PROBE AND ACT ON ABUSE OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS
What you need to know:
- Drug addiction is already a serious problem in Tanzania. Official reports show that Tanzania is battling with between 250,000 and 500,000 people abusing heroin. There are several steps the government could take to address this growing problem
It has been noted with consternation in recent years that an increasing number of people are abusing prescription drugs in the country. This, needless to say, should be cause for grave concern.
The Health ministry and government departments in the drugs supply chain should act as a matter of urgency to reverse this trend before it gets out of hand.
The list of prescription drugs that the authorities have issued the red flag on includes Valium, pethidine, morphine powder, ketamine and tramadol. Globally, these are currently some of the leading names in prescription drug abuse.
In many parts of the world today, the abuse of prescription drugs is leading to the deaths of an increasing number of people. Back home, there was an alert in 2018 following a crackdown on general drug abuse. A good starting point is that the government has acknowledged the problem.
As it turns out, Tanzania has not been immune to the global rapid response syndrome that has seen many young people, students included, and some stressed out professionals resorting to the abuse of prescription medication as the ultimate quick fix. It is not easy for one to get prescription drugs without the help of medical personnel at hospital pharmacies.
Drug addiction is already a serious problem in Tanzania. Official reports show that Tanzania is battling with between 250,000 and 500,000 people abusing heroin. There are several steps the government could take to address this growing problem.
The first step will obviously be to tighten the drugs supply loose ends, and investigating those suspected to be abusing and or negligently using their positions at medical facilities to hand over prescription drugs to the wrong patients.
There is also need to put in place stricter regulation on the distribution of such drugs.
Finally, the Health ministry should conduct awareness campaigns to dispel misconceptions that there is no serious danger in abusing prescription drugs.
ELDERS DESERVE RESPECT
It is time that we in Tanzania asked ourselves what we have done and are doing to protect vulnerable older adults and prevent their abuse. Questions have occasionally been raised about our commitment to preventing and fighting the abuse of senior citizens.
Perhaps the most damning evidence of brutality against elders in Tanzania is the frequent murders of elderly women with red eyes in some parts of the country. Such women are brutally killed, particularly in Mwanza, Shinyanga and Tabora regions, on suspicion of being witches, which is ludicrous, of course.
Are elderly people accorded the respect they deserve in hospitals, public offices or public transport? This is a pertinent question because it is not unusual to see nurses and other healthcare workers insulting senior citizens who are old enough to be their grandparents.
In public transport, it is now the norm for young folk to remain glued to their seats even when they see elderly people standing, barely able to maintain their balance, courtesy of the reckless driving that is synonymous with daladalas.
