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BY GLENN VIDAL BEUP
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Tuesday, May 23, 2017
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ROXAS City – A top official of the Roxas Memorial Provincial Hospital (RMPH) confirmed that some doctors and staffers instruct patients to buy medicines from pharmacies they recommend.
These doctors and staffers get a cut from the sale of the medicines they prescribe, Hospital Administrator Melanie Arancillo told this reporter.
While not exactly prohibited, the practice — partly attributed to the insufficient supply of medicines in the hospital’s pharmacy — was perceived to be financially detrimental to patients and folks.
A resident of Barangay Tanque, whose wife gave birth at the RMPH a few days ago, said a medical staffer “required” him to buy medicines and supplies from a local drugstore across the hospital.
“This drugstore sells this paraphernalia needed for our baby’s antibiotic transfusion at a price P50 higher compared to the same paraphernalia sold in a more popular drugstore,” said the resident, who requested anonymity.
“I heard some doctors and medical staffers get a share from the sale of medicines and medical paraphernalia,” he told this reporter.
Arancillo confirmed these claims. Those against this were encouraged to “file a complaint … and we will act on it immediately,” she told this reporter.
The RMPH was criticized for the insufficient supply of medicines and medical supplies in its pharmacy despite the campaign promise of Gov. Antonio del Rosario that he will give priority to health programs. Patients and folks had to buy from pharmacies outside of the hospital as a result.
“There was a problem in the procurement process, which we already addressed,” Arancillo said. “We reconstituted the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) and replaced the members with new ones. A separate BAC for hospitals was created, too.”
She acknowledged that some “end users” in the RMPH were “not familiar with procedures [under] RA (Republic Act) 9184,” or the Government Procurement Reform Act.
“As a result, we had two failed biddings for the purchase of medicines, but things were getting back to normal after they went through a series of seminars,” Arancillo said.
BAC Secretariat chair Ferdinand Caberoy stressed that public biddings under the del Rosario administration were “very transparent” and compliant with proceedings required by the procurement law.
Capiz has several provincial government-run medical facilities — two infirmaries (Tapaz and Dao), two Level 2 hospitals (Mambusao and Pontevedra), and a Level 3 hospital (RMPH).
“The procurement of medicines must be done through a competitive public bidding and not by means of small-value procurement, as what the old BAC often did,” said Arancillo. “By doing it right, we were able to save P5 million in the fourth quarter last year and almost P4 million in first and second quarters this year.”
Arancillo said the public can “expect a normal supply of medicines in all our provincial hospitals’ pharmacies with the completion of delivery this week.”/PN
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