Dearth Of Pharmacists Threatens Hospitals In Kwara

IF there was a project the Kwara state government ever got rightly in the past five years of the regime of Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed, then it must be a quality health system.

Ahmed had ordered comprehensive renovation of five health centres across the existing three senatorial districts of the state with state of the art equipment installed at each of the hospitals.

Even critics of the government attested to the usefulness of the projects describing it as the peak of all the achievements of any administration worth its salt.   

The development is however being considered as an addendum to the existing quality hospitals in the state, especially, University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), Ilorin.

The UITH recently carried out successful renal transplants and two open-heart surgeries. Besides, Kwara state under a tripartite arrangement with the Dutch Groups, Hygeia and PharmAccess has one of the best rural health insurance schemes in the country.

But despite these seeming impeccable health sector arrangements, an Achilles heels of the system had been identified and this remains, the dearth of pharmacists manning the state’s owned hospitals.

Therefore the state’s branch of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has urged the state government to declare emergency in its health sector until a reasonable number of pharmacists have been employed into the state’s owned 30 healthcare facilities.

At present, 10 pharmacists are in the payroll of the state government and among the 10, two are due for retirement within the next one year.

But Dr Muideen Akorede, Senior Special Assistant to the state Governor Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed said the development, would be promptly addressed by the newly constituted Hospitals Management Board HMB).

According to the Chairman of the state’s chapter of the PSN, Pharmacist Olayiwola Francis, no health care system could thrive without the full involvement of pharmacists