Pharmaceutical Society Appeals To Members For Essential Medicines

The Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana (PSGH) has appealed to its members and pharmaceutical companies to donate cash and essential drugs to the Ministry of Health (MOH) to lessen the impact of the burnt Central Medical Stores on healthcare delivery. This decision was made following a visit by its delegation to the site of the store house of the nation�s medicines and medical equipment at Tema. The facility was razed by fire on Tuesday, January 13. A statement issued by the PSGH said the donation should be considered as a matter of urgency, however, only medicines on the MOH Essential Medicines List 2010 would be accepted to avoid doubts. The medicines, it said, would be received first at the PSGH headquarters at Baatsona, and subsequently, be conveyed to the temporary warehouse of the MOH, as would be directed by the Minister of Health. The cash donations, it said, would similarly be received first at the PSGH headquarters and subsequently be used to procure the essential medicines by a special PSGH procurement committee with representation from key stakeholders. The delegation stated that the cash donation would be used to procure essential medicines for the public health system and encouraged those who wanted to assist to do so without delay. Mr James Ohemeng Kyei, President of the PSGH said a dedicated account into which payments would be made and made available to all members. The delegation assured the membership and Pharmaceutical companies of the commitment of the Executive Committee to be transparent, honest and accountable in the exercise. �Therefore, all donations shall be fully and properly accounted for and the names of donors shall be published in the dailies,� he stated. According to the Committee, the Association had informed the International Pharmaceutical Federation about the tragedy and solicited for its assistance.