saad El-Din Hassan stated that since 2010 when government initiated the free health care program, a lot has been achieved but much more needs to be done to help improve on general health and pharmaceutical services. He added that in spite of gaps and key players, the Systems for Improved Access to Pharmaceutical Services (SIAPS) provided the ground work to move pharmaceutical distribution and management forward, while the National pharmaceutical Procurement Unit is undergoing reforms to improve on drug procurement, distribution and management in the country. While all the loose bolts and screws are being tied, Hassan noted that improper management systems in drug distribution and management, made room for expired drugs in health facilities, a big wastage of donors and tax payers funds and causing disservice to the public. Matron Susan Charles at the Princess Christian Maternity Hospital (PCMH) said “My Colleagues and I learnt a lot from the training and I am optimistic the drug and therapeutic committees will reduce the rate of pilfering and expired drugs in facilities” She said she has worked in most of the District Health facilities and the issue of wastage is common, as a result of improper data collection of drug stock inventory. Matron Charles also called for increase in qualified pharmacists in health facilities, to further reduce the burden of wrong dosage of drug administration. Project Director, USAID/SIAPS activities, Murtada Sesay explained that the 6 year project to build a resilient pharmaceutical governance system will further add value to health worker capacity in reliable data collection to enable them build organizational and Institutional systems, among the four established drug and therapeutic committees. Mr. El-Din Hassan said the project seeks to focus on results, Universal health coverage on pharmaceutical management and supply chain system, which is crucial in health delivery. Director of Hospitals and Laboratories Dr Victor Matt Lebby stated that lessons were learnt during the ebola epidemic. Sierra Leone’s health sector was weak and the cause for high rate of maternal and infant mortality. Dr Lebby maintained that without proper drugs and treatment, health workers will always have the challenge to treat patients in a timely manner, and when patients don’t get the expected results and seek medical attention from drug peddlers as well as over the counter drugs from some mushroom pharmacy, the results are most times fatal. Sierra Leone is the seventh country to have an established, Drugs and Therapeutic Committees to help health staff to provide improved access to a better pharmaceutical service. By Ade Campbell Friday March 03, 2017

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