The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) has expressed concern over unwholesome practices by patent medicine dealers and vendors in Akwa Ibom State, shutting down 489 outlets across 14 local government areas.
The concern necessitated a four-day clampdown by the enforcement team of the Council which had members drawn from Abuja, Abia, Cross River and other states.
Addressing Journalists at the end of the exercise at the PCN, Uyo Zonal Office at the weekend, head of the enforcement team, Dr. Suleiman Chiroma, explained that the exercise became necessary to instill sanity in medical practice, as well as drugs administration and control.
He said this was in view of widespread quacks, drugs counterfeiting and other unethical practices.
“PCN has been in Akwa-Ibom State since the beginning of the week in her effort to enforce the regulatory standards of the Council, which is necessary for ensuring optimum conditions and expertise for access to qualitative medicines in Nigeria,” he explained.
Chiroma, who spoke on behalf of the Council Registrar, Pharm. Babashehu Ahmed, said the exercise aimed at “ensuring that quacks are rooted out of pharmaceutical practice and to stamp out the reckless handling of medicines by vendors whose aims are to exploit and put at risk the unsuspecting public.”
He added that “The National Drug Distribution Guidelines (NDDG), which PCN is enforcing is to ensure proper and effective channels of drug distribution, thereby addressing the chaotic drug distribution system that made it easy for untrained persons to be involved in handling medicine.”
Chiroma explained that drugs and medical devices were meant to follow the appropriate distribution channels from manufacturing/importation, distribution, wholesaling and retailing respectively.
These channels, he noted, must be inspected, approved, licensed and monitored to ensure efficacy and potency of the products, warning that “any breach of these channels of distribution will be sanctioned appropriately and this necessitated the need for enforcement.”
The shut premises found culpable were located in Uyo, Okobo, Oron, Ikot-Ekpene, Ikot-Abasi, Abak, Essien Udim, Ibiono Ibom, Ikono, Ini, Eket, Ibeno, Ibesikpo Asutan and Itu.
“A total number of 725 premises were visited comprising of 212 pharmacies and 513 patent medicine stores.
“Out of the total number of premises visited by the enforcement team, 489 premises were sealed which comprised of 122 pharmacies and 367 patent medicine shops for various regulatory breaches while 6 premises were issued compliance directives,” he said.
Chiroma listed some of the breaches to include operating illegally, non-renewal of premises registration, clinical practice, access to controlled medicines by unauthorised persons, over-stocking beyond the approved patent medicine list, training of apprentices and retailing by wholesale premises.
“One of the serious misnomer and trend observed during the course of the exercise was the uncontrolled and rampant training of apprentices by some premises, which is a flagrant violation of the PCN Act.
“The PCN seriously frown at this ignoble act and those pharmacists or vendors who engage in this misconduct will be sanctioned appropriately,” he said.
The PCN called on the public to be mindful of where they access their medicines to avoid falling into the hands of unauthorised persons.
It further urged the public to report such persons to the Akwa-Ibom State Office of the PCN in Uyo.
PCN added that the public can identify genuine pharmacies and PPMVs by their respective licences being conspicuously displaced in the premises.
The Council also commended the people of Akwa-Ibom State for their cooperation in the effort to sanitise the state from counterfeit and falsified pharmaceutical products.
