Stocking of mono-therapies for malaria forbidden – Health Minister warns

May 31, 2010 News

As instructed by the Minister of Health, the Food and Drug Department has been scrutinising private pharmacies in an effort to guard against the stocking of mono-therapies for malaria. Minister of Health, Dr Leslie Ramsammy made this disclosure in a statement issued to the media yesterday.

According to the statement, the Ministry of Health of Guyana has national guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of malaria.

These guidelines were developed by practitioners, local and international, with extensive experience in the diagnosis and treatment of malaria.

The guidelines it was noted were reviewed by experts at the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) and are entirely consistent with the WHO guidelines.

These guidelines, the statement, added “are fully consistent with the recommendation by the WHO for treatment of malaria with combination therapy and our treatment guidelines utilise an artemesinin-based therapy model.”

However, Minister Ramsammy has disclosed that it has been observed that several private practitioners are not following the guidelines.

In addition, he noted that it has been observed that several private pharmacies are selling malaria medicines, which are not consistent with either the Guyana guidelines or the guidelines from the WHO.

These practices, the Minister has asserted, are undermining Guyana’s valiant efforts to reduce and control malaria.

“We again request that private practitioners adhere to the general recommendations of the WHO for the treatment of malaria. These recommendations are included in the Guyana National Guidelines for the Treatment of Malaria,” the Minister stressed in the statement.

And since mono-therapy is not included in either the WHO or the National Guidelines, “we strongly discourage private sector practitioners from the use of mono-therapy in treatment of malaria. We have also advised private pharmacies against selling mono-therapies to persons with malaria.”

Further, it was noted that should the Health Ministry’s advice not be followed, there is a likelihood that the consequential action could be a restriction of importation of malaria medicines by the private sector.

“Already I have instructed the Food and Drug Department to check on pharmacies to ensure that private pharmacies are not stocking mono-therapies for malaria,” the Minister disclosed.

This move has been engaged even as the Ministry of Health has commenced a campaign urging consumers to desist from trying to purchase malaria or any other medicine without proper prescription by a doctor.

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Stocking of mono-therapies for malaria forbidden – Health Minister warns

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