KARACHI: Health Department Sindh has failed to purchase life-saving medicines through its Centerlized Procurement Committee for health facilities of the province as stock of drugs has almost ended in all hospitals, it was learned on Wednesday.
The shortage of medicines has further deepened in the hospitals of Sindh as supply of life-saving drugs has still not started due to delay in tender process, putting thousands of lives at stake. All the major hospitals of Karachi, including Civil Hospital Karachi, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, National Institute of Child Health, Sindh Government Hospital Liaquatabad, Korangi, New Karachi, Saudabad, Ibrahim Haidery, and Lyari General Hospital have been facing shortages of medicines.
The hospitals of Hyderabad, Larkana, Sukkur, Mirpurkhas, Shaheed Benazirabad and other cities were also facing shortage of life-saving medicines. The medicines for patients suffering from chronic diseases, including infectious, were not available in the government hospitals.
The surgical equipment stock has also finished in all the health facilities and patients have been compelled to buy drugs or other surgical instruments from markets. The shortage of drugs has badly affected the patients care in the province. Sources at health department told PPI that shortage of medicines in hospitals of Sindh had been a problem since the beginning of the current fiscal year, which had affected the operation of health facilities of the province.
CHK Medical Superintendent Dr Mohammad Tofique told PPI that drugs stock had almost ended in the health facility and the hospital administration was providing medicines to the admitted patients through local purchase.
Dr Tofique said: “Arrangements for life-saving drugs for 7000 OPD, 1500 emergency and 2000 admitted patients on daily basis is a tough task but the administration is striving hard to provide medicines to all these patients.”
Sindh’s Secretary Health Dr Mohammad Usman Chachar was not available for comments.