Government hospital administrations in the state have neglected and endangered lives of patients by storing poisonous material not meant for human consumption, along with the drugs in their drug warehouses.
This revelation was made by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), in its report for the year ending March 2019.
While the Drugs and Cosmetic Rules, 1945 stipulate parameters for the storage of drugs in stores to maintain the efficacy of the procured drugs before issue to patients, the report said that the norms and parameters prescribed in the said Rules were not adhered to by the hospitals in Shillong, Jowai, Nongpoh and Tura.
The report said verification revealed that parameters of storage and stocking of drugs like refrigeration/cold room, separate storage area for cleaning material and poisonous substances, adequate space for orderly storage of drugs, etc. were not adhered to in these district hospitals.
“Thus, the prevailing system and condition of the storage of drugs in the test-checked district drugs warehouse were not conducive and were susceptible to theft, damages and contamination,” the report added.
The Health Department had also persistently provided less funds than those demanded by the hospitals for drugs, while several drugs were in a ‘stock out’ situation, the report said. It says that the serious non-availability of essential drugs in these hospitals, defeated the state’s free drugs policy while the haphazard manner in which the available drugs are stored makes it difficult to retrieve essential drugs in emergencies and defeat the purpose of availability for patients, when required.
On the cleanliness front, the CAG discovered that cleaning services and hygiene practices were not satisfactory to provide an assurance regarding an infection free environment to the medical staff and patients. Poor conditions of toilets, drainage facilities, seepages in hospital rooms, linen maintenance, norms for safe distance between hospitals beds and for size of corridors were not being met, it added.
It also revealed that in Shillong, Jowai and Tura hospitals no effluent treatment plants were constructed thereby posing an environment and patient safety hazard. While a plant was constructed at Nongpoh hospital at Rs 45.35 lakh it was not functional pending inspection by the State Pollution Control Board.
The CAG further recommended that the Bio Medical Waste Rules should be adhered and followed rigorously and effluent plants be constructed in all hospitals.
