Health in Ethiopia - Pharmaceutical Services

Pharmaceutical Services

Since the start of HSDP I, the government was committed to ensuring community’s access to the essential medicines that are safe, effective and of assured quality including rational drug prescription and use. In the ongoing health sector reform, ensuring a regular and adequate supply of pharmaceuticals has been considered as one of the core processes in the BPR and the following have been implemented so far.

In order to introduce efficiency in the supply chain of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies management system, PHARMID has been transformed into Pharmaceutical Fund and Supply Agency (PFSA) with the several measures taken to strengthen the capacity of the new agency. These measures include: • Deployment of more regular staff and mobilization of TAs. • Design of the LMIS • The selection of 18 sites and beginning of the construction of warehouses and hubs. • Overhauling and strengthening the transport capacity of the Agency through the procurement of 92 trucks. • Improvement in the RDF volume by making available additional funding. • Building cold rooms that has increased the national capacity by five fold.

Furthermore; PFSA has developed a national list for the procurement of Essential Pharmaceuticals. It has been able to develop a pharmaceutical forecasting plan in consultation with health facilities that would be required for need-based procurement. The Agency has also undertaken capacity building activities in the areas of drug supply management and also engaged in the establishment and strengthening of Drug and Therapeutic Committees (DTC) in health facilities in order to improve the supply and rational use of pharmaceuticals. The new Agency has already started handling bulk procurement, storage and distribution of pharmaceuticals.

2.2.5. Health and Health Related Services and Product Regulation A key principle underpinning the design of BPR in the health sector was bringing a significant improvement in the quality of health services through the institutionalization of accountability and transparency. One mechanism of achieving this was to seriously consider the separation of purchaser, provider and regulator in the health system. As part of this important endeavor, the former Drug Administration and Control Agency (DACA) has undergone an institutional transformation into a new Agency called Health and Health related Services and Product Regulatory. The mandate of the new agency is to undertake inspection and quality control of health and health related products; premises, professionals and health delivery processes in an integrated manner. The Agency is strengthened through the construction of new building at federal and branch offices at regional levels that helped the Agency to expand the drug administration and control system throughout the country. The agency has now five branch offices which it provided delegation to RHBs on drug administration and control.. The agency is working closely with RHBs on drug quality and rational use through the process of reviewing drug documents, physical and laboratory quality assurance checks. Prevention and control on the use of narcotic drugs including tobacco are other mandates of the Agency which it works collaboratively with appropriate government offices. The agency has recently procured, installed and commissioned for use modern equipment for the safe disposal of expired drugs.