By PETER KORUGL
THE Lae district office has bought fresh medical drugs and distributed them last weekend to city clinics that run out of supplies.
The drugs shortage had been a chronic problem plaguing Health Department’s area medical stores (AMS) and the shortage had been blamed on thieves who had stolen and sold them in the streets.
AMS officer in charge Polume Jonathan said yesterday authorities should clamp down on the open sale of prescription drugs in the streets and markets to protect the public from wrongly using the drugs, which had mostly expired.
“It happened at Malahang, Buimo and Milfordhaven health centres … criminals were stealing their drugs that was why they had run short of supplies,” Mr Jonathan said.
He said AMS was doing its best to distribute medicines to all health facilities in Manus, Sandaun, Eastern Highlands, Oro and Morobe and Kandrian district in West New Britain.
“From time to time, we supply medicines to Simbu, Western Highlands, Enga, Southern Highlands.
“We do not concentrate on Morobe only … people seemed to think that because the store is here in Lae, the province owns this store and should expect no drug shortage in its clinics,” Mr Jonathan said.
He said hospitals like Angau, Goroka and Vanimo and three other major hospitals had obtained medical drug supplies from the Lae-based store.
Mr Jonathan said the store was attending to 40 orders per week and this were being handled by 23 personnel, seven people less than the number needed to move the drugs quickly.
Since 2001, the store lost seven men due to retrenchment and termination, and those positions had not been filled up.
“We get orders from all provinces and are treating everyone on a ‘first-come, first-serve basis’.
“Clinics in Lae should maintain their inventory by placing new orders once the supply is down instead of waiting for it to run out.
“The people in those clinics were trained to do this work … this should improve so that the clinics are continuously stocked with medicines,” Mr Jonathan said.
He said the store was ordering its supplies from overseas suppliers.