The Chairman of the National Drug Authority, Dr. Medard Bitekyerezo, has sternly cautioned the staff of Masaka Regional Referral Hospital against the continuous drug theft from this hospital.
Dr. Bitekyerezo added that a list of staff who indulge in drug theft has been given to the authorities in Masaka after it was discovered that they use food flasks and tea flasks to sneak out these government drugs and leave the hospital stores and pharmacies empty.
He made these remarks at the NDA headquarters in Kampala on Monday, September 30, 2024, and revealed that they received a tip and operations are going to start soon because it has been discovered that this heinous act is mostly orchestrated by storekeepers, pharmacists, the in charge, and security guards.
“The drugs that are mostly stolen are anti-malarial drugs, ARVs, antibiotics, and many others, which is not good because when the patients find no medicine in the hospital, they blame the government for incompetence and poor service delivery, yet these culprits are the ones to blame,’’ Dr. Bitekyerezo stated.
Dr. Bitekyerezo further called upon the authorities, RDCs, and RCCs in Masaka to provide names of those who steal medicine from government hospitals so that they can be arrested.
The Masaka City RCC Hussein Hudu also confirmed this incident and revealed that he tried to intervene into this issue, but the hospital administration of Masaka Regional Referral Hospital always sabotage his efforts in putting a stop to the drug theft in the hospital.
Hudu added that he has proof that these doctors steal medicine in tea and food flasks and keep moving with them everywhere so that they can easily sneak them out of the hospital.
‘’Most of these people come with four big flasks, and others carry these stolen drugs in the women’s handbags that these security guards do not check deliberately since they are accomplices,’’ Hudu disclosed.
He also added that he tried to engage the Public Relations Office of the hospital, Charles Tumusiime, and Dennis Erima, the superintendent of the hospital, but they have never given him an audience.
The Minister of State for Health (General Duties), Ms. Anifa Kawooya, has directed the Masaka Regional Referral Hospital board to dismiss medical staff involved in stealing medication.
This is not the first time Masaka Regional Referral Hospital is faced with drug theft issues. For example, in June 2024, the Minister of State for Health (General Duties), Ms. Anifa Kawooya, directed the Masaka Regional Referral Hospital Board to dismiss seven medical staff involved in stealing medication, and this directive came in response to the ongoing complaints from patients about drug shortages in the hospital despite government efforts to stock them.