| MSD asks public to help curb drug theft | Send to a friend |
| Saturday, 07 August 2010 21:51 |
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By Sunday Citizen Correspondent The Medical Stores Department (MSD) has sought the assistance of the general public to curb drug theft because of the public outcry over leakages. The MSD director of customer services, Mr Cosmas Mwaifwani, said the public could assist to trace the leakages so that immediate action could be taken. “It’s true that one of the most challenging jobs for the department is to detect those involved in drug theft,” he said. According to the official, MSD was often tipped on private pharmacies selling government drugs, but the informers failed to give details that could lead to the arrest and prosecution of the culprits. “We believe in working with the general public in order to provide better services to the community,” Mr Mwaifwani emphasised. If every citizen becomes a watchdog of government medicines, he said, the drug theft could be eliminated and medicines would reach the intended people. Last July, during the MSD stakeholders meeting, it was proposed that district executive directors should collaborate with district medical officers to stop the rampant theft of drugs from government stores. “When I was transferred to Mkuranga I found a lot of complaints from patients and I immediately introduced suggestion boxes whereby patients named those who harass them....I acted and at least things got better,” said Mkuranga district executive director Ms Zipora Liana. Coastal Region pharmacist, Ms Martha Lyimo, concurred that theft in government procurement has of late become rampant and called for stern measures to be taken against dishonest workers. A number of weaknesses and risks have been identified in the supply chain which unscrupulous officers and staff of health facilities take advantage of to steal medical supplies. Mr Mwaifwani said MSD has established a new system called "Smart Push" through which public health institutions can make direct orders for drugs from the MSD. As a result, he explained that hospitals have been receiving essential drugs on the spot, as opposed to the past system under which distributors seemed not to take into account the urgency and varied needs of different hospitals.
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Comments
What made you deserve that amount? Remember JK just told us 350,000/- monthly salary for civil servant can not be paid!
Its mid boggling that a section of government workers are swindling the government while we normal but crucial workers have been forgotten completely! JK wake up, we are no longer blind!
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