Fake drugs deadlier than bandits, UNIMEDTH CMD cautions
By Boye Oyeyemi
The Chief Medical Director of the University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital, Ondo, Professor Michael Gbala, has warned that fake and substandard medicines could kill patients faster than bandits.
Gbala gave the warning while receiving the Senior Consultant on Pharmaceutical and Medical Investments to the Ondo State Government, Dr. Samuel Oluwaoromipin Adekota, during a familiarisation visit to the hospital.
The CMD said his personal experience had heightened his concern about the quality of medicines, recalling that he once became unsure of the authenticity of a drug he bought for his daughter despite paying thousands of naira for it.
He stressed that healthcare providers must not assume that medicines were genuine simply because they came from recognised suppliers.
“The fact that it’s from Drug Management Agency, DMA, does not guarantee that it’s a genuine drug,” Gbala warned.
He therefore called for stronger collaboration between the teaching hospital and the Ondo State Drugs and Health Commodities Management Agency to ensure that patients received only safe and quality medicines.
Gbala also urged stakeholders to identify and stock essential and life-saving drugs, particularly those needed during emergencies, while ensuring proper documentation of drug orders and supply failures.
He acknowledged recent improvements in the responsiveness of the DMA but said more needed to be done to strengthen procurement, distribution and monitoring, assuring that UNIMEDTH was ready to collaborate with relevant agencies to protect patients from fake and substandard medicines.
