Kwara: 520 Medicine Shops, Pharmacies Sealed By PCN in 7 LGAs
Yesterday, the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) had sealed no less than 520 medicinal outlets within the 7 Local Governments Areas of Kwara state.
As he spoke with journalists in Ilorin on Thursday, Pharmacist Stephen Esumobi, the director and head of enforcement department, stated that the premises that were sealed comprised of 39 pharmacies and 481 patent medicine shops.
While he lamented that this was not unusual to Kwara state, he also said that unregistered pharmacies and patent medicine shops could be found all over the country, especially within rural areas.
“The PCN enforcement teams have been on the field in Kwara state throughout the week visiting premises in the following local government areas: llorin West, llorin East, llorin South, Asa, Moro, Oyun and Ifelodun. Observations from the field in the state revealed that while there is commendable level of compliance by some stakeholders, others have chosen to operate with total disregard for the PCN guidelines.
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“So many premises are not registered with the PCN while a large number of those registered do not bother to renew their licenses. Most of the patent medicine vendors are engaged in activities far beyond their scope and also stock products outside their approved drug list including ethical medicines and substances of abuse.
“At the end of the exercise, a total of 743 premises were visited. This comprises 594 patent medicine shops (PPMVs) and 149 pharmacies. A total of 520 premises were sealed comprising 39 pharmacies and 481 patent medicines shops. Eight compliance directives were issued for various offences such as poor sanitary conditions, poor documentation and non-display of premises and pharmacists annual licenses”, he said.
Pharmacist Esumobi had also stated that the PCN had stepped up its enforcement activities across Nigeria with the sole purpose of the promotion, improvement and maintenance of the standards of practice that are in line with the federal government policy of streamlining drug distribution system.
“This will ultimately enhance the provision of safe, effective and quality medicines down the distribution value chain. Streamlining the drug distribution system is necessary because it is impossible to obtain optimal therapeutic outcomes from various drug interventions across the various levels of health care delivery system with the current chaotic drug distribution pattern.”
According to him, members of the public should source all their drug needs from registered and licensed pharmacies, while Over-The-Counter medicines should also be sourced from shops registered with the PPMV. Furthermore, he said that the authenticity of drugs sold in unregistered outlets cannot be guaranteed.
