Our Correspondent
Kohima | April 3
Minister for health & family welfare, Imkong L Imchen today affirmed to work towards making generic medicines available in all the hospitals. Imchen, in his first interactive session after taking charge of the department with the Chief Medical Officers (CMOs) and Medical Superintendents (MS) of all the districts hospitals expressed serious concern over the non-availability of medicines for patients in the district hospitals. The interaction occurred in the Conference Hall of the Directorate of Health and Family Welfare in Kohima.
“I would like to make available medicines for patients,” he said while lamenting that despite the budgetary provisions for purchase of medicines in the hospitals, medicines were insufficient due to which patients have to buy the medicines from private pharmacies.
He further expressed that in order to make sufficient medicines available for the patients in the district hospitals the department needs to put in place a proper organizational structure for the purchase of medicines. “All the required medicines may not be available but the generic medicines have to be made available,” he said asserting that this would be his primary agenda as the minister in-charge of Health and Family Welfare.
The newly appointed minister also lambasted the absence of medical officers and staff in their places of posting, while stating that most of the doctors, nurses and staff of the medical department instead of going to their places of posting want to remain in urban areas like Kohima, Dimapur and Mokokchung. “I want the medical officers and staff to attend to their respective assignments in the place of posting,” he said adding that “if you are not doing so… you are sinning against the people.”
