MEC prescribes immediate injection of medicine stock
Some medication have remained out of stock in hospitals for a very long period of time.
The South African Association of Hospital and Institutional Pharmacists requested the provincial MEC for health, Sasekani Manzini, to intervene in the stock crisis faced by hospitals and primary health clinics in the province.
Shawn Zeelie, the president of the association, said it was contacted by its members seeking support and direction regarding poor working conditions.
“The members were concerned about the growing list of items out of stock at the depot. Some of these items have remained out of stock for an extensively long period of time. It has come to a point where very essential items that cannot be substituted have now been added to the items that are out of stock at the depot, making it exceedingly difficult for pharmacists to work optimally,” said Zeelie.
READ: Covid-19 vaccine to be rolled out in three phases, says Department of Health
He added that pharmacists were faced with having to call other institutions every day to borrow stock or otherwise having to explain to the wards, prescribers and patients that their requests could not be fulfilled due to a stock shortages at the depot. 
“The quality of care provided by hospitals and clinics highly depends on the availability of medicines and surgical stock items, and this has been heavily compromised. During this pandemic, it is imperative that the supply of items such as personal protective equipment is kept consistent, as the very safety and lives of healthcare workers and the patients depends on it. The supply of these items has also been compromised and this disrupts all efforts of curbing the spread of the pandemic,” said Zeelie.
Recent reports from other media publications stated that TB treatment was not available in a number of hospital in the province.
In response to the allegations, the spokesperson for the department, Dumisani Malamule, said the MEC had visited three health facilities on June 28, including KaNyamazane Community Healthcare Centre, Barberton Hospital and M’Afrika Community Healthcare Centre, also in Barberton, as part of her drive to monitor medicine stock levels in the province’s health facilities.
Manzini also held a brief virtual meeting with the Treatment Action Campaign which also raised the same concerns.
“We have noted the concerns and I have given an instructions that medicine must ordered with speed from our pharmaceutical depot in Middelburg, and that by Friday July 2, all health facilities should have adequate quantities of medicine.
“Myself and the premier will visit the depot on Friday to check if all required medicine has been dispatched to all health facilities. We have instructed our staff to work day and night with immediate effect, to ensure that we provide all medicines,” she said.
