Western Cape government seeks intervention over medicine shortages — TimesLIVE

In South Africa, the Western Cape provincial government has called for urgent intervention at the national level over persistent medicine shortages in the public healthcare sector. Supply constraints are placing additional pressure on healthcare facilities and patients who need life-saving medicines and drugs for treating chronic illnesses, TimesLIVE reports.

Appeal to ministers

Mireille Wenger, the Western Cape provincial MEC for Health and Wellness, first raised the issue of medicine shortages on 2 June, ahead of a National Health Council meeting on 11 June. More than four months later, supply problems have persisted.

In September, Wenger asked Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi to take urgent action and set clear deadlines for stabilising supplies. She has now also asked Transport Minister Barbara Creecy to help identify and remove possible logistical bottlenecks at South African ports that may be delaying the delivery of imported medicines to public healthcare facilities.

The official requested particular attention to the Port of Durban, where concerns have been raised about possible delays. At the same time, the exact nature and scale of the problems at the port have not yet been established. The provincial department seeks to coordinate the actions of authorities, terminal operators and other parties involved in the process.

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Testing and redistribution of stocks

According to Wenger, supplies are affected by production constraints, disruptions in international transport, supplier delays, procurement problems and regulatory procedures. After imported medicines arrive in South Africa, they must undergo quality testing before being distributed to healthcare facilities; this process takes three to four weeks.

The Western Cape Department of Health monitors stocks and supplier performance at the Cape Medical Depot every week and provides the data to the national government. Temporary measures include redistributing medicines between facilities, seeking alternative drugs and supporting temporary imports when necessary.

Patients were advised not to stop taking prescribed medicines or change their dosage on their own, and to consult a healthcare professional if their usual medicine is unavailable or their treatment changes. The National Department of Health said it was aware of the shortage problem and was preparing a detailed statement.