Why There’s No Paracetamol at Hospitals: Health Ministry Breaks Down Drug Shortages
The Ministry of Health and Child Care has finally explained why essential medicines like paracetamol are running out at public hospitals — and it’s not because the drugs aren’t available.
Surprisingly, the National Pharmaceutical Company (NatPharm) has large stockpiles of medicines. But due to bureaucratic delays and poor coordination, the medication isn’t reaching hospitals fast enough, leaving patients to suffer needlessly.
This comes after President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s surprise visit to NatPharm and major public hospitals last week, which exposed serious gaps in how medical supplies are being distributed.
Why There’s No Paracetamol At Hospitals
Health officials say they’re now working to fix the broken supply system that’s stopping medicines from getting where they’re needed.
Permanent Secretary Dr Aspect Maunganidze told The Sunday Mail that the Ministry is rolling out reforms, including an electronic logistics management information system (eLMIS) — a digital tool that helps track and manage drug deliveries more efficiently.
The idea is to move away from outdated paper systems and create a streamlined digital supply chain that tracks medicine stock, deliveries, and potential delays in real time.
Money Bottlenecks Are Making Things Worse
Maunganidze also pointed to funding delays as a major problem. Even when drugs are available at NatPharm, hospitals can’t get them unless they pay, and those payments depend on how quickly Treasury releases money, or how much is available in the Health Services Fund (HSF).
He explained that hospitals are required to use a mix of HSF and Treasury allocations to pay NatPharm for medicine deliveries. But when these funds are delayed, so are the payments — and ultimately, so are the medicines.
“However, the effectiveness of this arrangement depends on how regularly and promptly those funds are received. When disbursements are delayed, so too are payments to NatPharm and, in turn, the delivery of medicines. This is particularly problematic for non-donor-supported medicines, such as those for non-communicable diseases (NCDs like hypertension, diabetes and asthma), which are often the first to be affected,” he said.
Drugs for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like diabetes, asthma, and high blood pressure are especially affected, Maunganidze said, because they aren’t supported by donors and rely entirely on government funding.
This makes them the first to run out when finances are tight.
Transport Problems Also Play a Role
On top of financial delays, basic logistical needs like fuel, vehicle maintenance, and delivery schedules are also being disrupted. Maunganidze admitted that even when NatPharm has stock, hospitals may not receive their orders if there’s no fuel or a functioning vehicle to deliver the supplies.
He said Treasury is supposed to release funds quarterly, but pressure on the national budget often causes delays, leaving hospitals stuck.
“Public health institutions are expected to use part of their HSF and Treasury disbursements to pay NatPharm for supplied medicines. The ministry has reinforced this policy through circulars and monitoring systems,” said Dr Maunganidze.
Additionally, Dr Maunganidze said, transport and logistical operations (such as fuel, vehicle maintenance and delivery scheduling) were directly affected by funding constraints.
Ideally, funds are disbursed by Treasury quarterly, but according to Dr Maunganidze, delays sometimes occur due to fiscal pressures and competing priorities.
He said these delays affected the facilities’ ability to purchase medicines and pay for associated logistics costs such as fuel and vehicle support, which are essential for last-mile delivery.
“As a result, even when medicines are in stock at NatPharm, patients may still experience shortages at the facility level,” he said.
Follow Us on Google News for Immediate Updates
The post Why There’s No Paracetamol at Hospitals: Health Ministry Breaks Down Drug Shortages appeared first on iHarare News.
