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| Hyped drug policy lost in oblivion | | | Javid A Malla
Baramulla, Oct 1: Years after coalition government framed a state drug policy which was aimed at streamlining the process of procuring and administering drugs to patients across the state, the policy seems to have lost in oblivion as nothing has been heard regarding implementation of the hyped policy. In 2009 the drug policy was framed with an aim and objective to check the supply of spurious drugs and also to break the nexus between pharmaceutical companies and some blue eyed doctors. The drug policy has the provision to install technological mechanism in all major hospitals to check the supply of spurious drugs.
The medicines were supposed t become cheaper once the drug policy was implemented. The irrational prescribing and irrational dispensing practices are still rampant. Besides the recent past drug scams that surfaced in state and shocked the general public increased the immediate need for implementation of drug policy. A state level drug policy that addresses the issue of accessibility (including availability and affordability) of essential medicines and also devises discrete policy provisions for ensuring quality, safety and efficacy of medicines besides enforcing rational prescribing and dispensing practices and streamlining the procurement and supply chain management of medicines. Since 75%-80% of total expenditure on healthcare in India goes on medicines alone, need to have a drug policy even in absence of a comprehensive health policy in the state is therefore justified. "Around 21% population of state comprising of 24 lac people are living below the poverty line and it is these people who are deprived of an equitable access to essential and life-saving medicines. The medical representatives are still seen in government hospitals while recommending drugs to doctors for prescription" says a patient admitted in patient department at District Hospital Baramulla. He says "the business is rampant between medical representatives and doctors in every hospital. After fake drugs were un earthed, patients suspect the medicines prescribed to then are fake and patients are scaring to consume it". Following the past recent drug scams that triggered public resentment and protests, then Drug Controller General of India G M Singh had admitted that medicines were not evaluated in Jammu and Kashmir.
"Evaluation of drugs is not done properly but we will take steps to check spurious drugs," Singh had said "Drug Act is not uniform and steps are been taken to implement it more effectively at par with the rest of the country. We will make sure that medicines save lives and not take them," he had added. Singh had said that labs in the state will be upgraded shortly for checking the drugs to provide faster reports. Sources said, the heavy nexus is going on between doctors and medical representatives who offer benefits and gifts to doctors for recommending their drugs.
It is Often doctors prescribe patients of costly drugs after looking patients both at Government Hospitals and private clinics.
"The drugs mostly fake are supplied through medical representatives to private medical shops, both doctors, medical representatives and drug dealers are hand in glove running the business " sources said. While as experts opine that drug scams may have derailed process for implementation of drug policy, but at the same time the issue raised need for early implementation of drug policy. Experts say, the issues related to drug policy and fake drug scam must need to be raised in current Assembly session. The legislators should raise their voice and demand implementation of drug policy. Besides put in place the mechanism to detect and suspend supply of fake drugs in State. |
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