Authorities at the Tamale Teaching Hospital have rebuffed claims by doctors at the facility that they are being provided with expired anesthesia drugs.
Doctors at the hospital have withdrawn anesthesia services after patients suffered multiple complications following what they claimed as the intentional provision of expired anesthesia drugs.
In a letter issued on 13 February 13, 2017 by the Chief Anesthetist, the doctors said they have been compelled to take the decision due to management’s insistence that they use the expired anesthesia drugs.
“We are sorry to inform you of our withdrawal of anesthesia services in the theatre due to expired anesthesia drugs being supplied,” the letter read in parts.
Speaking on Morning Starr Thursday, the facility’s Public Relations Officer, Ahmed Fareed described the doctors’ claim as preposterous and unfounded.
Authorities at the facility, he said, visited the medical stores following the claims but unfortunately, “no expired drugs were seen.”
“There is no point…at no point that the hospital supplied the anesthetics with any expired drugs. There was a memo to the Medical Director by the anesthetics withdrawing services for which they alleged that drugs provided them were expired drugs.
“Now tracing to the medical stores we realized that there was none—absolutely nothing of that sort in the medical stores which we call expired drugs or even that has an expiration period between now and the next three months,” Mr. Fareed told Francis Abban, the host of Morning Starr.
Eating humble pie
The agitating anesthetics, he disclosed, have since shown remorse withdrawing their initial memo to the facility’s authorities, explaining that it was a miscommunication.
“…And since then till now they have been at work, working to save the lives of people. That is the state of the [Tamale] Teaching Hospital as far as the anesthetics are concerned and there is no expired drugs at the medical store,” he added.
According to Starr News’ Northern region correspondent, Eliasu Tanko, authorities at the facility are currently being investigated by the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA).
He said Mershak Gandaa, regulatory Officer at the FDA confirmed the probe but declined to elaborate on the issue.
In his reaction, Mr. Fareed repudiated the probe claim saying, “Never! There is no investigation going on by either BNI, CID or even the Food and Drugs Authority.”
