Pharmacists affiliated to the South African Association of Hospitals and Institutional Pharmacists in Limpopo have voiced concerns over the shortage of medicine at some health facilities in the province.
Some clinics and hospitals do not have medicine due to challenges with the new distribution system at the pharmaceutical depot in Seshego.
The association’s provincial chairperson, Nhlanhla Mafarafara says some pharmacists from clinics and hospitals have been going to the depot directly to collect the medicine.
Mafarafara says: “Hospital pharmacists and clinics are left to account for problems that they did not cause which is not a good thing. Now pharmacists are being asked to go to the depot and pick up medicines which we are wondering now if they leave the hospitals to go pick up medicines who is remaining to deal with the simple problems that are there, even attending to patients problems.”
Mafarafara also says pharmacists who work at hospitals and clinics do not have protective gear to enable them to collect medicine in a safe way.
“The other thing is that the people who go to the depot from the hospital do not have protective equipment that depot employees have in doing their job because our scope and our work functions are totally different.”
