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Health Minister peeved over drug shortage reports in Region Six

Dec 30, 2014 News

…conflict of interest with hospital pharmacists who own private pharmacies

Minister of Health, Dr. Bheri Ramsaran, has blasted the healthcare administration in Berbice, blaming what he termed as a ‘management issue’ over the numerous complaints he has received over the past months, regarding drug shortages in the Berbice system. Minister Bheri Ramsaran was speaking in Berbice recently.
The Ministry of Health, he stated, is spending “more and more monies on medications.” Dr. Ramsaran noted that it is a bit “disconcerting” that there are still reports of inadequate supplies of medication at the Berbice hospitals.
Dr. Ramsaran said that the Ministry of Health is baffled after doling out millions upon millions of dollars in drugs and pharmaceuticals. “And there are no medications, so we do have reports and people sending in anonymous letters…I’ve been to several community meetings and I’ve been getting criticisms and notes that you have persons who are working in the pharmacies in the hospitals, with direct access to the medications, or with the responsibility of ordering and not ordering medications, who also have direct financial, material interests in pharmacy in the public interest.”
He noted that in many instances “we have persons with interests in the private pharmacy industry, of also being in charge of public pharmacies. This is a criticism which I have known of…this is what the public is putting on the front burner.”
The Minister expressed his disturbances that the regional officials in Berbice did not bring this matter to his attention and not take steps. Minister Ramsaran added that he has met with several Berbicians who made such allegations and will investigate immediately why the Ministry seems to be spending so much money on drugs and there are still shortages in the Berbice healthcare system.
Berbice has a drug bond in the compound of the National Psychiatric Hospital at Fort Canje, Berbice, and the Minister was upset at the condition in which the bond is being kept. “We did a spot- check—the Chief Medical Officer (CMO)—at the little bond in the mental health compound recently, and he was shocked at the condition. We still have the evidence to that.”
He urged the local authorities here to visit these places, “and there are things which were allegedly short—and were found to be there—and this is evidence in black and white…”
He blamed the management for these problems. He instructed the CMO to intervene, immediately, in that matter so that the bond will be run better and drugs stored in better conditions.
Over the past months, there have been numerous reports of drug shortages at the various hospitals in Berbice, sending frustrated Berbicians to make purchases from outside the health care system.

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