Hospitals across the State are up against a shortage of drugs for treating non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Several commonly prescribed drugs for blood sugar management (metformin), hypertension (telmasartan), and cholesterol (atorvastatin) are in short supply in hospitals, even as authorities have assured that these will be back in stock within a week.
Medical officers said this year, the Kerala Medical Services Corporation Limited (KMSCL) released only the drug supplies of the first quarter and that the second quarter release of June did not happen at all which led to the shortage of some drugs, including NCD drugs. “It is not as though we are running short on all drugs. But NCD drugs are medicines that people should be taking without fail as a matter of routine and disruptions in its supply can be worrying. If a substantial amount of drugs has to be purchased, then we float a tender. In the present situation, many hospitals are not able to ensure that. The massive delays in payment is one of the reasons why many pharma forms do not respond to tenders floated by the KMSCL.
Because our hospital management committee has adequate funds, apart from the substantial resources that our block panchayat sets aside every year for purchasing drugs, for making local purchases, “NCD drugs are in short supply but we have not had any issues. Because of insufficient funds,” the superintendent at a taluk hospital in the suburbs said, however, there are also health institutions in smaller panchayats which might be struggling to make local purchase. Ideally, when a patient registered at the NCD clinic of a particular healthcare institution comes for review, the hospital should have at least 30 days’ stock of the NCD drugs for the patient to take home. The fact that the KMSCL owes over ₹2,200 crore to various pharma firms, for drugs purchased for hospitals as well as the drugs purchased by hospitals for patients under the Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhati, has not helped the situation.
We anticipated this shortage last month and moved fast to make local purchases so our patients do not miss the medication,” the medical officer at a family health centre in Thiruvananthapuram said.
