By Doris Obinna
The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has commended the House of Representatives Committee on Health Institutions for considering a motion on the collapse of the drug revolving fund (DRF) in federal health institutions (FHIs).
PSN, in the discourse set by the House committee, recalled that the DRF was a creation of the old essential drug Decree 43 of 1989, which is now entrenched in the statutes as Cap. 252, LFN, 2004.
PSN, in statement signed by its president, Prof. Cyril Usifoh, noted that this should compel all health institutions to embrace the DRF concept, which was working very well up to the mid-1990s before the major tenets of the scheme as spelt out in the DRF manuals were truncated by the various hospital managements.
According to PSN, some of the major highlights of the DRF scheme compel operators to guarantee cost recovery mechanism, which is the philosophy behind a revolving fund with regard to basic norms in resource management.
“To ensure cost recovery in DRF, the enabling manuals prescribe that the DRF committee must have a project manager who is usually the HOD/director of Pharmacy in the FHIs, and an accountant who will be co-signatories to insist that DRF are not diverted from the core responsibility of making drugs available in public health facilities.”
PSN recommended a dialogue of the National Assembly and the Presidency on the full implementation of the basic national healthcare provision fund, which is an accrual that will flow from 1 per cent of the consolidated revenue fund.
“Also, improved oversight responsibilities on regulatory agencies involved in drug distribution to curtail over-regulation of players and excessive tariffs, a forensic audit of the expenditures and procurement methodologies in FHIs in view of the damning ICPC reports and the need to critically appraise the pharma-industry through scientific evaluations and validations of installed capacity.
It however, disclosed that a well-advertised memorandum was signed by former permanent secretary, Federal Ministry of Health, Mr. Linus Awute in 2010 on the directive of former president Goodluck Jonathan.
“The ministry directed the FHIs to appreciate that the basic tenets of drug procurement including drug quantification, quality assurance and sources of drugs used in the health system were the professional prerogative of the pharmacists which were validated in existing Pharmacy laws.
“It is salient to put on record that well run DRF schemes are a major panacea to out-of-stock syndromes. The National Orthopaedic Hospital (NOH), Igbobi was a benchmark at some point, as it remains one of the major FHIs, which built a functional pharmacy house.”
PSN reiterating that in advancement of the motions of the house of representatives on state of emergency, calls on the national assembly to promulgate an act of parliament which will revolve specifically on a DRF act that will strengthen the supply and quality assurance of essential drugs, therapeutic medical devices, hospital consumables and others at affordable cost.