From Femi Mustapha, in Kaduna
Officials of the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) have shut down 666 unregistered pharmacy and patent medicine stores operating in Kaduna metropolis and Zaria city to rid the state of quacks and sale of injurious drugs to the citizens.
The officials who came from the national headquarters of the council addressed a press conference on Thursday after embarking on an enforcement campaign exercise with security men to the pharmacy and patient medicine stores located in the parts of Kaduna State.
Addressing Journalists at the end of the exercise, the PCN Director of Enforcement, Stephen Esumobi said,
“at the end of the enforcement exercise which began early this week, a total of 895 premises were visited”, pointing out that “this is made up of 75 pharmacies, 514 Patent medicine shops and 306 illegal premises”.
Esumobi explained: “A total of 666 premises were sealed. The premises sealed include 47 pharmacies, 313
Patent medicine shops and 306 illegal medicine shops.”
According to him, “they were sealed for offenses ranging from sale of medicines in the open drug market, operating without registration with pharmacy council of Nigeria, Poor documentation, Poor storage facilities, Stocking of Ethical products without the supervision of a pharmacist, Wholesalers engaging in retail activities, non- pharmacists having access to poison cupboards, patent medicine shops engaging in clinical practice and training apprentices among others. Nine compliance directives were issued.”
Harping on the functions of the Council to ensure the legitimate operations of registered pharmacy and patient medicine stores, the PCN officials said,
“one of the core mandates of the PC is ensuring rational distribution and dispensing of medicines that are safe, effective and of good quality at all levels of the health care delivery system in Nigeria.”
He noted: “For medicines to achieve an optimal therapeutic outcome, they must maintain their physicochemical and therapeutic properties as they transit from the manufacturer or importer through the various levels of the distribution chain to the end users.”
However, Esumobi lamented that “one major obstacle militating against the quality, safety, and efficacy of medicines in Nigeria is the sale of medicines in open drug markets” while stressing, “the medicine shops in the open drug markets and some other locations across the Kaduna state are not registered by the PC and are operating illegally.”
“The storage conditions for medicines in these premises are poor as medicines are stored at temperature and humidity conditions that are at variance with manufacturers’ recommendations.
The implication of this is that most of the medicines sold in these locations may no longer be fit for human consumption due to the degradation of the active ingredients. Some of the products of degradation of these medicines are harmful thus posing a threat to public health”.
He continued: “Also, the premises do not have pharmacists to supervise the sale of ethical medicines and other medicines with a narrow margin of safety, thus exposing consumers to harmful consequences of the wrong use of these medicines.”
“Furthermore, most of these medicine dealers engage in the illegal sale of substances of abuse to members of the public thus aggravating the social and security challenges emanating from the illicit use of these medicines.”
Esumobi added, “The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria had communicated severally with the relevant stakeholders in the state, including the medicine dealers in open drug markets in Zaria and Kaduna city on the need to relocate to registrable locations or a coordinated wholesale center as their activities are in total violation of the National Drug Distribution Guidelines.”
