The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria Tasks The Federal Government With Probing The Mismanagement Of The DRF Scheme
On Sunday, an alarm was raised by the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, PSN, due to the state of the Drug Revolving Fund, DRF, Scheme in health institutions. The PSN alleged that the scheme situated at the National Orthopaedic Hospital Igbobi, is now in shambles. Professor Cyril Usifoh tagged, the President of the PSN, signed a letter which was tagged : “Rescuing the DRF Scheme in Federal Health Institutions (FHIs)”. The Federal Ministry of Health, FMoH, was urged by the PSN to investigate the scheme at the hospital, implying that the Drug Revolving Fund scheme had been manipulated.
The PSN stated that, “We demand that the probe of the mismanagement of the DRF at NOH, Igbobi must proceed immediately as planned without compromise to avoid invocation of other options outside the realm of the FMoH. We also strongly call on the FMoH to summon the round-table discussion on DRF which will include the CMDs/MDs, and the HODs of Pharmacy of all the FHIs as earlier promised by the FMoH.”
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The letter further read, “Today the DRF scheme at Igbobi is in shambles as the MD of the Hospital has manipulated it to effectively handle the procurement of drugs in the hospital personally. This has led to petitions by the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) to FMoH at different times until the FMoH directed a probe of the DRF at NOH, Igbobi, in August 2021.
“That probe of the DRF which is yet to be effected has only encouraged the MD of the NOH, Igbobi, to accelerate to the next phase of the agenda to completely annihilate the DRF at NOH, Igbobi, by plotting to impose personal acolytes who can be subsumed to his whims and caprices to emerge as the Director/HOD of the Pharmacy Department in the hospital.
“Our on-the-spot checks and routine surveillance suggests and confirms authoritatively that the MD, NOHI has taken over the procurement of drugs in the hospital contrary to NDP 2005 and extant Pharmacy and Drug laws. The inaction and action on the DRF Scheme by the FMOH has also encouraged a continuous perversion of the different procurement models in the FHIs.”
“Today, the CMDs and MDs are emboldened to scheme out HODs in the pharmacy who do not submit to their absolute control and then go on to use their subordinates as well as other proxies to take over the procurement of drugs in the FHIs, all for their own pecuniary gains and interest. The situation in the pharmacy department in FHIs has become so difficult that the pharmacists that work within these facilities can no longer justify the essence of their professionalism, which is tragic.”
Professor Usifoh further stated that the PSN was open to any further discussions on the sponsorship modalities of the round-table arrangement if the FMOH is constrained by a paucity of funds. He also expressed his optimism that the Minister of Health that the FMoH would acknowledge the concerns of the PSN members.
