Medicines purchase for hospitals

Government hospitals in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa are confronted with acute shortage of medicines, which are direly needed in treatment of patients in the emergency department.

The decision was abnormally delayed as to whether purchase low price medicines due to financial constraints or high quality medicines of maximum efficacy at relatively high price. The tug of unnecessary war that former Health Minister Hisam Imnamaullah waged against doctors and removal of his successor Sheram Taraki largely contributed to sending this important matter to the backburner.

The matter about the approval of medicines’ purchase list has been deferred till the induction of new health minister. But the new minister will first want to understand the Nitti Gritty of medicine purchase policy if choice has to be made between low price and low efficacy medicines and their high quality substitutes available at relatively high price in the market.

Another important matter that awaits the induction of new health minister is putting in place a mechanism of proper maintenance and repair on time of diagnostic equipment and machinery installed in government hospitals. The existing inefficiencies in these hospitals need to be addressed on priority basis.