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GPHC clears air on absence of key drug
The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has responded to an article published in the (Thursday) November 29 edition of this newspaper, which claimed that there is the absence of a key drug, Natamycin.
The hospital stated yesterday that it has taken note of the article and categorically refuted any inference that hospital management is responsible for Natamycin being unavailable for clients who require this drug.
Natamycin
It was explained that while Natamycin is not listed on the GPHC formulary (i.e. the list of prescription drugs readily available at the hospital), the system at the GPHC allows the attending doctor to request, via prescription, that the drug be sourced and purchased. Further the hospital stated that the system is known to all physicians associated with the hospital.
It was noted that at the current time, neither hospital management nor the hospital Pharmacist is aware of any request made by any doctor for this drug. The hospital said that it was disappointing that statements of such inflammatory nature, attributed to Dr. George Norton, a Consultant/Head of Opthalmology at the institution, would be published without an attempt to understand and verify the facts.
“As part of ongoing efforts to improve the quality of the services we provide and our commitment to meeting the health needs of the people we serve, GPHC will continue to monitor the status of any requests that may be made for this drug.”
On Thursday, this newspaper had reported that according to a senior official, the absence of the drug at the hospital had caused a number of patients to lose their sight.
The report noted that the expensive drug, Natamycin, is used to treat corneal ulcers. A corneal ulcer is a sore on the cornea (the transparent layer at the front of the eye) and persons tend to lose vision in that eye if the ulcer is not treated properly and in time.
Recently, persons from the rural areas have been visiting the hospital with this disease but because of the absence of the Natamycin, most of them have lost their sight. Some of them lose sight in one eye but the disease tends to spread to the other eye, causing total blindness.
And although the medication has been listed on the hospital’s requisition form for years, as a “high priority” drug, it is never available, Dr. George Norton, Head of the Ophthalmology Department, had said.
Dr. Norton explained that corneal ulcers are mostly found in farming communities and areas affected by dust.
Kaieteur News understands that at least once a week a patient with corneal ulcer visits the Eye clinic at GPHC for treatment and in many cases, patients end up losing the infected eye, because there is not the right type of drug to manage the situation.
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