WESTERN CAPE. – The Western Cape government is calling on the national government to take urgent action over ongoing medicine shortages affecting patients and health services across South Africa.
Mireille Wenger, Western Cape minister of health and wellness, says particularly people with chronic conditions who require daily medication are dependent on reliable supply. The shortages are caused by various problems in the country's pharmaceutical supply chain, according to the provincial department. Wenger says she raised the issue at a meeting of the National Health Council on eleven June. The council acknowledged the seriousness of the supply problems and agreed that better national coordination and monitoring are needed.
Because the shortages continued months later, Wenger wrote to Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, the national minister of health, in September to request national action and clear timelines for solutions. Causes include manufacturing and regulatory problems, limited supplier stock, delays with imports and customs, as well as delays in testing and releasing certain medicines, according to the department.
The Western Cape department of health and wellness monitors stock weekly at the Cape Medical Depot, reports stock levels and supplier performance to the national government, and shifts stock between health facilities as needed. Where a prescribed medicine is not available, pharmacists and clinics work together to find a suitable alternative. Patients can also temporarily receive smaller quantities or a different strength, packaging or formulation.
The department encourages patients to collect their medicines as usual and to speak to a doctor, pharmacist or nurse if their medication looks different or has changed. Treatment should not be stopped or adjusted without professional advice.
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This article is an automatic English translation of a Nuusflits article originally published in Afrikaans. Read the Afrikaans original.
