There are no expired medicines being dispensed at public health institutions as there are systems to ensure the safety of citizens, Government has said.
In a statement yesterday, the Government said there were laid down procedures for the disposal of all expired drugs.
Secretary for Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Mr Nick Mangwana dismissed social media footage suggesting Government hospitals were dispensing expired drugs, exposing the public to serious health risks.
“Government has been made aware of footage on social media purporting to show that expired medical drugs are being dispensed for use by patients in the country,” said Mr Mangwana in a statement to The Herald.
“Government wishes to assure the Zimbabwean public that it takes the safety of its citizens and patients seriously and there are systems in place to ensure that expired medication is disposed of, and not used irregularly,” he said.
He said there were laid down procedures for the disposal of expired drugs.
“Expired medication cannot be disposed of without a formal process that involves instituting a board of survey to scrutinise and verify the medicines targeted for destruction. The board goes through all the expired medicines, item by item, and provides the monetary value of such medication,” said Mr Mangwana.
He said expired medicines were destroyed with Treasury’s concurrence. Read more
