Karachi:Unqualified professionals are occupying posts at Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK) pharmacy when qualified pharmacists are struggling to find relevant jobs.
The CHK administration has miserably failed to implement Sindh Health Department policy to post pharmacists in Central Pharmacy. The unauthorized and unqualified professionals are running hospital pharmacy affairs since several years. On the other hand, qualified pharmacists have been assigned irrelevant work by the hospital management which has been affecting process of drug inspection and patient care.
The pharmacists have a very important role in healthcare sector like purchasing medicine, storing, distribution, and maintaining quantity and quality of drugs given to the patients. But unfortunately these crucial duties are in the hands of ward boys, store keeper, staff nurse, computer operator and other non-qualified staff in hospital while more than 35 pharmacists have been assigned in irrelevant work.
An administrative official at CHK told PPI that Sindh health department had posted qualified pharmacists in the hospital on vacant posts couple of years ago, but they were assigned irrelevant duties by the administration.
He informed that pharmacists had been assigned for inspection of hospital’s general store items like soaps, furniture, chairs, tubs, caustic soda, dust-bins and other items. He said some pharmacists had been deputed in OPD pharmacy to distribute medicines, syrups and other items among visiting patients against their official responsibilities.
He said: “There are 42 sanctioned posts of pharmacists in the hospital and all are filled, but unfortunately, the hospital administration had assigned irrelevant responsibilities to them.” He informed that as per rules, posting of one pharmacist at every 50-bed ward was necessary but due to the lethargy of the hospital administration, this rule was being fully violated in the healthcare.
When contacted, Chief Pharmacist, CHK, Jahangir Saheb, recommended for constitution of a committee comprising qualified pharmacists to purchase and distribute medicines in patients. He informed that a software will be launched soon to distribute drugs in central pharmacy, OPD pharmacy and wards. He demanded removal of all non-qualified officials from central pharmacy and posting of pharmacists on technical key posts.