Government hospitals: health department directed to ensure supply of medicines

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has directed health department to ensure supply of medicines to all the government hospitals by the end of next week on top priority basis. He issued these directives presiding over a meeting of health department the CM House, here on Monday. The meeting was attended by Sindh Health Minister Dr Sikandar Mendhro, Secretary Health Fazal Pechuho, Principal Secretary to CM Sohail Rajput, Secretary Finance Hassan Naqvi and others.
The chief minister said that the purchase of medicines has not been completed, so far. Therefore, there was shortage of medicines in some hospitals. Health Minister Dr Mendhro said that with the approval of the chief minister, 15 percent local purchase has been allowed, therefore, there is no shortage. He said that as per policy, 15 percent purchase was made locally while 85 percent purchase was done centrally.
Secretary Health Fazal Pechuho said that the purchase committee of the department had ceased to exist as some senior members had resigned due to their personal engagements and some others had gone abroad. The chief minister directed him to adopt legal procedure and complete the purchase of the medicines. He sought report of supply of medicines within a week. It may be noted that overall operational budget of hospitals of the province was Rs 18 billion in which around Rs 6.5 billion was earmarked as the budget of medicines.
Murad Shah said that he had installed boards in all the hospitals urging patients to get medicines from the hospital store free of cost. "Our people are very poor and they need proper healthcare," he emphasised saying that to some extent he has succeeded in his mission but still his government had to do a lot to provide health services to everyone living everywhere in the province.
On the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) operation of various government hospitals, the chief minister said that the private partners were operating well therefore, their issues must be solved on priority basis so that they could help provide best health facilities.
Shah pointed out that Drigh Bala rural health centre of Johi was in a dilapidated condition. He directed secretary health to report him why it was abandoned. The secretary health talked to the DHO Dadu and got the report, immediately. The chief minister was told that the building was complete but it remained under the occupation of the police for a certain time. Shah directed secretary health to take over the health centre within a week and get it functional.
He also directed the health department to submit him a detailed report of all the health centres/health facilities lying incomplete either for any reasons. "I want to make them functional by providing whatever they need: funds or SNE," he said. The chief minister directed the health minister to keep visiting hospitals and establish close coordination with all the hospitals so that they provide the best of their facilities to the people of Sindh province.