The shortage of medicines in Sindh government hospitals has become very serious due to which the people are suffering badly as they have to procure the costly drugs from the market rendering these hospitals useless for them.
Over 60pc medicines are being purchased by the indoor patients of the 1352-bed capacity Chandka Medical College Hospital and no drugs are supplied to the OPD patients at all.
After formation of Central Procurement Committee (CPC) by the health department with the approval of Sindh chief minister which was managed by former health secretary Iqbal Durrani, unprecedented shortage of drugs/medicines has occurred. The committee has so far failed to accomplish the requirement of the hospital’s drugs since the approval of annual budget for 2014-15.
Even disposable syringes, cotton, bandages, gloves, chemicals and kits for pathological labs, x-ray films, iv canola, crap bandage etc are in acute shortage poor patients complained.
The hospital’s main central store is almost empty, a visit by this scribe proved. Worst affected are the emergency patients of road accidents and gunshot who are always shifted without attendants, hence they lose their lives for no fault of theirs as there is none to purchase medicines for their treatment.
General Secretary, Pakistan Medical Association, Larkana Chapter, Dr Ikram Tunio, has demanded that it must be probed thoroughly as to why the CPC was formed and if it was formed then why the supply had been delayed for seven months which had overburdened the poor patients.