192 pharmacists inducted
The Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana (PSGH) has inducted 192 pharmacists into the society at it’s annual general conference in Accra.
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The meeting was held on the theme, “Universal health coverage: Achieving access and responsible use of medicines.”
The President of the PSGH, Mr James Ohemeng Kyei indicated that the delay in payment of claims by the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) was hampering efforts at attaining Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in the country.
“Arrears to providers cover about eight to ten months. This has led to the withdrawal of services to insured clients by some providers, out-of-pocket payment or co-payment. All these cause financial hardships to the citizens and serve as barriers to UHC,” he stated.
Mr Kyei also called for the inclusion of pharmacists on the technical committee formed by the government to review the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) as drugs made up 52 per cent of the NHIS claims.
Postings and claims
The deputy Minister of Health, Dr Victor Asare Bampoe, urged pharmacists to accept postings to rural areas in order to promote the responsible use of medicines in such communities.
“As the first port of call in most health situations, pharmacists must be willing to work in any part of the country to ensure that people, irrespective of their locality, can access medicines or advice about medicines easily,” he said.
Dr Bampoe further commended the Government and Hospital Pharmacists Association (GHOPSA) for resolving to dialogue with the government about issues on their migration onto the Single Spine Salary Structure.
According to him, strikes and threats of strikes affected access to quality healthcare and resulted in the irresponsible use of medicines.