Bhubaneswar: Medicines supplied by Odisha State Medical Corporation Limited (OSMCL) through Niramaya counter to kidney patients are highly effective, the State Government Sunday said.
Shalini Pandit, Secretary Health & Family Welfare outlined the details relating to the quality check, process of procurement, and supply of medicines to the patients by OSMCL through Niramaya counters of Government health facilities at a review meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra.
The Chief Secretary reviewed the medicine supply situation to the kidney transplant patients in SCB Medical College & Hospital and other medical colleges and hospitals (MCHs) of the State apparently in the wake of the agitation by several such patients in the State Capital for the past several days.
The issues relating to demand for specific brand medicines raised by a handful of kidney patients were also discussed in the meeting.
Deliberations in the meeting showed that all the medicines required during the kidney transplant surgery and post- transplant treatment were being supplied free of cost at Niramaya counters.
The quality of the medicines was thoroughly tested in NABL accredited laboratories before being procured and supplied to the hospitals.
The laboratory reports also proved that those drugs were highly effective.
OSMCL followed a robust method of online procurement, transparent quality test, and purchase.
The medicines found highly effective and appropriate through rigorous scrutiny were being procured and supplied by OSMCL with no consideration for any specific brand.
Available data showed Kidney transplant started in SCB medical college and hospital ( MCH), Cuttack since March 2012. As of today, 187 successful transplants were conducted and treated by the experienced doctor teams of SCB MCH.
At present, about 120 post-transplant patients were under medication. Out of them around 75pc (90 in absolute numbers) were taking the medicines supplied through OSMCL.
These patients never reported any side effects, and their health condition also indicated good progress, the meeting was informed.
Only around 30 patients demanded medicines of specific brand from private medicine stores raising a baseless complaint that the medicines supplied by OSMCL had side effects.
The experts present in the meeting appraised that the same medicine supplied by OSMCL for kidney patients was also being used by around 400 patients under critical care in other departments like Nephrology, Rheumatology and Dermatology.
The medicines had no side effects and were quite effective.
Previously, Secretary Health and family welfare, senior doctors and officers of SCB MCH held several rounds of meetings with the complaining kidney patients and their family members about the quality, safety and effectiveness of the medicine being supplied through OSMCL.
In spite of these clarifications and counseling, a handful of patients kept on agitating without any valid reason. The secret hands of some ill-motivated drug agencies and specific brand private stockists were sensed behind such agitation.
The high level meeting made it clear that it was not possible to purchase medicines of different brands by choice of the individual patients. The senior experts from Pharmaco Vigilance Committee, medico-Professors, clinical specialists and senior officers of health and family welfare department participated in the deliberations.
